pre and post workout fuel

[leahpet]

Hey guys-
I'm new to this board, and a new raw-y. I'm wondering what everyone's found to be the best pre and post workout fuel - good on energy and easy on the stomach. I'm a slow triathlete and I do some kind of workout for 45 min to an hour 5-6 days a week. Nice to meetcha!

Leah

[Ashley]

I am a rock climber.

Pre - 2 bananas a couple hours before

during - medjool dates

after - water from a young coconut is the IDEAL food, but I usually end my workout with a green smoothie: (2-3 bananas, 1 mango, 2 handfulls of spinach)


hope that helps!

[NonDairyQueen]

I work out first thing in the morning and I rarely eat anything before hand. I drink a big glass of water though to get me going.

When I was pregnant, I felt like I needed something in me before my workout and I'd eat 1/2 a banana or apple. It seemed to work fine.

After my workout, I eat fruit while getting my kids ready for school. When I'm lifting heavier weights, I seem to need grains and may start out with sprouted wheat crackers (my sweet recipe with apples & cinnamon) instead. -- Renee

[Nichole]

I love nut butter with bananas pre or post workout. I do cadio for 45min 3 days a week and weights. I find the nut butter keeps the hunger pangs at bay. Coconut water is also great for replenishing electrolytes and stabilizing my blood sugar. Good luck!

[Stephanie]

I'm still trying to figure out what is best for my pre workout fuel. But I've learned that post workout the best possible thing is liquid nutrition so your body can easy digest, and also it should be consumed ideally within 30 minutes post workout. My favorite is a green smoothie made with young coconut water:

banana, strawberries, few handfuls of spinach or kale, and the water from a young coconut.

Super yummy!

[Nichole]

Hey Leah..Check out Brendan Brazier, he is a raw-vegan triathlete. He has written a book with training guidelines and meal plans with post work out shakes. It's caller Thrive. According to Brendan, quality proteins are the best post work-out fuel to repair muscles. He has also posted articles you can read for free on his web site. And one more thing...he has a raw protein powder for smooties that you can purchase. Hope this helps you. I'm a personal trainer amping up my performace through more structured raw-vegan nutrition, but i've been raw for about 2 years now.

www.brendanbrazier.com

[Christy Seguin]

Hi Leah,

I am getting ready to compete in a fitness (figure) competition in 3 weeks. My goal is normally to add muscle size, but right now I am working on getting ripped. :-)

The best pre-workout fuel will have protein, carbs and some great healthy fats in it, like coconut oil, UDO's oil, or avocado, so you will have lots of energy for your workout. Be careful with the amount of fat if you are on the 80-10-10. I am not, so my favorite pre-workout food is an avocado blended with chocolate Sun Warrior protein (which is raw vegan), some raw honey or other sweetener, a little Celtic Salt and enough water to make a yummy pudding. I can go for hours on one of those! Also works well with young coconut meat and water. I love it--a muscle-building chocolate mousse! :-)

Post workout, study after study has shown that you need a carb-to-protein ratio of approximately 2-to-1, and both the protein and carbs should be very quick-absorbing and ingested within 30 minutes after you finish your workout. Your muscles have been torn down, your body is sending growth hormone and IGF-1 to repair them, and those hormones cannot work properly unless they are in the presence of insulin. So your goal is to gently increase your insulin without spiking the blood sugar, and also having protein readily available. This way, your body will use the fuel to rebuild the muscles. If these nutrients are not present, the body will turn on itself, eat up its own muscle, and store more bodyfat. A shake is perfect for this. A recent study showed that those who did NOT consume a post-workout shake actually increased bodyfat and lost muscle mass. So it's very important!

An ideal post-workout shake is a green smoothie with added protein. Brendan's protein is very good, Sun Warrior is my fave, hemp protein is awesome--lots of choices! Be sure there is no fat in your post-workout smoothie. Fat slows the digestion and absorption of the nutrients, and you want this meal absorbed as quickly and easily as possible! I like to use raw honey to raise my insulin levels quickly, plus get the added nutrients from the honey, but it's not true vegan, I know. I agree with all who suggested young coconut--it's AWESOME post-workout food.

Check out my videos of post-workout green smoothies. I have a few posted on the site. Good luck to you!!!!

Blessings, love and light,

Christy, aka "Defiance"
www.Defiant-Health.com

[Eva]

Hi,
I usually run first thing in the morning and don't eat before that (just drink about 1 liter of hot water with ginger in the hour leading up to my workout). The early morning runs are between 5 and 10km. On the weekend I do one long run of between 15 and 18km (training for a 18km off road race at the moment) so I do them later in the day to allow my body to wake up first :-).

Before those long runs I have banana ice cream (2 frozen bananas, blended) about 1 hour before the run and 1 Tblsp of raw cacao nibs (for caffeine kick) just prior to leaving the house. Afterwards I have a couple of dried dates, then shower, then have a meal (green smoothie) about an hour later.

It seems to work fine so far. I will include some kind of nutritious drinks during the actual race. I am thinking of equipping my fuel belt with 2 bottles of water, 1 bottle of water mixed with vege stock (non raw, I know :-) ) and 1 bottle of water blended with a couple of dates. Just to make sure I don't loose to much salt and have enough carbs to keep going and not hit the wall.

Cheers
Eva

[Pete Watson]

I don't really eat much before any yoga. But afterwards, I like avocados, nuts, or sometimes carrots and broccoli. I try to stay away from anything complicated (dehydrated, food-processed, etc), but I like the fruit-nut energy bars and they are easy to make.

I guess I should ask you what works / worked for you, now that I see this was posted in September last year!