Weight Loss Question please

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PrettyDebbie
PrettyDebbie Posts: 18 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I don't typically eat prior to working out (my workouts are 70-90 minutes) BUT I MUST know, how important is it to eat something before working out? Will I notice positive improvements in weight loss if I eat first? Any thoughts?
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  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
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    It's personal preference, nothing more.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,058 Member
    edited May 2016
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    Do you mean for weight loss or performance? It makes no difference for weight loss whether you eat before during or after your workout. Eat when you want. I find a small snack before works to give me energy, but too much food doesn't sit well during exercise.
  • PrettyDebbie
    PrettyDebbie Posts: 18 Member
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    Thanks, good question. My goal now is strictly weight loss.
  • zoeysasha37
    zoeysasha37 Posts: 7,088 Member
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    It is totally up to you. Some people like to eat before and some eat after. It is about personal preference.
  • DarthSamson
    DarthSamson Posts: 172 Member
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    I dont know enough, but if you last ate at 8:00 pm and you do a 6:00 am workout seems like the body has to burn fat for energy.
  • rainbowbow
    rainbowbow Posts: 7,490 Member
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    personal preference.

    i personally cannot eat within 2-3 hours before my workout otherwise there's a chance i might throw up.
  • moto450
    moto450 Posts: 334 Member
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    up to you, it doesn't matter in the long run..
  • Pam_1965
    Pam_1965 Posts: 137 Member
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    PrettyDebbie wrote: »
    I don't typically eat prior to working out (my workouts are 70-90 minutes) BUT I MUST know, how important is it to eat something before working out? Will I notice positive improvements in weight loss if I eat first? Any thoughts?

    I walk/run 5.5 miles 5-6 times a week on a hilly golf course trail. I usually start somewhere between 3:30 and 5:30 in the afternoon. I have found that if I have not eaten enough for lunch (maybe I'm saving my calories for dinner, or something) then I have a really hard time making it through my routine in a timely, thus more beneficial, manner. A serving of almonds (18 grams) or a light cheese stick right before really helps. Sometimes, I actually have to eat the almonds half-way through my loop.
  • BinaryFu
    BinaryFu Posts: 240 Member
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    Calorie deficit = weight loss. No workouts necessary.

    If you want to body build, improve muscle tone, etc...that is the time to ask such a question.

    At this stage, the only thing I'd recommend is to have a protein/carb snack bar before workout if and ONLY if you are really fading halfway through the workout and can't seem to make a strong finish.
  • hhazzouri
    hhazzouri Posts: 103 Member
    edited May 2016
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    I train fasted almost everyday. Cant say if it makes me lose more fat but i feel much more energetic when my body doesnt have to worry about digestion. Some people feel they're low on energy when they dont eat before, but if you dont feel like that you dont need to eat.
  • ashleyjongepier
    ashleyjongepier Posts: 130 Member
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    Its personal, I can't eat before I workout, it makes me feel sick, however I try to eat a large snack high in carbs or a full balanced meal soon after.
  • cerise_noir
    cerise_noir Posts: 5,468 Member
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    rainbowbow wrote: »
    personal preference.

    i personally cannot eat within 2-3 hours before my workout otherwise there's a chance i might throw up.

    Definitely personal preference. I have to have a little something to eat around 40 minutes before working out, or I'll get light-headed and have no energy.
  • Kait_Dee
    Kait_Dee Posts: 176 Member
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    I eat an hour to 45 minutes pre-workout .. Usually a small bowl of Cheerios and almond milk or a bit of apple and peanut butter. I'm the type that without the extra carbs, I have a difficult time performing and maximizing on my workouts, which defeats the purpose for me as a bodybuilder or in my personal weight loss goals (greater deficit if I'm nutritionally at a deficit and expand the deficit by lifting more weight/running faster on intervals).
  • Afura
    Afura Posts: 2,054 Member
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    I like a little something before a serious workout, and I mean some meat and cheese, or a hard boiled egg, nothing huge and at least 1/2 hr before.
  • rankinsect
    rankinsect Posts: 2,238 Member
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    DarthSamson wrote: »
    I dont know enough, but if you last ate at 8:00 pm and you do a 6:00 am workout seems like the body has to burn fat for energy.

    That matters in the short term (if you're looking at fat burning over the course of an hour) but over the course of the entire day, you'll have a net loss of the same amount of fat. Meal timing can change at which points during the day you are losing fat (and at which points you're gaining it) but it won't change how much you lose over longer periods of time.
  • joncooper1980
    joncooper1980 Posts: 96 Member
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    rankinsect wrote: »
    DarthSamson wrote: »
    I dont know enough, but if you last ate at 8:00 pm and you do a 6:00 am workout seems like the body has to burn fat for energy.

    That matters in the short term (if you're looking at fat burning over the course of an hour) but over the course of the entire day, you'll have a net loss of the same amount of fat. Meal timing can change at which points during the day you are losing fat (and at which points you're gaining it) but it won't change how much you lose over longer periods of time.

    Whilst I agree to a point there is research to suggest that fasted cardio helps you to burn "a bit more" fat than fed cardio. In short it has to do with the amount of fat cells the body breaks down (during fasted cardio compared to fed cardio) and fat oxidation which basically increases (ever so slightly) the CO side of the energy balance equation. Of course non of this matters if you dont follow a proper diet. Link to a good article that covers this- http://www.muscleforlife.com/fasted-cardio/
  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
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    It's mostly "as tolerated." Some people get sick if they eat before, some if they don't. For most people its probably fine.
  • HavtaLose
    HavtaLose Posts: 59 Member
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    I never used to eat anything before working out. I liked to do it in a state of fasting of 3 hr+ and then eat right after. However just a few weeks ago, i have started eating a small snack of 50 calories (maybe a cookie or half protein bar) right before my workout and i can see a huge difference in my energy level. I don't rush through my workout and am able to give my 100%. So i think it's definitely a personal preference. BUT nothing more than 100 calories for me, otherwise then i just get sluggish and have to wait it out.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
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    DarthSamson wrote: »
    I dont know enough, but if you last ate at 8:00 pm and you do a 6:00 am workout seems like the body has to burn fat for energy.
    @DarthSamson
    No not at all. You are really just burning fat while you sleep and will still have loads of glycogen available next morning.
    It's the intensity of your exercise that primarily influences the ratio of fat/glycogen used.

    But in terms of weight loss that's just about irrelevant anyway.
  • Tedebearduff
    Tedebearduff Posts: 1,155 Member
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    PrettyDebbie wrote: »
    I don't typically eat prior to working out (my workouts are 70-90 minutes) BUT I MUST know, how important is it to eat something before working out? Will I notice positive improvements in weight loss if I eat first? Any thoughts?

    I disagree that it's a personal preference, even for weight loss you want to retain as much muscle as possible in order to keep your metabolism high. You should eat something before you workout as to not burn into your muscle.

    Just my opinion, I don't have a study backing up my claims for all the know it all Nazis that will ask for one.

    My personal preference is to train fasted though, I workout at 5:00AM so no real time to eat anything.

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