Have you ever wondered whether breakfast before or after exercise makes more sense? As with many questions, there is not only one right answer to these. Basically, it depends on the goal that you pursue with your sporting activity in order to assess whether you should rather have breakfast before or after.
Anyone who does sports primarily for the reason of getting in shape or even losing a little weight must pay attention to other things than ambitious athletes who want to outgrow themselves in every training session. No matter what your goal is with sports nutrition or for whatever reason you ask yourself this question – together we will find the ideal answer for you and your needs .
Does exercise burn more fat on an empty stomach?
You want to get rid of a few kilos and do it as quickly as possible? You've heard that exercising on an empty stomach can be beneficial for burning fat?
This is not true if you want to trust scientific studies. Because they could not find any evidence that a training session on an empty stomach is beneficial – at least not for weight loss. Although this increases the metabolism of fatty acids, this does not seem to have a decisive influence on body fat percentage or weight loss, but rather involves interesting approaches for insulin-resistant people (type 2 diabetes).
Therefore, the same thing counts for you as for everyone else who wants to lose weight – plenty of exercise and an adequate diet .
Breakfast before exercise – the key to success?
Want to get the most out of every workout? Whether in strength or endurance sports – if you want to take your training to the next level, you need to be sufficiently energised.
Why breakfast before exercise improves your stamina
Depending on whether you prefer endurance sports or are the HIIT type, your body relies on different energy suppliers. While you mainly metabolize carbohydrates during a HIIT workout, your body tends to rely on fat for longer, but less intense endurance runs.
Therefore, it makes sense to replenish your carbohydrate stores before a high-intensity session. The best way to do this is with a carbohydrate-rich diet before exercise , which allows your blood sugar level to rise as evenly as possible and thus provides you with energy throughout your training. However, you should make sure that you plan enough time between breakfast and exercise so that you do not exercise on a full stomach. You can find out why porridge , for example, is ideal for breakfast before exercising here.
For long-distance runners or endurance athletes whose training lasts longer than an hour, the intake of an easily digestible carbohydrate source is recommended. Preferably in liquid form, such as smoothies or protein shakes, or in the form of solid, but easily digestible, low-fiber food, such as a banana. Our insider tip: the Verival date confectionery . This is not only an excellent carbohydrate source, but also contains little fat and is therefore the ideal snack before training.
Build muscle faster with a high-carb breakfast?
In order to accelerate muscle building, the body needs sufficient stimuli. These in turn require a high intensity and thus a lot of energy. Therefore, if your goal is to build muscle , you should ideally have breakfast before training . Because if your carbohydrate stores are almost completely depleted before exercise, it can be difficult to train intensively enough to provoke muscle growth.
After training , you should pay particular attention to a protein-rich diet , as your body now needs enough protein to regenerate and build new muscle tissue. Vegetable proteins such as chia seeds , nuts or oatmeal are suitable. That is why we attach particular importance to a sufficient protein content in our sports range – so porridge , cereal and shake are the perfect companions for your way to building muscle .
But carbohydrates can also be useful after an intensive strength training . Because the same applies here as with a HIIT workout – the body primarily metabolizes carbohydrates and thus empties your glycogen stores.
In order to replenish your stores as well as accelerate your regeneration and thus optimize your muscle building , you should therefore resort to a protein- and carbohydrate-rich diet. We have summarized in detail what the perfect sports breakfast looks like here.
Conclusion: Which is better, breakfast before or after exercise?
Whether breakfast is better before or after exercise depends greatly on which sport you practice and what goals you pursue with it. And if you can't decide – why not just have breakfast twice? 😉
