What to Eat Before and After a Workout for Maximum Efficiency

Eating before exercise is important, but just as important is what you eat. I found an interesting article on About.com entitled, "Eating Before Exercise - Foods for Athletic Competition" that details what types of food you should and shouldn't eat in the moments and even hours before an exercise session or even an athletic competition. First off, what you shouldn't eat. Foods with a lot of fat, such as meat, doughnuts, fries, potato chips and more will cause digestion problems, pull blood into the digestive tract to help with digestion, and even cause problems with cramping and other types of discomfort. Caffeine can also be problematic.

Foods that should be eaten are those high in carbohydrates. These include pasta, fruit, energy bars, and drinks. While you shouldn't stuff yourself with these types of foods and drinks, having them in your stomach can be very beneficial. The article goes into detail as to what should be eaten when. For example, if a session or competition is one hour or less away, the article suggests fresh fruit, energy gels or a couple cups of a sports drink. Two or three hours before a competition, the article again suggests fruit along with water, yogurt and various types of bread. Three to four hours, and we're looking at fruit and bread again, along with pasta, cereal, toast or potatoes.

Having digested foods that are high in carbohydrates can help keep your energy up help keep you healthy and pain-free. Another article entitled "Eating After Exercise - Post-Exercise Meal" suggests foods high in protein and carbohydrates after a meal to help speed recovery from lost glucose and so on. These tips should help you get the most out of your workout while remaining healthy and fit.