What should any Athlete Eat for Pre-Workout and Post Workout?

You are not alone if you find out that you are one of those who is always confused about what to eat and when to eat it before or after your workout routines. Wondering what to eat is a major dilemma for active men and women who are keep on keeping fit and healthy. A good example is this: after that cardio sesh, should you be having a protein shake or not?

Read on if you want to know which foods work best after your workout and those that work best for pre-workout fuel.

Best Pre-Workout Meals

Fat — you can supercharge your energy levels when you add some fat as part of your pre-workout meals. As opposed to fueling your body with only carbs, fats can equally provide you with some longer lasting energy. Each time you workout, fats are capable of helping you push yourself a little bit longer because they help in prolonging your levels of energy.

Staying away from damaged fats is the most important thing. You just have to avoid anything that has on its label partially hydrogenated, hydrogenated, or trans hydrogenated. Experts actually advice that any pre-workout products with these ingredients should be avoided at all costs. Instead, whole eggs, seeds, nuts, coconut oil, and avocados are examples of healthy fats that should be taken.

Proteins — you can rev up your workout a little by adding some protein to your pre-workout meal. This is a fact, even though popular opinion among athletes and active men and women is that proteins usually serve as a fuel source for post-workout. You can help your body support muscle performance, increase strength, and muscle recovery when you add some clean protein sources to your diet before you hit the floor for your workout routine. In addition, it has been proven by scientific studies that your body really benefits a lot when you enjoy some good whey protein as a pre-workout meal. So, you would do your body a whole lot of good to sprinkle some whey protein in your cup of unsweetened coconut milk or almond yogurt, or add a scoop of it to your favourite pre-workout smoothie. In order to avoid those yucky hormones and additives, you should strictly stick to 100% grass fed whey protein.

Carbs — a lot of athletes and fitness enthusiasts choose to carb load before a major event. Who would blame them? They know just how important carbs are during workouts. However, do you know that it is not really necessary to consume a large amount of carbs before a workout session? This is especially relevant to any average gym-goer. So the natural question would now be what should be eaten and when should it be eaten? Fitness experts advise that you should add some carbs to your meal 2–3 hours before your workout. This would help to fuel your muscles with glucose that would support your energy levels during your next strength training or cardio workout. Excellent options include fruit, quinoa, rolled oats, brown rice, and sweet potatoes.

The Best Selections of Pre-Workout Meals

Is your tummy rumbling with hunger already? It is just natural that you would be, after all that food talk above. I am going to share below some healthy options that any athlete or fitness enthusiast can snack on as a pre-workout meal. Remember always that as much as possible, 2–3 hours should have elapsed after enjoying a balanced snack or meal before you start with your workout. Don’t sweat it if life gets in the way. Before you start your exercises, ensure that 45–60 minutes have elapsed after enjoying any easily digestible snack. Some of my favourite options are listed below:

-Handful of nuts with side berries

-Bowl of oatmeals with nut butter

-Avocado Toast

-Blueberry banana smoothie with almond milk and collagen protein

-Coconut milk yogurt with flax or chia seeds and raw honey

Best Post-Workout Meals

Now you ae starving and completely toast after all that sweat dripping awesome workout, what next? What do you use to refuel yourself? Is it better to blend up a quick protein shake, or should you enjoy a full meal? Find out below.

It is Vital to have a Balanced Meal

Experts advice that you should look towards enjoying a balanced meal after you workout, the same way you would naturally want to have a balanced pre-workout meal that would comprise of fat, protein, and some sort of complex carbohydrates (like quinoa and oats that are slower releasing). You can choose to blend up a balanced protein shake instead, if you cannot get around to making a full meal.

It is very important that in your post-recovery you have a bit of each macronutrient. Here is why:

Fat — a lot of people have the fear that their body’s ability to absorb nutrients is going to be severely affected after they might have had too much fat after a workout. You should not entertain any fears. All the benefits of the other nutritious foods you enjoy in your post-workout meal would not be stolen by the healthy fats that you take in. so, feel free drizzling some coconut oil over your sweet potato, or add a quarter of an avocado to your protein shake. Apart from boosting the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins, the healthy fats can also help give you a much-needed energy boost. In other words, having a fear of healthy fats is simply not called for.

Protein — another vital key to building those muscles that you are working so hard to achieve is getting some protein into your system after your workout. For optimal results, fitness experts advise that after your sweat sesh, consume around 20–40 grams of protein to refuel those tired muscles. Does that sound like way too much protein? It isn’t. You can easily pack that quantity of protein by adding into your post-workout shake a half cup of unsweetened Greek yogurt and a scoop of bone broth or collagen protein for additional protein boost after your workout.

Carbs — during your workout you burn up your body’s store of glycogen. To help replenish it, you need to eat some carbs after your workout. Your body uses up these stores quite fast when you exercise regularly. This is outside of your body dipping into them to use as energy. You would be giving these stores a much-needed boost and doing your body a favour in the process with some healthy carbs from things such as carb-heavy fruits like bananas, things like oats, quinoa, brown rice, or things like starchy veggies (squash, beets, sweet potatoes).

The Best Selection of Post Workout Meals

You don’t have to look further than this article if what you have been searching for is what to use to fuel your body after an intense workout. I am also going to reveal the ideal moment you should take any meals after your workout.

Experts have advised that after your workout, wait around 45 minutes before you eat anything. You can always get a snack asap if it feels not right within that time frame.

I have listed some of my favorite choices of meals for post-workout to help you figure out which foods to take post-workout.

-2 hard-boiled eggs with a side of fruit and a slice of gluten-free toast

-Protein shake with collagen protein, flax seeds, banana, and almond milk.

-2 rice cakes with hemp seeds and almond butter

-Rice pasta with broccoli and ground turkey

In Conclusion

The role that nutrition plays is vital in any athlete or fitness enthusiast. It doesn’t help to replenish your glycogen stores and support muscle recovery with post-workout fuel. It also gives you the energy to dominate that workout with pre-workout fuel.

So, you would only be cheating yourself when you skip your pre and post-workout meals. Getting through those final reps of each workout might depend on the boost and power your body gets from those meals. Faster and better results can come when you have increased endurance. Your boy is counting on you to go and get your pre and post-workout fuel. Don’t disappoint it.

Disclaimer: Please note that I am not a medical expert. As such, the views I have expressed above should not be taken as professional medical advice. They are simply my own opinions of what has worked for me in my on-going journey to become healthy and fit. Always consult your doctor. Also, you should assume that some of the links contained in my article are affiliate links. This means that if you do choose to purchase any of my recommendations I would be compensated by the affiliate network at no extra cost to you. Thank you.