The goal of the pre-workout nutrition is simple:
Dial down muscle breakdown and punch up muscle synthesis rates. There’s evidence that combining protein with resistance training can magnify the workout’s effects on protein synthesis rates, I don’t think it’s strong enough to support the claim that pre-workout protein is absolutely vital under all circumstances. Instead, pre-workout protein should be viewed in the context of your diet on the whole.
The research on eating carbs before a workout is clear: it improves performance. Specifically, eating carbs 15 to 60 minutes before working out will help you push harder in your training and may also aid in recovery and muscle growth. There are a couple physiological mechanisms in play here.
First and foremost, eating carbs before training providing your body with an abundance of glucose (blood sugar) to burn for immediate energy, and this helps you in three major ways.
1. The more glucose that’s available for your muscles to burn, the better you’re going to do in your workouts and especially if they’re longer.
2. Elevating blood glucose levels helps preserve the glycogen stored in your muscles. Glycogen is a type of carbohydrate stored in the body, and it’s the primary source of fuel for resistance training workouts. Thus, the further you dip into your body’s glycogen stores, the more likely you are to experience a drop in workout performance.
3. Research also suggests that maintaining higher levels of muscle glycogen improves cellular signalling related to muscle building.
Many people carry out what’s called fasted cardio in an attempt to burn and lose body fat- but unless you are carrying out this cardio from 6 to 7am you need to fuel your body before each and every workout.
Ultimately you should picture your body like a car- you can’t expect to drive from New York to Alabama with no petrol in the tank. If you’re looking to perform and train at your best, you need to make sure your body has enough fuel to do so! If you fail to provide yourself with the energy and nutrients required during exercise, the chance are you won’t see results as quickly as you should and over a long period of time your likelihood of becoming ill or injured will be increased.
Some guys will have big post and pre-workout nutrition without any appreciation for how those extra calories affect their total calorie intake. These guys then wonder why they are not losing any fat. Whether you are trying to lose fat, or build muscle, having an appreciation for the calorie implications of your pre and post-workout meals can be very helpful for you.
