Eating before or after workout: Coach's advice
Illustrative photo (Freepik)
Everyone understands the importance of healthy eating during physical activity. However, most people don’t know when it's best to eat—before or after a workout, according to coach Yurii Popko.
What not to do
According to the expert, you shouldn’t eat heavily right before a workout for two reasons:
- It will be difficult to exercise on a full stomach.
- During a workout, blood needs to flow to the muscles being trained. If you eat right before exercising, blood will be directed to your stomach instead.
Additionally, you may feel sleepy, and it’s essential to stay alert during your workout.
When to eat before workout
The coach advises eating 1.5 to 2 hours before exercising, regardless of whether you're trying to lose or gain weight. It's preferable to consume complex/slow carbs (like grains and pasta).
"Another extreme: You didn’t have dinner last night or had it very early (around 6 PM), and then you come to work out in the morning. After 20 minutes, you start feeling dizzy. Or, you go to the gym hungry after work, having not eaten for half a day, and the same thing happens—you feel weak and might even faint," he says.
Glycogen is a type of carbohydrate that accumulates in the human body in significant amounts. It provides energy and is stored in the liver (up to 100g) and muscles (200-300g, more in athletes).
It can accumulate over several days. This means that when you work out today, you could be using glycogen reserves from what you ate yesterday.
Therefore, your diet should include an adequate amount of carbohydrates overall, not just before or after a workout.
The "carb or protein-carb window" refers to the short period after physical exercise when it's crucial to consume appropriate foods to replenish missing nutrients.
For weight loss, daily caloric deficit is important, as well as ensuring that your diet is balanced in terms of protein, fats, and carbohydrates, and don’t forget about fiber.
If you maintain a caloric deficit, you will lose weight, regardless of whether you’re eating buckwheat with cucumbers and chicken breast or bacon with french fries and ice cream.
How to calculate your daily calorie norm
There’s no precise way to calculate it. It can only be adjusted during the process as you work towards your goal because everyone is different, and so are their body compositions.
Whether you're losing weight or building muscle, it's important to follow three rules:
- Daily calorie norm.
- A balanced diet with proteins, fats, carbs, and fiber.
- Don’t train on a full or empty stomach.
"So, eat whatever you want, whenever you want, and as much as you want—just stick to your daily calorie norm and balanced diet. Follow the plan you’ve developed for yourself or that a trainer has made for you," the coach concludes.
