Breakfast Before Workout?

Just a question: what do you do about breakfast if you work out in the morning? I usually work out from 6-7:30 am. If I have breakfast before I work out, then by 10am, I am starving. But, I have heard that eating first thing is good because it gets your matabolism going.

On the other hand, if I eat after I work out, I sometimes feel weary during my workout. I would love thoughts, advice, suggestions, etc.
Thanks

Fri. Feb 3, 8:35am

simple: do both! if you are working out for 90 minutes, you should really give your body some fuel to burn afterwards. have a small breakfast before you work out, and a snack soon after the workout!

Friday, February 3, 2006, 9:02 AM

Recently read that before a short workout, have something light like a piece of fruit. For your longer workout, add a bit of protein to keep your stomach fuller.

Definitely bring a small snack if you are starving by 10!

Friday, February 3, 2006, 11:02 AM

Just read an article yesterday (can't remember where, but I'm going to look for it) stating you should eat something before your workout so you can tap into those energy stores, but you also need to eat something within 2 hours after your workout to replace nutrients and give your body something to repair tissue.

Friday, February 3, 2006, 12:08 PM

There may be something to the recommendations to eat prior to an early-morning workout, though I personally do not do it. I get up at more or less 4:00 AM and get in a workout. Depending on the day, the workout can vary from a a bit of yoga, to a five-mile run, to 1-1/2+ hours of heavy weightlifting. It is usually 6:30 - 7:00 before I'm able to sit down to breakfast.

When I do sit down to breakfast, however, it is my main meal of the day. It consists of oatmeal, soybeans, milk, walnuts, and 1-1/2 to 2 pounds of assorted fruit. It will add up to 1200 or more calories, or about half of my daily total.

Don't know if this approach will appeal to anyone else, but it works OK for me. If anyone wants additional info, you can find my public log in the blog section under dwillard.

Digby

Thursday, February 9, 2006, 7:03 PM

If I'm doing a longer run...

...of 8 miles or more, I'll eat 1/2 c oatmeal before, then I'll eat more oatmeal afterwards. I used to go out running without eating and found myself more fatigued during the run. I also make a point of drinking Gatorade before, during and afterwards.

Thursday, February 9, 2006, 7:38 PM

Oatmeal is a good breakfast-- easy on the digestive system. How about a fruit smoothy, an apple or a banana?

Not too much, as you don't want to get a stomach cramp, but you do need to fuel yourself or you will "bonk" about 15-20 minutes into your work-out.

Occasionally, I will also use those "energy gel" packets (basically carbohydrates) to keep myself from "bonking" during my work-out, but I prefer "real" foods, if I can.

Thursday, February 9, 2006, 11:19 PM

eating before exercise

I heard that if you want to dig into your fat stores don't eat before an early 6,7,8am workout. I did this for a while during the years I weighed the least. I didn't hinder energy for me, sometimes I'd drink a little coffee before hand.

Thursday, February 9, 2006, 11:50 PM

If you do eat breakfast before the workout, if you have to, eat from the left:

http://blog.peertrainer.com/tip_of_the_day/2011/02/the-peertrainer-cheat-system.html

-PEERtrainer

Thursday, April 7, 2011, 4:34 PM

something small

I agree with what alot of people said about eating something small or nothing at all. I used to do bootcamp workouts at 5:30am and experimented with different things.. i tried eating just a banana one day--felt sick, just a piece of toast-felt okay, just green tea-felt great!
So when i did them i would just have green tea..just sip a travel mug full of it ..not gulp it down. Then during the workout I would have some energy. After the workout I would come home and either go back to bed for an hour or make breakfast right away. I found I lost weight and gained a decent amount of muscle doing this approach. however everyone is different. My friend would have to eat a bagel or something before the workout or else she couldn't function.
Experiment and see what works for you! good luck!

Saturday, April 9, 2011, 8:17 PM

Yes, always! If I workout without eating, I bonk.

Sunday, April 10, 2011, 11:12 AM

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