What to eat before, during and after exercise

What to eat before, during and after exercise

whatever you eat before, during and after exercise not only effects your performance but also your overall health.

Eating right food at right time is very important to make sure it doesn't mess up with your digestive system and your energy levels.

Before exercise you need lot of energy and wants to keep that energy stable during exercise, and after exercise all you need is to recover yourself from wear and tear.

You need to make a diet chart depending upon your workout type, its duration and how vigorous its going to be.

If your exercise is for 1 hour or less, you will need less amount of energy that workout which are of high intensity and lasts for 1 to 3 hours.

There are different foods that helps you at different stages of your workout.

Foods to eat before exercise

Pre-exercise meals should provide high energy, keeps you from feeling hungry, power your muscles and prevents blood sugar loss.

Different people have different level of digestion. Don't try any new food if you are going outside for workout as it will only worsen your digestive track and you will not be able to focus. Choose food that are familiar to you or try something new if you are training at your comfortable place.

Here are some foods to consider prior to exercise.


1 hour or less before exercise

• Fresh fruits such as apple and banana
• Water
• Energy drinks
• Crackers, granola, cereal bars

2-3 hours before exercise

• Yogurt
• Oatmeal
• Cereal and milk
• Eggs
• Plain sandwich 

3-4 hours before exercise

• Eggs
• Chicken or Fatty fish
• Sweet Potato
• Brown rice with vegetables
• legumes and lentils
• Cheese sandwich
• Nuts

Foods to eat during exercise

It is recommended to drink two to three ounce of water every 30-45 minutes of your exercise. You can also replace water with sports drink or lemon juice. If your sessions are too long you can have nutrition bars or fruits as they are easy to digest and provide you instant energy.

Foods to eat after exercise

Your body uses stored energy (glycogen) stored in your muscles to power throughout your workout, but after that you need to replenish the lost nutrients. You should intake proteins and carbohydrates as soon as you finish your workout. Your food should help you to recover faster.

Consider eating:

• Eggs
• Sugarcane Juice
• Chicken
• Sweet potato
• Fish
• Nuts
• Beans
• Vegetables and Lentils
• Fruits

Foods to avoid

Certain foods are very hard to digest (like high fats or fibre) and stay in our stomach for a long time. Blood will not deliver oxygen to muscles instead it gets diverted to our stomach. If that happens during exercise you are likely to experience cramping, stomachache and nausea. 

One should also avoid gassy foods as prior to exercise if you are prone to bloating.

A coffee or Tea bursts your energy instantly but it does nothing to your muscles or building your glycogen store. It could lead to rapid dehydration,  resulting in fatigue, headache, nausea and muscle tremors. 

Worst pre-workout foods

• flax seeds
• Dairy products
• Nuts
• Hard boiled eggs
• Coffee/ Tea
• Avocados
• Broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage
• Spicy foods
• Refined sugar
• Salty foods
• Fried food
• fruit juice
• desserts

These foods should be avoided prior to your workout session, so that you can give great performance.

 Like carbohydrates and protein are important for your body, fiber and fats are also important which are present in above mentioned foods, so you must include them in your meal post workout. 

Point to be noted

Protein bar which contain less than 10% of protein, could cause a drop in your blood sugar, leading you to feel more tired during workout.

Avoid drinking energy drink which contains lot of sugar.

Foods rich in fiber like wholegrain bread, whole wheat pasta and oats are good for you, but they take longer for the body to digest and leads to gastrointestinal distress. 

Most of the energy bars are carbonated and contains lots of sugar or artificial sweeteners which can cause gas, bloating and fatigue. 

Most pre-made protein shake contains lot of processed ingredients, excess sugar and dairy products which are not good for you.

Yogurt and cheese are dairy products, avoid eating them if you have any digestion problems.

Lastly

Different people have different level of digestion. Choose foods that are familiar to you or try something new if you are training at your comfortable place, so that you can keep track of which food gives you digestion problem, bloating, gases etc and which foods enhance your performance.