protein drinks--before OR after exercise

[jbflorida 1]

One article I read said not to exercise on an empty stomach, to have something to eat before.

The lady at GNC said not to have a Protein Drink until After exercise ( saying that if I drink first, the body will be working on digesting and burning off those calories rather than working my body....).

Advice, please. WHEN do I have a Protein drink??:thumbs_up:

[terrasmom 0]

I would drink it before myself, or some kind of small drink before exercising so that I have some calories/nutrients available already. Try one way; if it does not work well for you, try it the other. It's a very individualized thing. The GNC lady is not a medical professional and every person is different. Not to mention just working out at all has huge benefits, regardless of when you drink a supplement.

[fujika 0]

I can't drink a Protein Drink before, I feel it sloshing and swishing up and down my tummy while I work out! That makes me nauseous! So, I work out first, then drink my Protein drink or have malt o meal with added protein powder, either way is good!:thumbs_up:

[Bigb 0]

For Breakfast or after the workout.

[tracymom 0]

My trainer recommends eating something one hour before workouts, but says that your muscles are most receptive to Protein up to 30 minutes after you work out, so a Protein Drink would be a good idea at that time. I have started drinking the Protein Shots directly after weight training per his instruction.

Tracy

Sacramento spinnerchick:lol:

[Jachut 487]

Studies have found that the best thing to have after exercise is MILK. It has exactly the right protein/carb ratio for recovery and muscle building and outperforms all the Protein Drinks they tested. I'm remembering here, it was in the news and on telly a few months back, sure if you google, you'll find stuff.

Protein drinks before exercise do little for me, I've tried it because when I get up early for a race or fun run, I'm really not able to eat easily first thing in the morning. But Protein doesnt give you good running fuel, you need carbs prior to exercise. I do MUCH better on a breakfast of Peanut Butter toast, coffee and a gel (carbs again) right before the race.

so after would be my guess, but plain ol milk will probably do the job.

[Bigb 0]

Seems like it was the University of Georgia that was saying that chocolate milk was the superior recovery drink. My nurses suggested that I do the Protein for breakfast because I have trouble eating in the morning and that would be the only time they would accept me doing a Meal Replacement. I use the GNC Wheybolic something or another. It has enzymes to help break down the protein to aid in absorbtion. It has 60 grams of protein per serving and 270 calories when mixed with Water. I have been thinking of cutting the serving to two scoops rather than three because I believe that 40 grams of protein is the uppper limit of what your body can asorb per meal. Any input?

[Bostongurl 0]

I've heard that the best time to exercise is first thing in the morning before you eat anything. When your body doesn't have food to use as fuel, that's when it starts to use it's "reserve" aka fat. That sounds great and all, but I'm pretty sure I won't be getting up at 5am anytime soon. So the second best option is to eat something low in carbs 90 minutes before you workout. I've been drinking a Protein Shake 90 minutes before I workout and have seen a huge difference in my performance, which means more calories burned. Bottom line is that we could all read something different everyday with all of the available information; we each just have to do what works best for us. Trial and error I guess!

[Jachut 487]

That's right, I'm not particularly trying to lose weight anymore so a carb loaded meal a couple of hours before a run works great for me.

I've tried the run in the morning on an empty stomach thing and to be honest, I cant run. I run out of steam. I run at about 5pm and I can go twice as far at that time, its a high energy time of day for me and I have plenty of fuel on board for it. So whether you burn more fat or not is kind of irrelevant if you're talking 3 slow kilometres versus 10 later in the day.

Whatever works for you!

I think we get WAY too tied up in the science of it, especially when personal trainers become invovled. Its pretty simple really, the BEST exercise is the one you will do, the BEST time to exercise is when you can be most consistent about it, the BEST fuel to eat is the one that makes you feel the best. No matter what the studies or trainers say about it. Same as the BEST diet is not high carb or low carb or 1000 calories or 1500, its the one YOU can stick to and live with.

[PlanIt 0]

Its pretty simple really, the BEST exercise is the one you will do, the BEST time to exercise is when you can be most consistent about it, the BEST fuel to eat is the one that makes you feel the best. No matter what the studies or trainers say about it. Same as the BEST diet is not high carb or low carb or 1000 calories or 1500, its the one YOU can stick to and live with.

You hit the nail on the head! It's trial & error & what works best for YOU!

Good luck in your journey!