When and how to fuel your body for a training session
There are two main factors to consider when fuelling your body for a training session. The time you are training and the type of training you are about to do.
If you do a training session first thing in the morning and you have less than an hour before you hit the gym, a solid meal is not going to have enough time to absorb into your blood stream for your body to use as energy so your body will have no fuel in its tank and you will burn muscle! This is the opposite of what you are trying to achieve. You can however have a protein supplement (pre workout meal/shake) and train within as little as 10 minutes. A good protein powder is very fast absorbing and your body will be able to use the energy absorbed into your blood stream from your protein supplement as energy to build muscle.
If you train in the afternoon and have eaten throughout the day you do not need to have a pre workout shake as your body is already fuelled from the meals you have consumed during the day. In saying this it is highly important that you are fuelling your body with good, nutritious foods. A diet that contains around 5 to 6 small meals a day, incorporating adequate protein (i.e. chicken, turkey, steak, fish, eggs), good fats (i.e. raw nuts, olive oil, fish oil, flaxseed oil, avocado) complex carbohydrates (i.e. Brown rice, sweet potato, rolled oats, quinoa), fibrous carbohydrates (i.e. Vegetables, legumes) and plenty of water.
The only type of training you should ever do on an empty stomach is low intensity cardio. Empty stomach cardio is a fantastic way to burn body fat.
And always remember to have your post work out protein shake within at least 20 minutes of completing a weights session. Having a post workout shake provides the muscles with the amino acids that help to stimulate protein synthesis.
To get a better understanding of this topic to get the best out of your training or to get some great ideas on how to maximise your training get in touch with our Coaches today.