What To Eat Before A Workout To Build Muscle
Let’s take a look at a few options to have as the best pre workout meal for muscle gain.
How often do you just throw a bag of potato chips down your throat or even a candy bar before your workout in the gym?
Let’s face it, not many of us have the perfect daily schedule enabling us to have the correct foods and meal plans like a sponsored fitness model.
Nor can we always fit the gym in at the ideal time each day…sometimes we just have to wing it and go with the flow.
After all, jobs need to be attended to, kids need to eat and your mom wants to talk…again. Did I mention the car has just got a flat..?
With juggling real life, not just an Instagram story, comes impromptu gym sessions and feeds when we get a chance.
However, if we can, it is definitely worth putting a bit more consideration in to what we eat prior to the gym as much as we think about what we consume immediately afterwards.
This snack or meal could be the difference between that extra half pound on the bar.
Not having the correct sustenance before the weights can leave you feeling a bit empty, light headed and not mentally in the zone. This will have a negative impact on your confidence and performance.
You need some fuel in you to ensure you can have an effective workout.
The basics and the best foods contain both carbohydrates and proteins.
Put simply, the carbs provide fast release energy and the proteins help prevent muscle breakdown.
Bear in mid that anything fatty or fibrous will take along time to digest.
However, what needs to be considered is how the foods are digested and how long it will take for your body to break it down.
There’s no point eating something that will take ages to digest and have it sitting in your stomach if you are literally about to hit the weights in 15 minutes.
Likewise, why eat something that will be digested really quickly and used by your body if you are not going to do some training on the field in 4 hours time?
On another note, trying to train while your body tries to digest your food is a horrible experience that can negatively effect your performance.
This is because as you train hard your body competes between sending blood to the organs digesting food and the muscles required to do the work.
Realistically, you have to fuel for the time you have before you train so your body can use the nutrients effectively.
Is it a minefield?
A little bit, but get it right and it will ensure your performance is stronger than if you just fill up on candy.
However, here’s a few ideas to get you sorted no matter what you’re training for and how long you have to fuel up.
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If you are rushing and have no time to fuel, try this:
Chocolate milk
This offers a good carb to protein ratio of about 3 to 1 parts.
That is 3 times the amount of carbohydrate per protein.
This will be quickly and easily digested meaning less or very little discomfort when you hit the squat rack or even the field.
Hitting the gym in about an hour?
How about a peanut butter, honey and banana sandwich..?
The ratio of carbs and protein is a little more balanced making this 2 parts carbs to 1 part protein.
So plenty of energy, more protein for muscle development and recovery but with that extra bit of time to digest it will provide a good source of fuel for your workout.
Use wholegrain bread, a couple of spoons of peanut butter and a sliced banana with a drizzle of honey.
Got time to prepare something, even overnight?
Oats, banana and cinnamon
So, you know you are going to the gym the next morning, but it isn’t until later on and you have a couple of hours from waking and eating before you are flipping tires, doing the farmers walk and carrying a compadre across a grassy knoll.
This could be the perfect way to ensure you can sustain the aggression, power and strength.
Mix together half a cup of oats and milk in a container. Let them settle in the fridge overnight.
Then, in the morning, throw a sliced banana in there, a few raisins or even nuts and a sprinkle of cinnamon. Devour at will.
Do you have any of your own suggestions that you would like to share? If so, use the comment box below and help a bro out.
