What to eat before training

Good nutrition can help your body perform better and recover faster after each workout.

Breakfast is my favourite meal! However knowing what to eat before a workout is important. Each macronutrient has a specific role before exercising. It is also ideal to leave an hour between the time you eat and the time you exercise. What you eat also depends on the type of workout you are going to do.

Eating Breakfast Can Help You Burn More Carbs When You Work Out

“Eating breakfast before a workout can help your body burn carbohydrates during the sweat fest, and more quickly digest food after it, according to a recent study.”

Eating a healthy breakfast before a workout versus eating a high in fat breakfast or fasting.

''The study led by a team at the University of Bath looked at 12 male adults who ate porridge with milk two hours before cycling for an hour, and compared it to those who fasted overnight before the ride. They found that those who ate boosted the rate at which they burned cabs during the workout. Those who ate also increased the rate that their bodies digested and metabolised food after a workout as well''. The carbs burned during exercise were not just coming from the breakfast eaten - but also from the carbs stored in muscles as glycogen. This increase in the use of muscle glycogen may explain why there was more rapid clearance of blood sugar after lunch when breakfast had been eaten before exercise.

“Chose a good breakfast with oatmeal, a nut butter and a fruit. Just make sure you use plain oats - not the sugar-heavy varieties. Swap in quinoa instead of oats if you prefer that. Add some Chia seeds to oats soaked in almond milk and leave overnight. In the morning add some berries or half a sliced banana with a teaspoon of honey or peanut butter!”

Instead of breakfast, you can also try a snack before working out, such as half a banana with almond or peanut butter on it, or a handful of nuts.

Get Inspired

I love this combo because oatmeal contains complex carbs for sustained energy, nut butter for a healthy dose of protein and heart-healthy monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, and banana for a kick of instant energy as well as key vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, says nutritionist Lizzy Swick from New Jersey.