Many people suggest doing a workout just after you wake up without caring about having your breakfast first. Working out with an empty stomach is known as fasted cardio but is it good? Though it’s difficult to eat something and work out, working out on an empty stomach is not suggested. We always find it hard to even drink water before working out because we feel it will get difficult. But it’s better and always best to eat something before your workout. Below are things that will make you understand why it is important to eat something before the workout.
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Uses Up The Fuel
Our body stores proteins, and it works as fuel whenever necessary. Whenever you workout without eating anything, the energy would get charged up through this stored protein, making it hard for you to develop muscles.
Low Blood Sugar Levels
Have you ever felt dizzy or uneasy when you go to work without eating your breakfast? If yes, you might know how weird it feels and how your whole day feels unenergetic. In the same way, if you workout without eating something, your blood sugar levels may go down, and you will feel fatigued and lightheaded.
Burns Fewer Calories
If you feel that working out on an empty stomach will burn fat easily, then you might be wrong here. If you use fat as energy, it does not necessarily mean that the body fat percentage will be below. This will also not help in burning more calories.
Body Fat Increases
Once your body starts using the fat for more energy for the workout, it is possible to adjust to this situation and continually use the fat reserve for the energy. Now, once in the habit of this, it will start storing more fat for later on.
How To Improve Performance
While not eating before the workout can cause serious issues for you, one cannot just rely on the daily food we eat before working out. You need to be specific about what you intake before your workout. Below are some food ingredients that will help you improve your performance.
One needs to follow a balanced diet to enhance their athletic performance.
- Try eating fresh fruits, vegetables, and wholesome food for enhanced body weight.
- Include healthy carbs
- Add coconut oil and ghee to your diet
- Go for nuts, sprouts, and seeds. One can also add it to rich food such as fish and cooked beans for better performance.
- Eat legumes and green vegetables.
Tips And Tricks That Will Come In Handy
If you have decided on eating before working out, you have got to choose what is best for you.
- Choose food that can be easily digestible and they should contain carbohydrates and fats.
- Try to eat an hour before your workout, and don’t start doing your daily regime just after you have eaten.
- If you feel hungry, try to go for snacks like an energy bar or peanut butter sandwich.
- Remember always to stay hydrated because you will lose a lot of sweat while you are there.
- Go for smoothies or energy drinks if you feel like not having something.
- Try to eat food that will improve your speed and help you recover from the training.
- Intake healthy proteins that will boost the immune system and speed up any wounds healing.
- Focus on food containing zinc, calcium, vitamins C and D can also come in handy.
When Can You Eat?
How strenuous your workout is will determine what kind of diet you should eat and when you should eat. The type of activity you are going to do will decide whether or not you can eat before your workout or not. If you are doing light impact exercises like walking or yoga or even golfing, then it’s not necessary to fuel up your body.
If your workout is heavy, then you need to fuel it up and add some proteins to your body. This will help you feel good during your workout.
The Bottom Line
If you are working out without taking food, you need to know there can be chances of you ruining your health. But this also depends on the type of workout you do. If you prefer a less strenuous workout, don’t sweat on choosing to add a post-workout meal.
