Is it better to exercise before eating, when you have an empty belly, or after eating, when you have a better chance of working off the meal?
I would say before the meal (digestion requires blood/body resources) make sure you are hydrated and not really hungry/low blood sugar. maybe have some fruit or something a little before you start.
I work out 5 days a week weight lifting. I recently have changed to mornings ug 6 am from 5pm. I have a protein shake before I go work out and if my stomach is cramping I might have a small yogurt. Something easily digestable. You dont want to have a full stomach it makes you feel bloated and depending on the excersise activity can actually hinder your workout. After I work out I make sure to eat a balanced meal of whole grain carbs, protein and fruit within an hour. Usually oatmeal with dry curd cottage cheese and strawberries in it. If you do need to eat before make sure to give yourself an hour to digest. HTH's but each individual is different. What might work for me might not for you. Good luck.
Before going to the gym I will take my vitamins with a banana and some tea or juice. The more important meal is the post workout meal. You have a window of "opportunity" after your workout to get your protein and carbs in during the protein synthesis. They say it should be in your system in 30 mins or less, so while you may go pound a steak and baked potato, it won't do much good as your body will take much longer then 30 mins to digest and break it down. Thus drinking a good, well balanced protein shake after your workout is the ideal solution.
not on an empty stomach, even though people say it burns fat if you do but that's a myth. Your best bet is after because your body needs energy before it goes into starvation mode. workout after you eat and then replenish with protein within an hour.
To be honest i don't think it really matters. Just don't do it right after you eat, wait a half an hour to an hour at least before working out. Also, obviously not on an empty stomach or else you'll have no energy be drained!
What is it you are working out for? What are you trying to do? (Build muscle/gain weight, lose weight, tone up, etc).
When I quit smoking about a year and a half ago, I gained myself a nice belly. I'm trying to get rid of it and I found a nice "10 minute a day" routine, but I'm confused on if it matters when I eat. In this thread I've found that I should eat before exercising, after exercising and taht it doesn't matter Luckily no one said to eat while exercising!!
I was just about to suggest that!! Honestly if you want advice on healthy dieting and weight loss I would say head down to your local gymn. Often there might be programs or advice points there (if nothing else leaflets and such) which should be able to give you some constructive starting points and advice. I'd also say (though it sounds like your not going to but I'll say it anyway ) try not to shock/overtax your system with sudden changes in diet and activity. Any big changes need to really be done with some constructive research so that you will not only achive your end result but also do so in a manner that won't leave you damanging your health in the process
For starters, double or triple that 10-min workout. Eat a meal or something with protein (protein shakes are quick and easy) 30 minutes to an hour pre-workout. For post-workout you should consume something like a protein shake again. You don't need a full meal pre-workout, just something to give you good sustenance; that's why a protein shake works well. There's nothing wrong with a full meal afterwards though (no burgers or junk food). Make sure you get something in your system within 30 minutes post-workout. No offense to everyone who tried to help, but most of the info in this thread was pretty random and just thrown out there (incorrectly).
Yeah definitely going to take it slow. The last time I tried to push myself too hard I wound up with shin splints - which suck. :shock::shock: I'm not trying out for the olympics! I'm just trying to lose my post-smoking belly lol.
