What to eat before and after a workout ?

Hey, Itś been a while, but I´m back and running again. Been doing a lot of side projects and sorry for not being here all this time.

Lately I have been getting a lot of emails on what to eat before and after a workout. So in addition to my own knowledge I´ve been asking some friends on what they eat before and after and did a bit of reasearch on it. I found out alot and I will gladly share my holy grail of nutritious foods :)

So lets get started !

First of all I would like to mention, that it does not matter which exercise you are going to do.

Just remember not to eat so much of this tasty food that you are too full to do anything.

Lets start with the foods neccesary to begin your workout. I will be mostly talking about out of my experience.
    I usually workout in the mornings, so I like to combine my pre-workout foods with breakfast as I go along.

Best Pre-Workout foods: 

• Bananas: They are full of digestible carbohydrates or as I like to call it "Fuel". Also they are extremely light to eat in the mornings and especially before a workout. Bananas also contain large amounts of Potassium, which helps out muscle function. Potassium usually is not stored in the body for long, so bananas will keep the nutrient levels high for your workout period.
• Oats: We have discussed the importance of carbohydrates in this blog before, but I´ll go over them again. Because oats are full of fiber, then this means it gradually releases carbohydrates into your bloodstream. Because they are being released gradually, then it keeps your energy levels consistent for a long time. Oats also contain vitamin B, which helps to transform fibers into carbohydrates a lot faster. 
• Fruit and Yogurt: This is one of my favorites. Fruit is packed with carbohydrates and yogurt is full of High-Quality protein. The carbs from fruit break down quickly and afterwords helps to prevent muscle damage. Trust me ! It would be a great habit to obtain in the mornings.

What to avoid doing: Remember, that these are Pre-Workout snacks not meals. If you are going to eat too much of these then you could get nausea, indigestion and vomiting. Belive me, I have gone trough with that before. As I mentioned, I love fruits and yogurt and overdid once, the workout did not work out well to say the least.

Best Post-Workout foods: 

• Eggs: At just 70 to 80 calories each, eggs contain about 6 grams of protein and are one of the few foods that naturally contain vitamin D. I have lots of recipes which contain eggs on my blog, be sure to check them out !
• Salmon: Not only you get a large dosage of protein, salmon is also packed with Omega-3 , which helps rebuild muscles and increase performance. On of the best parts about salmon, that itś Super Delicious !
• Kiwi: It may not sound like much, but Kiwi actually packs huge amounts of vitamin C and potassium into tiny serving. They also relieve muscle sourness thanks to their excellent source of antioxidants. If you can, then try to eat the skin of it, it has a large amout of nutrients in it. 
• Green tea and Chocolate Milk: In my opinion these drinks are heavenly. Green tea contains powerful antioxidants that help metabolize fat that would otherwise cause muscle sourness. Chocolate milk is a great option for recovery. Tastes far more better than just plain old water also, dosen´t it ;) Researchers found that Chocolate Milk restores muscle glycogen and re hydrates the body just as well as Gatorade. As an added bonus, it contains large amounts of calcium thanks to the milk, healthy fats and whey protein. 

The most important part of all: Eat something. In order for the body to recover it needs vitamins and nutrients. If you exercise in the mornings, wake up 10 minutes earlier if needed to get your pre-, and post-workout foods ready. You´ll thank yourself later. 

Remember: A healthy mind needs a healthy body ! 

Keep Training !