When it comes to working out, it's important to feel energized, but it's not always as simple as grabbing a snack on your way out the door. Eating too close to exercise is a recipe for discomfort, but heading to the gym hungry isn't ideal either.
to find out what to eat and when before heading to the gym.
Brown rice (1/2 cup) with black beans (1/2 cup)
Small sweet potato with steamed or lightly salted broccoli in olive oil (1 cup)
Banana with almond butter (2 tablespoons)
Multi-grain crackers (10) with hummus (3 tablespoons)
Oatmeal (1/2 cup) with berries (1 cup), sweetened with stevia or agave
Apple and walnuts (1/4 cup)
Nuts
We are talking, pistachios, almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts. The nuts will give you your needed energy for the training. You can combine them with honey, for extra effect, and spiced taste.
Dried Fruit
This is a great option if you only have a few minutes before your workout because it’s so light, so the simple carbs will provide you instant energy without weighing you down. A few recommendations for dried fruits to eat are dried berries, apricots, and pineapple. Shoot for around a quarter cup.
Bananas
“They’re nature’s PowerBar,” says Dr. Louise Burke, head of Sports Nutrition at the Australian Institute of Sport and coauthor of The Complete Guide to Food for Sports Performance: Peak Nutrition for Your Sport. Bananas are loaded with digestible carbohydrates (read: fuel) and are packed with potassium, which aids in maintaining nerve and muscle function. The body doesn’t store potassium for very long, so a medium banana before a workout will help keep nutrient levels high. Villacorta especially recommends bananas for morning exercisers: “Get up and eat a medium banana with 1/2 cup of Greek yogurt. Wait about 30 minutes and then hit the gym. Your body will need the carbohydrates and protein.”
Caffeine
Caffeine has been shown to help regular drinkers enjoy a workout more by generating energy, as well as to slow fatigue and increase the rate of fat-burn.