Fasted lifting..

daniebanks
daniebanks Posts: 179 Member
edited November 19 in Food and Nutrition
I do all my workouts in the morning (5:30am) so I don't eat breakfast before I go & drink BCAA's while I do my workout.

My question is do you find you lift better if you eat a meal/snacks before hand ?
Or have you found fasted lifting to be beneficial in any way?

:smile:

Replies

  • FitForL1fe
    FitForL1fe Posts: 1,872 Member
    lol I hate that *kitten*. I eat before and after. I've heard plenty of people say they like it though. YMMV and such
  • daniebanks
    daniebanks Posts: 179 Member
    draznyth wrote: »
    lol I hate that *kitten*. I eat before and after. I've heard plenty of people say they like it though. YMMV and such

    Hate what ?
  • annette_15
    annette_15 Posts: 1,657 Member
    I never work out fasted unless I have to get up super early. I only lifted before food a couple of days ago, but I will say the preworkout felt a lot stronger and I didnt lack energy at all. I can see it becoming more of a regular thing now if it means I can sleep in an extra hour in the morning and not have to wait for food to digest haha
  • FitForL1fe
    FitForL1fe Posts: 1,872 Member
    daniebanks wrote: »
    draznyth wrote: »
    lol I hate that *kitten*. I eat before and after. I've heard plenty of people say they like it though. YMMV and such

    Hate what ?

    fasted lifting...moderately hungry lifting...nibblish lifting...peckish lifting
  • lishie_rebooted
    lishie_rebooted Posts: 2,973 Member
    I lift fasted in the AM.
    and if I end up working out at night, I try not to eat within 2.5-3hrs otherwise I feel heavy and gross (mostly during cardio)
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
    No way. Need some food.
  • daniebanks
    daniebanks Posts: 179 Member
    Yeah I only lift fasted because I get up and head straight to the gym then go to work and then have breakfast which is oats etc :smile:

    I have noticed though a snack can give a bit of an energy boost, usually some fruit or some peanut butter :smiley:
  • daniebanks
    daniebanks Posts: 179 Member
    I dont really have time for a proper meal before I get to the gym in the morn, been thinking about some sort of carby shake .. any one do this ?
  • FitForL1fe
    FitForL1fe Posts: 1,872 Member
    daniebanks wrote: »
    I dont really have time for a proper meal before I get to the gym in the morn, been thinking about some sort of carby shake .. any one do this ?

    yeah just get whatever macros and calories you feel are appropriate. or do it fasted if it works for you. general consensus is that the only thing that matters is total calories per day, and not the timing of consumption.
  • livingleanlivingclean
    livingleanlivingclean Posts: 11,751 Member
    I prefer lifting fasted if I train early. It doesn't happen very often, but if it does, I manage on coffee with coconut oil. I've likely had lots of carbs the night before and this gets me through..
  • daniebanks
    daniebanks Posts: 179 Member
    here's another question for you lifters

    I've used a heart rate monitor to check calories burnt during lifting, I know that they aren't 100% accurate, but I would assume a solid lifting session (60 minutes) would burn roughly 300-400 cals .. Would you definitely eat these exercise calories back or just meet your daily calorie intake?

  • martyqueen52
    martyqueen52 Posts: 1,120 Member
    edited June 2015
    I lift fasted as well. When I eat, I can literally fall asleep standing there. And I've noticed I'm stronger, when I'm empty.

    The only thing in my stomach is my multi, fish oil, two green tea pills, my pre-workout and 8oz of White Monster Ultra Zero.

    When I setup my macros I did it from IIFYM.com, and it calculated my workout calories for my overall total calories. So, no, I don't eat back calories. I even walk my dogs daily for about 2-3 miles which in turn, burns MORE calories and I never eat anything back.
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,267 Member
    edited June 2015
    I have to eat something before exercise...doesn't matter if it's weights or cardio otherwise I feel faint.

    Typically something small like greek yogurt but other times it's toast and fruit etc...but I often eat right after I am done.

    As for lifting for an hour...HRM is no where near accurate and as for burns...no one is doing solid lifting for 1 hour...there are always breaks between sets and to change weights etc so no I don't think 300-400 is close for most women esp. I would eat back some but not 300-400.
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  • galgenstrick
    galgenstrick Posts: 2,086 Member
    daniebanks wrote: »
    here's another question for you lifters

    I've used a heart rate monitor to check calories burnt during lifting, I know that they aren't 100% accurate, but I would assume a solid lifting session (60 minutes) would burn roughly 300-400 cals .. Would you definitely eat these exercise calories back or just meet your daily calorie intake?

    Just keep logging your progress. If you're losing weight too fast, then increase your calories. Don't bother trying to figure out how much you burned lifting.
  • Talan79
    Talan79 Posts: 782 Member
    I lift on a fast since I go in at 6am. I feel fine, and I eat right after.
  • Leslierussell4134
    Leslierussell4134 Posts: 376 Member
    I tend to hit the wall if I try and lift fasted, and I don't lift heavy weights. I feel stronger on days I have eaten at least 45 minutes to an hour before. Different strokes for different folks. My trainer is an ex NFL player and he swears he can't eat before any workout because he'll throw up. I say experiment and find out what works best for your body. Keep notes of how you feel pre and post workout.
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  • LolBroScience
    LolBroScience Posts: 4,537 Member
    Stronger with food in me
  • tulips_and_tea
    tulips_and_tea Posts: 5,741 Member
    lishie_rebooted wrote: »
    I lift fasted in the AM.
    and if I end up working out at night, I try not to eat within 2.5-3hrs otherwise I feel heavy and gross (mostly during cardio)

    Same here. I have digestive issues, so I prefer to have not eaten for quite a while prior to my cardio or else I'm struggling for energy. I lift in the AM and that is always fasted.
  • lisalsd1
    lisalsd1 Posts: 1,519 Member
    If you use MFP to estimate cals burned during lifting...it gives me closer to 125 cals in an hour. I've been using this method to estimate cals burned for awhile and have definitely lost fat (I figure better to underestimate than overestimate).

    There is no way I could lift fasted; I try NOT to eat too much volume immediately before lifting. Too much food before lifting...that's how people throw-up at the gym.
  • daniebanks
    daniebanks Posts: 179 Member
    Yeah I haven't been using my HRM lately, I just wore it a couple of times to see what kind of reading it gave :)

    I stick to my calories that IIFYM calculator gave me, though some days you are just that a bit hungrier :wink: .
  • SweatLikeDog
    SweatLikeDog Posts: 318 Member
    Coffee. It's psychological.
This discussion has been closed.

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