Best meal before weight training in the early AM?

When I used to lift in the AM (0500) I had egg whites and oatmeal. 300 calories & enough to punch through a hard session.

I usually go with apples, oatmeal, and a protein bar. I keep a protein drink and a G2 Gatorade in my gym bag for afterwards, then eat some yogurt mixed with oats and protein powder when I get home.

Hi everyone,

When I am heading to the gym in the early morning, I'm not sure what I should be eating to fuel my workout (typically a 10 min cardio warm up followed by 45-60 min of weight training).

My trainer said that I should eat something very light (like a banana or a handful of dates), however, I told him that I don't feel like that is substantial enough to get me through the workout, and I'd rather eat a slice of toast or english muffin with almond butter or greek yogurt or something like that. He stated that eating more than a piece of fruit before weights would result in my body using energy to burn off that small meal, as opposed to burning fat.

Can anyone tell me if this is actually true? Am I sabotaging myself by eating a small amount of protein/fats in addition to carbs pre-workout?

It's important to realize that the majority of the muscle glyco you'll be using to lift tomorrow was eaten today. So eat well before bed.

The morning snack really shouldn't be very heavy. I prefer yogurt or a good protein shake.

It's probably not the best advice but I lift at 5am every morning. I don't eat anything before I work out.

My suggestion would be to get a new trainer that actually knows what they are talking about. He/she is still spouting off typical bro-science in regards to workout nutrition. I workout first thing in the morning and have nothing in my system aside from my pre-workout drink (White Flood Reborn by Controlled Labs). There is no need to eat anything before training if you don't want to. Your body will replenish its glycogen stores over the previous 24 hours provided you are consuming adequate calories and macronutrients the day before.

What (if anything) you consume before and after your workout does not play a significant direct role in the outcome of your diet, beyond personal preference.

Why? Because what matters in terms of direct impact on outcomes is total daily intake of all nutrients.

Thus, you should optimize based on how you respond to training in a fed or fasted state, and based on your hungry after exercise. In other words, use common sense.

I usually have peanut butter toast or a couple of eggs. Enough to spike energy, light enough not to affect my workout.

Don't listen to personal trainers about nutrition. Eat your English muffin with almond butter or whatever makes you feel best. Sure, lifting is about burning fat if that's your goal, but it's more important to focus on gaining strength. If you feel weaker eating a banana before lifting than you do eating something else, eat whatever fuels your workout best.

I eat a Quest bar before I lift at 5AM. I don't have time to sit around and wait 30 minutes before I start working out, so I'm lifting within 10 minutes of eating. It works for me and I feel stronger at that time than I do if I try to lift at the end of the day after all of my meals. Just listen to your body and do what feels best for YOU, not your trainer.

^This

I am not a morning person and have more energy in the evening, so I lift then. Some ice cream or fruit an hour or two before lifting is my usual go to.

I am up at 5 and make waffle with bananas and crunchy peanut butter and maple syrup, glass of milk and a travel mug coffee to drink on the way to the gym... Been my goto breakfast before lifting for quite a while now... if I mix it up, I will do Oatmeal with brown sugar and a bagel with honey...... I think though it comes down to personal preference and what will work for your individual needs.... Best of Luck

I don't do AM workouts any more, but I wouldn't eat anything and would train fasted. If I tried to eat I'd end up blowing chunks.

You have to listed to your body. If I eat within a couple of hours before I lift, at any time of the day, I'll puke. It's like the old "don't go in the water for an hour after eating". If you can handle something light, and you feel good, you've found your balance.

I have a banana and preworkout before lifting at 5am. Works well for me. I eat a *kitten* ton of food when I get home from the gym because I don't get very hungry when I wake up at 4:40 to get ready.

What IS best vs what FEELS best in this case are honestly not going to match up well for you. The way your hormones work is very intricate and complicated when it comes to losing weight. In your personal case your trainer was right to eat as little as possible beforehand and go hamm on Complex carbs and slow digesting proteins after. It can all get pretty confusing but most of my knowledge and personal experience come from a program I just tried and lost my remaining twenty pounds! I mean I can see my damn abs again! Its no gimmick or bs and I wont lie to you, you will have to work and maintain it as a lifestyle. nothing else has worked. I'll post the link if you wanna check it out!

http://tinyurl.com/psdadtk

Hope this helps

Andddddd.... reported.

I'm a banana person at 5 a.m., protein shake post workout and breakfast sandwich (bacon, egg whites) once I get to work around 9 a.m. If I ate more pre-workout, I sometimes feel queasy, particularly if it's a longer run. If I eat nothing, the tank runs dry on longer sessions. Have fun experimenting.

Don't listen to personal trainers about nutrition. Eat your English muffin with almond butter or whatever makes you feel best. Sure, lifting is about burning fat if that's your goal, but it's more important to focus on gaining strength. If you feel weaker eating a banana before lifting than you do eating something else, eat whatever fuels your workout best.

I eat a Quest bar before I lift at 5AM. I don't have time to sit around and wait 30 minutes before I start working out, so I'm lifting within 10 minutes of eating. It works for me and I feel stronger at that time than I do if I try to lift at the end of the day after all of my meals. Just listen to your body and do what feels best for YOU, not your trainer.

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