Pre Workout Meal Ideas & Why you WANT Carbs Pre Workout

In order to optimise your training, you want to be having optimal glycogen stores in your muscles to use for energy during your workout. This means you want a good pre workout meal eaten 1-4 hours before your session in order to get the most out of your time in the gym/crossfit box/on the yoga mat/your workout . It has been stated in multiple scientific literature that 1-4 grams of carbohydrates per body weight is optimal for performance, therefore say you are weighing 75kgs, you should be aiming to intake around 75-300grams of carbohydrates before your workout in the time period I have mentioned. These numbers however do negate to someone who is about to undergo a very intense workout session, usually being over 60 minutes, therefore, you may benefit from aiming on the lower side of these figures, however it all depends on your performance, intensity of training and how your body responds.

Here are some examples of what 75grams of carbohydrates looks like in a typical pre workout meal.

2 slices of white bread with 1 whole banana
1 and a half cups of oatmeal with ½ cup blueberries
6 thick rice cakes
1 and a half bagels
1 and a ¼ cups of cooked rice

And here is how to make these carbohydrate foods into a suitable pre workout meal!

Meal 1 :
CANT GO WRONG WITH OATS
Add chia seeds, stevia and cinnamon to 1 and a half cups of oatmeal and top with blueberries for a yummy porridge pre workout meal!

Meal 2:
QUICK AND EASY RICE CAKES
Toppings such as avocado, tomato and tuna OR peanut butter, vegemite and jam give your rice cakes that extra bit of protein (from the tuna) or fat (from the avocado and peanut butter) or flavour (from the other yummy toppings).

Meal 3:
WHO DOESN’T LOVE BAGELS
I personally love some promite with my bagels as they are quite caloric dense and for a pre workout meal I don’t love having a massive meal, however if you are after a bigger more filling pre workout meal bagels are amazing with some smoked salmon, tomato and a-bit of Philadelphia light cheese!

Meal 4:
SPICE UP YOUR RICE
If you’re looking for a quick protein and fat source to pair with your rice, I personally love adding some flavoured 75gram tuna cans from Coles with tomatoes, spinach and either reduced salt tomato or barbeque sauce. Its quick, simple, easy and healthy. Just what you’re looking for.

 
Supplementation

Carbohydrate powders such as Redcon1 Cluster Bomb solo or combined with whey protein can also provide a quick and easy pre workout meal high in quality protein/amino acids and easily digestible carbohydrates. 

 

Optimising your pre workout nutrition with a carbohydrate emphasis will drastically aid in improving your performance. Timing your carbohydrates around your training will aid in recovery & performance and assist your more then consuming carbohydrates away from training time. This idea is known as nutrient timing and is based on consuming certain macros at the time of day when they will do their role in the body most effectively. 

Keep in mind the carbohydrates consumed around your training time will obviously still impact your total caloric intake for the day, so ensure if you have a weight loss orientated goal you are tracking or taking into consideration the carbohydrates you are consuming because as much as carbohydrate nutrient timing will aid in recoveyr and performance consuming more calories over your maintenance (caloric surplus) will effect your weight loss progress. 

So once you have calculated your daily calories try and shift more of the carbohydrates you consume on a daily basis to primarily around training times. 

e.g. removing 75g carbohydrates from your PM meals to consume closer to your PM training session.