Pre Workout Meal

In my opinion, having a well-balanced pre-workout meal can be beneficial for performance for your workout.

What should it include?

I personally enjoy having around 50–80 grams of carbohydrates. I like having a mix of a low glycemic index carbohydrate (oats) and a high glycemic index carbohydrate (fruit). I also include 25–35 grams of protein with my meal (protein powder or egg whites is my favorite). I usually eat an hour before my workout as it gives me time to digest my food and get into my system but everyone is different. Some people eat 2 or 3 hours before a workout which is also fine. Pick a time that you feel works best for you! I will also have some sort of caffeine source for energy. This isn’t a crucial step but it definitely helps and can improve performance. If you train early in the morning and don’t want to eat before your workout that is also fine. It’s called training in a fasted state. I have done this especially if I train earlier in the morning and want to eat later in the day. What I usually do is have some BCAA’s if I don’t eat anything. Again, this isn’t a crucial step. It’s just a suggestion and something that works best for me. Find what’s best for you and pick the foods you like. The foods I listed are examples of things I enjoy in the morning. Finding the balance in which you eat more or eat less, picking the foods you enjoy, and eating when you feel is the best for you is going to make the process a lot more enjoyable. Everyone is different and will perform better at different levels, so find your best pre-workout meal and be consistent!

Example Pre Workout Meal

- 80grams of oats
- 1 cup of berries
- 1 scoop of protein powder or 1 cup of egg whites
- 1 cup of coffee
*What I like to do is cook the oats and then mix in the protein powder or, add the egg whites and cook them with the oats. I will usually add my berries after everything is cooked.

Written By: Jereymi Longpre