Protein, and eating for workouts??

[kweller]

Hi all,
I've been hitting the weights harder than ever lately, and have been finding myself perplexed on eating to fuel my workouts. Here is the deal: If I work out in the a.m., I always work out first thing, i.e. no breakfast first. This has always been fine for me for cardio workouts (feel steady, no low blood sugar symptoms) but the verdict is out on weight training. I find weight training to be a little more difficult first thing in the morning, and I don't know if that is because I am not doing an extended cardio warm-up first, or if it is because I haven't had any food in awhile. It's really very inconvenient for me to eat anything before I work out in the morning (it is physically uncomfortable for me to work out, in any capacity, with food in my stomach) and since I've never had any problems before this, I don't want to start now if I can help it. I just want to guard against burning away my hard-earned muscle.

When you weight train at night, do you find yourself starving at 3 am? This happened to me last night, and I am NEVER a midnite munchie person, so this was disturbing. I was worried I was burning away muscle mass in my sleep. I have trained at night before and been very hungry before bed (when this happens I will have a small snack of protein/complex carbs).

My only time slots during the week are 5:30 am or 6:30 pm.
So I guess I'd like some feedback from the educated crowd on when you weight train and how you fuel yourself in that time frame for optimum gains.
Thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!
Kathy

 

[caricampbellcool]

Hi Kathy,

I, too, cannot weight train with food in my stomach, except if I train first thing in the morning I have a slice of whole wheat toast with a 1 tbsp peanut butter and I'm fine.
I also train between 5:30 and 6:30 on some evenings and when I come home I have dinner with a plentiful amount of protein (1 chicken breast, fish fillet, etc) and some complex carbs and a vegetable. I am not sure but it sounds like you are not eating a big enough dinner?
Also, I have a snack around 4:00 (usually a zone perfect bar, I have found I have a lot of energy for my workouts when I eat these; try out some different snacks and document how you felt during your workout).
Maybe if you tell me what your dinner was I can be more help.
Cari

 

[Shaz]

I do my weight workouts in the evenings (about 7-8pm), and I can sympathize with the night munchies! To prevent waking up hungry, I eat dinner soon after training, then have porridge at bedtime. If you get hungry in the night, it is likely that your blood sugar level has dropped too low, and porridge is excellent for releasing carbs slowly into the blood. (I have millet porridge rather than oats because millet doesn't contain wheat and is therefore easier to digest.) I wouldn't worry about storing the carbs as fat, as your body is telling you that it needs the calories.

You may also want to make sure that you are getting regular balanced meals (carbs, proteins, fats) throughout the day, so that you fuel your workouts in advance.

Sharon.

 

[kweller]

Thanks you Sharon and Cari, for your replies and thoughts! (I really appreciate it.) You both brought up some really good points/questions and some of them overlap, so the reply is for both of you.

Well, for dinner last night, I had an egg white omelet with tomatoes, spinach and onion, and a 1/2 cup cooked wheat berries and some carrot sticks. I made my dinner and ate it right after working out, too, because it was not a night I felt like I could wait to eat until after I showered and changed. For dessert I had a big bowl of casaba melon, and for a snack a little later, I had a big bowl of air-popped popcorn with 1 tsp flax oil (I'm a volume eater). (I also had some whey protein powder mixed with water to drink with my omelet).

I know it sounds like a lot of food, and I love to eat, but much of what I eat in my daily life is 'airy' food, and doesn't 'stick-to-the-ribs'. And Shaz, I think you hit the nail on the head (regarding am I getting balanced meals) because I do tend to eat a very low-fat diet, and perhaps this is part of my problem. I make sure to get some fat, but I regulate it (the amount and type of fat) like a drill sergeant almost all of the time.(This is a lifelong challenge for me, just one of my 'things' I will always be working on )

As for snacks, Cari, I am so with you. I keep chocolate power bars available all the time, just in case I need one (I just cannot deal with hunger). I have little snacks throughout the day (a bowl of fruit and nonfat plain yogurt, carrot sticks and tuna fish, apple and almonds, etc.) So as you can see lack of food isn't a problem But maybe I need to up the fats. I'm also very conscious of my protein intake because I eat an almost-vegetarian diet and while there are plenty of veg protein sources, how do you (really) compete with a chicken breast??

Kathy

 

[KathyH]

Hi Kathy! I'm not the kind of person who can work out on an empty stomach. I wouldn't have the energy that I need to really pump it up!! I work out anywhere from 7:30 p.m. and on. I'll eat a big breakfast at 7:00 a.m., a snack at 10:00 a.m., a big lunch consisting of chicken, turkey or a Boca burger, roasted or sweet potatoes and vegetables and another snack of an energy bar at 4:00 p.m. Then when I come home for dinner I'll eat either tuna or salmon with a salad. I'll wait 30-45 min. and then I'll work out. If its still early enough I'll have a protein shake. Maybe you should try eating a light lunch at dinner and the shake after your workout to avoid the munchies in the wee early morning hours. Just a suggestion! Happy lifting! Kathy

 

[kweller]

Kathy, Hmmm. That's an interesting idea. (THANK YOU!)I don't think it would work for me because I wouldn't have enough time for the food to leave my stomach before I had to get going to my workout since I like to complete my workout by 8-8:10 pm (which means I have to get in there by 6:30, and I get home at 6). Alternately, though, I could make my late afternoon snack *bigger*.
Kathy

 

[Shaz]

It sounds like your meals are really healthy - lots of vegetables (something I need to work on!) However, I wonder if you could benefit from something starchy (eg potatoes/ rice/ pasta) in your evening meal to refill your glycogen stores (these get used up during weight training). Just a thought.
Sharon.