Fitness Guru Jon Benson recently wrote a great article about what to eat before your workouts. I thought it would be a great one to share here. One of the most common questions Jon gets asked is: “What should I eat before my workouts if I want to get rid of bodyfat?”

Jon’s answer? NOTHING.

I’ve been saying this for almost a decade now… and research is catching up with the idea. It’s nice to be right. : )

Several studies now confirm that exercising while your body is low on food may be a good way to trim excess fat. European researchers found that cyclists who trained without eating burned significantly more fat than their counterparts who ate. Now, this is important: Cycling requires a LOT of energy. Far more energy than you need to get rid of bodyfat.

Working out with weights and doing moderate to intense (but short) cardio will take care of 99% of your needs when it comes to fatburning. But with weights, and especially with the cyclists that were tested, performance may be an issue.

In fact the members of the group of cyclists that didn’t eat performed worse on the intensive training. Still, they burned a higher proportion of fat to carbohydrates than the group that ate. (Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, the journal of the American College of Sports Medicine.)

Why? Simple. Your body’s blood sugar is lowest in the morning prior to eating. When you train, moderately or with intensity, most of your fuel comes from your bodyfat and NOT ingested carbs. Isn’t that cool? Which would you rather burn… bodyfat or carbs?

Yeah, me too. : )

About performance: I have found that my performance only suffers slightly when fasting and training for the first few weeks. After that my performance increases. The body starts to burn its own bodfyat far more efficiently so I find I have PLENTY of energy.

This was not a lone study on fasting and training. In a 2008 study, Hespel and colleagues tested the effects on men who did endurance training without eating versus those who ate. In the athletes who hadn’t eaten, the researchers found a spike in the amount of proteins needed to process fat, meaning their bodies had been primed through fasting to get rid of more bodyfat.

So, now you know the answer to the old question: “What should I eat before training?”

Nothing… or as little as possible.

I must admit that working out on an empty stomach scares me a little. I kind of get that morning nauseation if I don’t eat, but with this great information, I am certainly going to give it a try. Have you tried workouts on an empty stomach? Let us know what you think. For After workouts, Shakeology is my favorite!

More From coachjenn

• Personal Fit Coach Shares Unconventional Tips for Women's Health and Fitness | Personal Fit Coach
• Get Rid of Belly Fat | Personal Fit Coach
• Personal Fit Coach Considers What Makes You Feel Centered? | Personal Fit Coach

coachjenn Recommends

• 7 Things Your Personal Trainer Won’t Tell You  (Jinifit)
• Top 13 Things to Scrap from Your Blog IMMEDIATELY! Build a Faster Blog Series  (Mommy Living the Life of Riley!)

Ask coachjenn To Recommend Your Posts

Popularity: 5% [?]