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Grab and go pre-workout snacks

January 20, 2013 | byVanessa Perrone

pre-workout snacks

Here’s the scenario: It’s 5 pm, you’ve finished work and you’re headed straight to your workout session. You keep your gym bag in the car, knowing full well that if you stop by the house, that workout might not happen. Great move. After some traffic, you get to the gym and have a so-so workout… you’re bummed. You feel exhausted and can’t seem to push as hard as you’d like. And then, when you finally get home, you’re, well, famished. And when you stop to think about it, you realize that you haven’t eaten since early afternoon (or in many cases…lunch). Bad move. Based on true stories.

The moral of the story is while there is no one-size-fits-all pre-workout snack, you definitely want to plan for one, especially if your last meal was 3 hours or more before your session. Here’s a brief overview of pre-workout fueling:

Why eat before a workout?

To prevent hunger, to provide the body with energy and to boost stamina.

 

Do I need to drink before a workout?

Yes. You should aim to drink about 500 ml of water, 2 hours before the start of your workout (this gives you enough time to eliminate any excess).

 

How much time to allow between your meal and your workout

As a general rule of thumb, you want to allow:

3-4 hours for large meals

2-3 hours for small meals

1h30-2 hours for liquid meals

Today’s focus is going to be on foods eaten one hour or less, before your workout.

 

What to avoid:

  • Unfamiliar foods, that may cause unwanted GI issues
  • Fatty foods, that slow stomach emptying
  • High fiber foods
  • Refined carbohydrates or sugary foods, that may cause a drop in blood sugar during your workout and hinder performance

What to choose:

  • Snack made of mostly carbohydrates with a bit of protein: Carbs are the muscle’s primary energy source which is why they should make the base of your pre-workout snack. But having some protein with your snack can be beneficial, as it will give you more sustained energy and also has the advantage of supplying the body with an early boost of amino acids he’ll need to begin repairing and rebuilding upon the end of your training.
  • For a high intensity workout, if you have less than 30 minutes before your session or if you have a sensitive stomach, you may want to stick to a snack made almost entirely of easy-to-digest carbs, like a banana.

You need to learn what works for you. Had a good or bad training day? Take note of what you ate and you may eventually notice which foods work, or don’t work for you.  Here are some good places to start:

 

Banana + peanut butter

Oatmeal + sliced almonds

Sprouted grain English muffin or toast + almond butter

Whole-grain crackers + hard boiled egg

Fruit and nut bar or granola bar

Fruit salad + chia seeds

Dried apricots + almonds

Wrap: Tortilla + hummus + cucumber & tomato

Piece of fruit + Greek yogurt

Small quinoa salad

Small baked sweet-potato topped with greek yogurt

Date & almond smoothie: 1/2 banana + 2 dates+ almond milk +2 tsp. almond butter

Or these Peanut butter & Banana energy Bars

 

Again, there is no one-size-fits-all pre-workout fuel. So dedicate yourself to finding your formula. Then just stick to it get the most out of your training!

 

What’s your pre-training formula? Any tried-and-true favorites to share?

 

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Juan says

    February 28, 2013 at 11:36 am

    Thank you so much! This has all the information ive been looking for written in a clear, concise manner. Even has some awesome snack ideas to boot.

    Reply
    • Vanessa says

      February 28, 2013 at 12:28 pm

      Thanks Juan! Give those snacks a try and let me know how that workout goes!

      Reply
  2. bijju says

    March 17, 2013 at 3:45 pm

    Banana and oatmeal combination works well for me..

    Reply
    • Vanessa says

      March 18, 2013 at 8:20 pm

      That’s a popular one, both great foods.

      Reply
  3. Caroline Mills says

    March 19, 2013 at 10:42 pm

    I love eating homemade coconut flour pumpkin bars with dates and chocolate chips. But peanut butter and apple or even better cheddar cheese and apple are great.

    Reply
    • Vanessa says

      March 26, 2013 at 1:58 pm

      Those bars sound great! The pre-workout combo is in fact a personal one, so it’s important to test different foods and see which “formula” works best for your performance.

      Reply
  4. Cori says

    June 19, 2013 at 2:50 pm

    Hi,

    I just found your blog and I love it! I found it through this post, which I found super helpful. I searched your blog but couldn’t find anything about post-workout snacks and what you thought about them?

    I drive home after working out and it takes at least 30 min, and I’ve read that eating directly after a work out can be beneficial (like eating some protein) so I was hoping you could give me more insight into that!

    Thanks,

    Cori

    Reply
    • vanessaperrone says

      June 27, 2013 at 4:36 pm

      I wrote this post a little while back you might find helpful! http://motivenutrition.com/2012/04/29/eating-for-exercise-recovery/

      Reply
      • Cori says

        July 16, 2013 at 3:52 pm

        thank you!

        Reply
        • vanessaperrone says

          July 17, 2013 at 3:27 pm

          Happy training!

          Reply

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