eating when training first thing in the morning

[mdj]

Hey guys and girls

I start a new job next week and am going to have to alter my training schedule. Usually I work out in the evening however I am now going to have to work out about 7.30am- this will consist of weights and resistance training for 45 mins. Am I best working out on an empty stomach and having a PWO shake/breakfast straight after or should I eat before hand- I dont particularly want to get up ridiculously early and am thinking that if I have a shake about 7am upon waking it wont have digested properly when I come to start my workout!

HELP!

[aBhorsen]

Your body has just been starved for between 7-9hrs, i'd say it definately needs feeding. I know i personally can't train on an empty stomach.

Could a car run without fuel? :P

[comanight2]

devils advocate - I trained on empty for triathlon and sometimes for weights and never found a problem . . . Infact i think it made me faster, cause i knew i'd get to eat after :P

If you gotta eat (i always try to now), i get a small amount of solid high density food (nuts for example) - they move around less when you train.

[SpiderDan]

Some people get away with training on an empty stomach but it depends on how the rest of your diet is. I hazard a guess that if you were in a caloric surplus the majority of the time your stored glycogen would be suffcient to fuel you, if you were in a deficit then it probably wouldnt be.

You could try working out on an empty stomach and see how you get on, if it doesnt go too well something simple like a shake and some nuts might be suffcient.

[Ripped Barbarian]

You should always train on an empty stomach.

The stomach is for digesting food, not a fuel tank, having half digested food in your stomach whilst training and subsequent reduction of digestive ability isn't a good thing.

It's not a case of 'getting away' with training on an empty stomach, everyone could and should do it, those who feel they can't are relying upon the action of insulin to promote feelings of energy, which isn't a good way to do things.

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Your body has just been starved for between 7-9hrs, i'd say it definately needs feeding. I know i personally can't train on an empty stomach.

Could a car run without fuel? :P

It hasn't been starved for 7-9hrs, it hasn't eaten for 7-9hrs....there's a big difference between not eating for several hours and starvation.

As i said above, the stomach is not a fuel tank, your glycogen stores and fat stores are.
If the body relied upon constant supply of energy from the stomach, requiring constant digestion we'd be a species very vunerable to extiction, as there are 6.8 billion of us i wouldn't imagine that's the case.

Eating is to replenish energy and nutrients used during normal metabolism during daily activity in all animals.
A lion dosn't eat an antelope and then go off running....

[SpiderDan]

although given the digestive transit time of food and the fact that a majority of people eat more than 3 times a day, most people are never training on empty stomach anyway.

When I get up in the morning Im hungry and I think would find a growling stomach would put me off, something small to settle it would help, but thats how I feel.

Surely the energy response isnt the only reason for eating prior to exercise? I thought I read somewhere that insulin promotes vasodilation and blood flow?

[Ripped Barbarian]

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although given the digestive transit time of food and the fact that a majority of people eat more than 3 times a day, most people are never training on empty stomach anyway.

Empty stomach yes, empty digestive tract, no.

The key thing to remember is that when you start training blood flow is reduced to the digestive tract so it's not going to be providing much energy during training, at least in the case of wholefoods.

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When I get up in the morning Im hungry and I think would find a growling stomach would put me off, something small to settle it would help, but thats how I feel.

Nothing wrong with something quite small, a little while before training (so it has a chance to be digested properly in the stomach before entering the small intestine.

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Surely the energy response isnt the only reason for eating prior to exercise? I thought I read somewhere that insulin promotes vasodilation and blood flow?

Yes, but not in ways to promote exercise efficiency, instead to promote replenishment and anabolism in the body (which you should be doing after your workout, once the body has settled down)

Exercise is a catabolic activity, we have evolved to respond to it to promote recovery and replenishment.
If you go having a significant amount of food before a workout GH will be lower for a start...

Having insulin nocking about will reduce the effect of signalling kinase, insulin sensitivity promotion.

These catabolic periods are good for metabolic and endocrine health, it will reduce the chances of developing metabolic syndrome/fatty liver.

[Indiscreet]

I workout on an empty stomach. If I eat food or even take in a shake, I'll get to enjoy it a twice.
I'll take some glutamine in warm water on rising, and 2-3 cups of tea (with milk) - then before I hit the gym I have some creatine and beta alanaine. I'm fine not having breakfast first - I'm not hungry then anyway.
I want the blood in my muscles, not in my guts trying to digest food.

[khris]

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Could a car run without fuel? :P

Jeremy clarkson actually did lol with an audi on top gear, made it run on an empty tank for 30 mile or something lol, but yea the body will need a feed after sleeping whether thats straight off the bat or few hours after.

[mdj]

Thanks guys- I think I am going to try a hurricane xs shake upon waking about 40 mins before my workout, then a hurricane xs straight after with oats and nuts (standard breakfast for me).