No matter what diet you follow, you should know that nutrition has a significant impact in every facet of your life, it is literally what you are made of. It especially has significant impact on your results in the gym. What you eat before, during, & after your workouts may be the difference between achieving your goals & falling short.
I want to keep this as basic af, easy to understand & apply as possible for y’all, no matter if you follow a meat-based (or “carnivore”) diet or a more traditional approach including carbs. I will share my experiences & tips especially for those of you who have struggled with special digestive needs like autoimmune, IBS, IBD, & Crohn’s like myself. A lot of word vomit here, I tried to include as much as I could.
Remember, there is no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to the “right” way to eat, workout, or live. You choose what works best for you. 🙂 This is a non-dogmatic safe space.
In general, by eating a healthy, well-considered meal 1-2 hours before exercise, & another healthy, well-considered meal within 1-2 hours after exercise, most people can meet their workout nutrition needs without anything fancy stuff. In other words:
If you’re a healthy person who exercises regularly, you probably don’t need special workout nutrition strategies. Most of us fall into this category & that’s where I will keep this focused.
Important stuff:
TOTAL DAILY INTAKE
Your calories & energy balance. The big rocks. Without adequate calories, you won’t perform or feel your best. Fats & carbs are your energy sources, not proteins.
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MACRONUTRIENTS
Carbs (if you eat them) the more you train or the harder you train – the more carbs you will likely tolerate. Fats are the other lever for us fat fueled folk. Protein stays pretty consistent.
ELECTROLYTES & HYDRATION
Ever been dehydrated or electrolytes lacking? If you have, then you know your energy, sleep, recovery, & training were trash 🚯. These are crucial for keeping your CNS healthy, muscles hydrated, & your body functioning optimally.
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FOOD COMPOSITION
You are what you digest & absorb. You also are your habits. Eat food that is nourishing to your body & mind. Avoid foods that are hard to digest, cause physical problems, & emotional issues like binging & emotional eating. If you don’t absorb nutrients, you won’t utilize those nutrients efficiently.
MEAL TIMING
Efficient digestion, absorption, & nutrient utilization are keys here. Meal timing won’t change things drastically until you master the basics first. Like sleep, eating enough food & the right food for you!
Swipey swipe away!
Special timing considerations:
- You work out early af in the morning: you can do these fasted if you prefer & eat a well sized meal with plenty of protein after. If you’re hungry in the am, liquids (shakes) & easy to digest, low volume carbs (like cereal or rice cakes), if you eat carbs, are more appropriate. I find people who follow a meat-based diet & workout early in the mornings prefer to fast & then eat their largest meal post workout.
CARBOHYDRATES
There are few things in the fitness world more controversial than carbs. Will they make you fat? Do you need them? Timing? The questions are endless. Quality fuel is critical, which we get from carbs & fats. They are our energy sources, not protein. You pick which one you prefer.
Carbs in general are your body’s preferred fuel source when it comes to highly glycolytic (means it burns a sh*t ton of carbs) activities like HIIT, the “crossfits,” & Orange Theory-esque type workouts.
Optimal timing & portions are more important. You want every gram of carb you consume to be utilized as an immediate fuel source or to restore glycogen levels – you don’t want it to be stored as fat. I find them consumed around your workouts most optimal. Just remember the more active one is, the more carbs they can typically warrant consuming.
PROTEIN
Protein is essential for tissue growth & repair. Since the body is continuously breaking down proteins, our diet must provide sufficient quantities. Although recommended intakes vary & depend on so many different things like dieting/health history, activity, training modality, goals, digestion, allergies, etc, a post workout shake is almost always universally helpful to kickstart muscle repair, recovery, & growth.
Shakes are convenient around workouts for high digestibility & absorption, but not necessary if you time your meals accordingly to your needs & preferences. I prefer real, whole foods for my nutrition vs supplements. To cover your bases most people do well consuming meals around 30-50g of protein per meal to meet optimal amino acid needs. Timing will differ based upon diet preference, workout timing, workout modality, & specific goals.
FAT
The body uses fat as a fuel source, & fat is the major storage form of energy in the body. Fat also has many other important functions in the body, & is needed in the diet for optimal health. Fats (cholesterol) are also the precursors to our hormones.
Fats in food come in several forms, including saturated, monounsaturated, & polyunsaturated. Quantity & quality are important. Fats do help to slow digestion, which maintains stable blood glucose & insulin levels. Fats also provide vitamins & minerals, aid in absorption & are important in everyone’s diet.
Some examples of foods that contain fats are butter, oils, nuts & seeds, meat, fish, & dairy products. Again, people will have different preferences as to whether they get their energy from carbs or fats. Most meat-based people prefer fats as fuel or they only consume a strategic amount of carbs around workouts only.
SPECIAL CONSIDERATION TIPS
Athletes may have special needs, for example:
- An endurance athlete: You train for high level competition. You log a lot of high intensity miles each week. For you, carbohydrate & calorie needs are likely higher unless you do not digest them well & prefer fat as fuel. You could add a protein + carbohydrate drink or shake during your long training.
- A bodybuilder: You lift weights with muscle growth as your goal. Your protein & calorie needs are likely higher especially in a building phase.
- Getting ready for a fitness competition: You likely accumulate more exercise hours. Goal is to drop to a low body fat %. For you, carb intake (if you eat carbs) will likely be lower & protein higher especially as calories drop to maintain as much lean muscle mass as possible. Keto athletes will manipulate protein & fat macros to their preferences & needs.
Tips for those with special digestive needs like allergies, autoimmune, IBS, IBD, & meat based:
**This is simply to help you optimize from my experience as an athlete & someone who lives with Crohn’s & special needs**
- If you’re going to eat carbs, keep them around your workouts for more optimal utilization aesthetically & metabolically. Largest meals I prefer post workout & earlier in the day. Digestion is better in the mornings.
- I did best with minimal digestive issues with easy to digest, gluten free, low volume carbs like rice cakes, gf oats, white rice, rice chex cereal if I was going to eat carbs. I don’t need them much anymore since going meat-based. Ground meat & seafood is easier to digest vs steak, ribs, & chewy cuts of meat.
- If you workout early af in the am & you’re not training for a performance sport, I find fasted workouts more optimal as far as aesthetics & digestion. Protein shakes are great if you’re hungry early, training long periods, or don’t have time to eat a meal within an hour or so after your workout. Stop fasting until like noon before you eat after an early workout. “Tone” aka MUSCLE takes FOOD. You gotta build the body first!
- People reverse dieting do better with 3 meals/day vs 1-2, especially if meat-based. It’s harder on your digestive system to cram more calories in larger, less frequent meals. You MUST set yourself up for a successful cut by eating at maintenance or surplus for an extended period of time (like 6 months to a year realistically) BEFORE dieting for optimal, quicker results. A HEALTHY body loses body fat. You shouldn’t be dieting more than 1-2x/yr for no longer than 12-16wks. Most maintenance levels for active females are around 1800-2100+ calories/d. (I eat 2000/d & am 5’1, 105lbs for ex)
- When dieting, I find larger, less frequent meals more satiating utilizing intermittent fasting. Fat cycling leaner, lower fat days with higher fat days is extremely effective & easier to sustain on a diet. Try 4 lean days/wk & adjust as you go for your needs. Higher fat days you should be consuming around maintenance calories. Leaner individuals don’t need as many lean days or need to do the Protein Sparing Modified Fasting (PSMF)
- Don’t eat a high fat, heavy meal too close to working out. Digestion takes a lot of energy & you will be tired & sluggish. Eat 2+ hrs prior.
- Stay hydrated! 1/2 your body weight in oz, more if you sweat a lot & workout frequently. I use Ultima Replenisher electrolytes. If you’re low carb, you require more electrolytes. If you’re having muscle cramps & sh*tty recovery, up your electrolytes. All my product/supp info/discount codes in LINK IN IG BIO!
- If you’re having trouble sleeping, peeing a lot, hungry all the time, & tired, check your macros. You may need to decrease protein & up your fat. This is why I suggest at least loosely tracking your food! I find 180-200g of protein on the top end for females. 140g protein is an avg for most active females lifting weights. Most people who are hungry all time need more fat & calories.
- Maintenance macros: start with a 1:1 ratio of protein:fat as a baseline then tweak as needed. Use the TDEEcalculator.net to find your calorie needs 1st.
- If you’re losing hair, tired all the time, gut messed up, hormones wonky, craving carbs/salt, waking up at night starving, sh*tty sleep & recovery, plateaus in the gym or fat loss – you’re most likely NOT EATING ENOUGH, not sleeping enough, fasting too much, over caffeinating, & stressed to the titties -STOP 🙂
oxox Coach K
