What to Eat Before and After Your Workout
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Do you always find yourself wondering what you should eat before and after a workout? Or whether it's necessary to eat at all? These are important questions to ask, because proper fuel can make a huge difference in your energy level, mood, and results — and thus greatly influence how likely you are to work out again.
The world of pre- and post-workout nutrition is confusing, and there’s no one-size-fits-all answer. One thing you should know, however, is that the food you put in your body before, during, and after your sweat session can definitely affect how you feel and whether or not you meet your workout goals.
The specific recommendations on what to eat, when, and how much will vary significantly depending on the time of day, type of workout, and your personal goals, explains Jennifer McDaniel, RDN, a spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics who is board certified in sports nutrition and owns the private nutrition practice McDaniel Nutrition Therapy based in Clayton, Missouri.
Here, experts break down exactly what you should eat before, during, and after a workout.
What to Eat Before a Workout (and How Long You Should Wait Before Hitting the Gym)
In general, eating some combination of protein and carbohydrates before a workout to sustain energy and build muscle is advised, says Kate Patton, RD, who specializes in sports nutrition at Cleveland Clinic in Ohio. Foods with a high amount of fat or fiber, on the other hand (think broccoli or a grilled cheese sandwich), should be avoided, as they may cause stomach upset and cramping.
But what you should eat before a 30-minute power walk is going to look different from what you eat before a 20-mile training run. Here’s what you need to know.
If you’re exercising for less than an hour, first thing in the morning, McDaniel and Patton agree there’s no need to eat. Indeed, there may be a benefit to not eating before early morning workouts that aren’t too intense.
“If you have an early workout that’s easy or light and you’re trying to lose weight, it might be best to have a glass of water but skip the food,” says McDaniel, noting that this encourages your body to burn a greater percentage of body fat to fuel your workout. Research has found that people may burn more fat over the course of 24 hours if they work out before eating breakfast compared with exercising later in the day, according to a study published in the December 2015 issue of the journal EBioMedicine.
But if you’re ravenous when you wake up, you may need some food in your stomach before activity. Signs that you’re too hungry to run on empty include intolerable hunger pains, headache, light-headedness or dizziness, irritability, or inability to concentrate, says Patton.
In these cases, even if you have just 10 to 15 minutes before your workout, eat a small amount of quickly digestible carbohydrates, such as 4 ounces of fruit juice, a small banana, a handful of grapes, or a handful of dry cereal to ensure you have the physical and mental energy to get moving. Other data suggests this type of small, carb-rich snack (or even a somewhat larger 200-calorie snack) may also enhance feelings of relaxation after your workout, making you that much more likely to stick with it, according to a July 2015 study published in the journal Nutrients.
If you’re exercising for more than an hour first thing in the morning, you should always eat a small amount of easy-to-digest carbs — like the options mentioned above — so you have the necessary energy to sustain your workout, Patton says. If you’re waking up at least 30 minutes before your workout, you’ll have enough time to digest an even more substantial snack of around 200 calories. (Think a light breakfast, such as half an English muffin with a tablespoon of peanut butter and a few banana slices, an apple with a tablespoon of almond butter, or a half cup of plain yogurt with a small handful of granola.)
Waking up with enough time to eat a small breakfast before intense workouts may be ideal, McDaniel adds. The extra calories in your system help prevent fatigue, so you have enough energy to complete your workout at a time of day when you might otherwise feel pretty exhausted. You’ll be able to push it harder when you have some fuel in you!
If you’re exercising later in the day and you’ve eaten a meal within the last two to three hours, you should be fine to do your workout without any additional source of pre-workout fuel, says McDaniel. But if you haven’t eaten recently, you should have a 100- to 200-calorie snack within 30 minutes to an hour before your workout so you’re mentally and physically prepared.
How long should you wait to exercise after eating? If you’ve just eaten a meal, you should wait two to three hours before you work out; and if you’ve just eaten a snack, wait about a half hour, McDaniel says.
If you’re going to do a cardio workout, this snack should be higher-carbohydrate, moderate in protein, and low-fat (but you don’t need to go fat-free). Specific examples include: a whole-wheat tortilla with a smear of peanut butter and a banana, half a turkey sandwich, or oatmeal with fruit and nuts.
If you’re going to do strength training, this snack should be higher in protein, moderate in carbohydrates, and low-fat. Specific examples include: eggs and a slice of whole wheat toast, cottage cheese with fruit, or Greek yogurt with fruit and nuts.
Do I Need to Fuel Up During My Workout?
Do you really need to fuel up mid-workout with a sports drink, or one of those gels or gummies? The answer, for the vast majority of people, is no. Shorter-duration workouts of 60 minutes or less, such as circuit training, yoga, light jogging, and CrossFit can be fueled solely with pre- and post-workout meals or snacks, says McDaniel — there’s no need for anything during your workout but some water.
People who participate in longer endurance exercise, such as running or cycling for 60 to 90 minutes or more, however, do benefit greatly from mid-workout fuel, which can delay the onset of fatigue and improve performance, according to decades of exercise science research.
After the first 60 minutes, you should aim to eat 30 to 60 grams (g) of carbohydrates every hour, according to 2017 recommendations from the International Society of Sports Nutrition.
“Sports performance drinks, gels, and chews work great and are made from the type of carbs that won’t cause gastrointestinal distress,” says Patton. “But some people prefer things like bananas, pretzels, or crackers.”
The Best Things to Eat After a Workout
Most people who complete a moderate bout of exercise — an hour or less — don’t need a specific recovery food if they will be eating a snack or meal that includes a mixture of carbs and protein within a few hours of their workout, McDaniel explains. But there are some people who should be paying closer attention to what they eat after exercise.
“Recovery nutrition” tends to be most important after intense endurance or strength-training workouts (say, a 90-minute bike ride or weight-lifting session), or when an athlete trains multiple times in a single day.
In these cases — or for anyone feeling very hungry or fatigued after a workout — eating protein and carbohydrates within an hour or so after exercise is ideal. This time period immediately after your workout is when your body is most efficient at using the protein you eat to build new muscle, as well as prevent the breakdown of your existing muscles, in a process called muscle protein synthesis. Your body may also need additional carbs to restore depleted levels of glycogen (a form of carbohydrate stored in the muscles), which helps fuel future exercise.
What would a healthy post-workout snack look like?
Most recovery snacks can be within the 100- to 300-calorie range (more if you haven’t eaten much earlier in the day, and on the lower-calorie end if you’ve eaten more already). Do keep in mind though, if you’re trying to lose weight and you’re not an athlete, your post-workout snack will likely need to be on the small side, says McDaniel.
A good general rule is to aim for a snack with at least 10 g of protein and double or triple that in carbs (that’s why a serving of chocolate milk, with 24 g of carbohydrate and 8 g of protein, is such a great post-workout recovery drink). Go a little higher on the carbs after intense cardio or endurance workouts, and go a little higher on the protein after a strength-training session, Patton adds.
Some post-workout snack ideas include:
Raisin bread with cottage cheese and sliced bananas
A whole-wheat tortilla with hummus
Plain Greek yogurt with walnuts and honey
Flavored kefir
Whole-wheat crackers with cheese and dried figs
A couple of eggs with toast and fruit