What do you eat before working out?

[oceanwinds]

My husband is in pretty decent cardio shape (he's been running 4-5 miles most weekdays for years) and he's recently decided to start strength training. Yesterday was his first day and he got so light-headed and dizzy that he thought he was going to pass out. His trainer thinks it is because he didn't eat beforehand. He's definitely not overweight, but he is a pretty big guy: 6'5 and about 220lbs.

He gets up at 5am and is usually in the gym by 6:30 or 7am. He needs something that can be made ahead of time (because he's not getting up any earlier!) and he has about a 45 minute bus ride he can eat it during.

I'd love any suggestions. I can't help him because I don't ever eat before working out, so I don't know what would work best for him. Oh, and it doesn't have to be paleo (although he has agreed to try primal the week after next!)

Thanks!

[Maggie May]

I usually TRY to get something with a carb and either a protein or a fat in there.

Examples:

Piece of fruit (apple or banana) with a scoop of nut butter

Piece of fruit with 3oz chicken breast

Chicken breast with small handful of almonds

Dairy is usually not recommended before a workout, but it varies from person to person. Also, for me, doing a protein shake beforehand is a bad idea; it sloshes around in my tummy for the first half hour or so.

Those are just some examples... good luck!

[joeyb]

I'll eat a PB&J (Natural PB, Preserves with no added sugar, 100% wheat bread) before I leave work to get some carbs, and hold me over until dinner because by the time I drive home, work out, and actually cook dinner, it's 2-4 hours later.

[chairohkey]

I wake up and workout around the same time as your husband. I eat a PB+banana sandwich and a glass of milk.

[Waldo]

I prefer to work out fasted. It keeps me focused, having things in my stomach annoys me. Last time I tried working out after eating something it was disasterous, my workout was horrible. I'm used to my system burning through its stored glycogen then switching over to fat in a predictable manner. I burn through way more calories than any sort of meal would provide in a usable way anyway.

[morethanjustamom]

I also workout fasted, because getting that hot on a full stomach would not be good for me.

My hubby is opposite, he has a protein shake with a banana in it before working out.

[wildross]

apple, banana, cottage cheese, string cheese, yogurt..or nothing for me.

[airen123]

I can't not eat before a work out. I don't have the energy, otherwise. So I usually eat lunch an hour before I go to the gym on my lunch hour. Sometimes a piece of cheese before late afternoon workout.

Cereal bars, fruit, granola bars, or the Egg Monster that so many people on NF like. Anything can be made ahead of time.

Personally, I eat hard boiled eggs and Special K cereal for breakfast.

[Rooks]

I'm another on the fasted "train". I have no idea if this has any truth to it, but my old wrestling coach always use to say "You don't want your body wasting energy trying to digest, when you want that energy focused on different goal." At most, I'll have a Protein Shake 30 minutes before strength training.

[nightlight]

morning WODs are fasted. just because i can't stomach food and then work out right when i get up.

after work WODs, i usually do a snack of some fruit and nuts 1hr pre.

[ZenGwen]

I don't usually eat before working out. I'll generally have a cup of coffee, that's it.

My boyfriend used to not be able to stand this, and would have some toast before we left, but now that I think about it... I think he's working out fasted too, these days.

[Eurydice]

Morning cardio/yoga is fasted. Weight training or spin, I don't dare eat unless I'm really starving, in which case I might have a protein bar on the way to the gym.

Generally speaking, for me workout + food in stomach = all sorts of misery.

[ducatisteve]

+1 on fasted training. I feel nauseous if I do a heavy workout with food in me.

[Loren Wade]

I have to eat fasted. If I don't, I get sick, dizzy, and feel like throwing up. I just make sure I consume enough carbs and protein post workout to fuel and repair for the next workout.

[161803398874989]

I have to eat fasted.

WTF?

I usually workout in the afternoons, so I've had lunch already.

[oceanwinds]

Thanks for all the responses everyone! I think we'll try a peanut butter and banana wrap tomorrow and see how he feels. If that works, we'll try some of the other suggestions.

I'm like most of you: I can't even think about food before I workout (honestly, I can't stand the thought of food until I've been awake for a couple of hours.) My husband, however, has to have something. If he times it right, he will have about 1 - 1.5 hours between eating and working out, so something small should do the trick.

[Loren Wade]

WTF?

I usually workout in the afternoons, so I've had lunch already.

I used to work out at 10, eat at 11, 3, and 7. Then fast until 11 am the next morning.

My schedule has since chaned but I did that for months.

[msuroo]

I used to work out at 10, eat at 11, 3, and 7. Then fast until 11 am the next morning.

My schedule has since chaned but I did that for months.

You said "eat fasted" instead of "workout fasted". I'm pretty sure that's what the WTF was about.

[Loren Wade]

You said "eat fasted" instead of "workout fasted". I'm pretty sure that's what the WTF was about.

Well, aren't I just special...

[joeyb]

I used to work out at 10, eat at 11, 3, and 7. Then fast until 11 am the next morning.

My schedule has since chaned but I did that for months.

His point was that you said you have to "eat fasted", which didn't make sense, but if you tried to make sense out of it, it was ambiguous as to whether you meant you have to eat or whether you can't eat before you work out.

[Waldo]

The need to eat before exercise is purely mental. The body is designed to perform at its best in a somewhat fastest state. We are after all animals, the point of our athletic ability is getting food.

[Loren Wade]

The need to eat before exercise is purely mental. The body is designed to perform at its best in a somewhat fastest state. We are after all animals, the point of our athletic ability is getting food.

I don't agree that we're animals, but that's irrelevant.

I do agree we perform at optimum fasted and there's tons of information on it. www.leangains.com has plenty about it for anyone interested.

[joeyb]

I don't agree that we're animals

For religious reasons or due to some scientific reasoning?

[Loren Wade]

For religious reasons or due to some scientific reasoning?

Both.

[KillerGriller]

I usually feast on the souls on my enemies before big workouts....light on calories but big on taste