Morning workout on an empty stomach. Breakfast before training - a necessity or harm

This discussion “Is it good or bad to pump on an empty stomach?” arose back in those days when the very first weight was lifted. Wars have been fought and peoples have died over the endless struggle (in general, for a very long time) between "training on an empty stomach or in a full state?", but it's time to put an end to the madness. Find out the final answer here.

Time to debunk old myths about food and exercise

Okay, let this not be the final answer. Different people need to train under different conditions for best results, and deciding whether someone should eat before exercising, what time of day to “pump” or what diet to follow will largely depend on what is best. works for a particular person. However, old myths will have to be dealt with.

Contrary to popular belief, research shows that eating more frequently throughout the day won't speed up your metabolism, skipping meals won't make you fatter, and exercising on an empty stomach won't nullify the effects of exercise. . In fact, skipping one or two meals, which is also known as "intermittent fasting"(IF) or "interruptible post"(PP) might even be helpful.

Hormone optimization (on an empty stomach)

A quick way to improve performance

Exercise, especially intense exercise that works multiple muscle groups at the same time (compound movements like deadlifts and squats), causes a big testosterone spike, which is why it makes sense to combine exercise and fasting.

Many studies have shown that fasted exercise is an amazing way to build muscle and increase insulin sensitivity.

and not only because of clear hormonal responses, but also because the body absorbs food more efficiently after exercise.

In short, exercise on an empty stomach is guaranteed to help proteins, fats and carbohydrates get into the right places in the body (with minimal deposition as fat). has been shown to be particularly important for fat loss, it has also been found that people who exercise on an empty stomach burn fat progressively better at higher intensity levels (possibly due to increased levels of fat-oxidizing enzymes).

Not interested in pumping muscles like a bodybuilder? There are also potential benefits for endurance athletes, as training on an empty stomach can increase the efficiency of muscle glycogen utilization (by about three times). This means that with an empty stomach, the body uses its energy reserves better. Sometimes " hungry workout” may improve the quality of “full training” (or running) in the future. In a nutshell:

when the body adapts to stay without food, it becomes more productive with "fuel in the tanks".

Some studies have also shown that "hunger training" can significantly improve endurance athletes by increasing VO2 Max, which measures a person's ability to take in and use oxygen during exercise and is a fairly accurate way of determining someone's physical condition.

It would be remiss not to acknowledge that some studies have shown performance degradation as a result of fasted training. However, many of these studies were conducted during Ramadan, when fluids are not allowed (and participation in sporting activities is discouraged). However, the predominance of people who are eating before a workout, pretty good proof that exercising after a meal can work. There are even studies showing that eating before a workout can lead to fewer calories consumed throughout the day. But that doesn't discredit the evidence that fasting, even occasionally, has many benefits.

Fasting training: action plan

You may think something like this: “How can I do intense exercise on an empty stomach?”. First, give yourself a head start! You are capable of more than you think with the right mindset. Second, here are a few tips you can follow to help you with your new approach to eating when it comes to training:

• You can drink more than just water. Do not suppress desire and get a boost of energy with black coffee, tea, caffeine tablets, amino acids, creatine, other drinks or supplements that are practically devoid of calories. According to leading experts on the subject, diet cola or sugar-free gum won't stop a hunger strike.
• Stop hunger when you feel like it. Most people want to eat immediately after a workout, as hunger improves the "post-workout" absorption of food, however, it is not at all scary if the fast lasts a little longer. Even if you train in the morning and don't eat until the evening, the HGH surge will keep you going all day long to prevent muscle loss. In any case, the body will help you.
• Eat as much food as you like. Note: This does not mean any number of calories. You don't have to eat often throughout the day. Despite some long-standing myths that the body absorbs a strictly defined amount of protein in one meal, we are quite capable of digesting the daily allowance from one large meal (but this does not mean that this is how we should do it). Some studies have shown that this approach does not lead to loss of strength or muscle mass, and some have even found that a concentrated meal of one or two meals a day may be better for building muscle mass. More protein will take longer to digest and absorb, but will be digested the whole. Even after a regular-sized serving, amino acids enter the bloodstream and are absorbed by the muscles for another five hours after a meal. So find your eating style that works best for you.

In short, metabolism and digestion are not as temperamental as one might think.

P.S.

Eating is perhaps the most ingrained habit and humans are, in fact, derivatives of it. Changing this habit of skipping one or two meals can be incredibly difficult for some people (especially those who have struggled with erratic eating). Indeed, intermittent fasting takes some getting used to as the body adjusts to eating less frequently. This discomfort usually goes away

but if fasting is not for you, then there is no need to stick to it, just don't be afraid to try it.

Interruptible fasting is just one approach to health and fitness, and certainly not the only one to get results from.

But the myths and misconceptions really need to be dispelled, and this article is meant to say: there is no need to eat before a workout. If you feel great during your workout, then all means are good! However, if you're concerned about the idea that you should definitely eat a banana or a bowl of oatmeal before your workout just because it's supposed to help you avoid muscle loss/fat gain, then you can relax. You are absolutely free to eat whenever you want. Just listen to your body, it will take care of you.

It is believed that for weight loss, the ideal training option is cardio on an empty stomach. Yes, indeed, it has been scientifically proven that energy costs, and, accordingly, body fat in the morning before the first meal will be greater, which means that you can lose weight much more efficiently. But will such training harm our body? Does it make sense to train on an empty stomach, or is it better to eat to make the session more intense? We understand in more detail.

What is the point of exercising on an empty stomach?

In the morning, after a full sleep, the level of glucose in our body is almost at the lowest mark. This is because for a long time (at least 6-8 hours of sleep) the body did not receive any nourishment, and all systems continued to work. And they took energy from glucose, which is in the blood. If you don’t eat anything in the morning, don’t give the body “fuel”, but go on a treadmill or go for a run in the park, it will draw energy for physical activity no longer from glucose (which, in fact, does not exist), but from those very hated fat deposits. It would seem that this is the point to lose weight quickly! But not everything is so simple.

How does breakfast affect calorie expenditure?

And first you need to consider the question of why you need to eat breakfast. The fact is that in the process of losing weight, not only calorie consumption for 40-50 minutes of training on an empty stomach is important, which, of course, will be large. But when you come home and have breakfast, you will again “catch up” on these calories, and the body (having received its long-awaited dose of glucose from food) will give them away with great difficulty in the future. For weight loss, basal metabolism is also important - that is, those calories that are consumed throughout the day, even at rest. So, back to the question of our subtitle: how does breakfast affect this total calorie expenditure?

Scientists from Pennsylvania conducted an experiment in which 2 groups of people participated. The first skipped breakfast, while the second regularly consumed it, and it was a full meal, rich in both proteins and carbohydrates. The first group consumed about 1500 kcal per day, while the second group consumed more than 2000 kcal. And the point here was not at all in training, but in basic metabolism. Moreover, after training in the first group, which did not skip the morning meal, calorie consumption for a long time was at the same high level as during it. And the second group slowed down almost immediately.

So the question of in which case you will lose weight more effectively - eating breakfast or not - is quite controversial!

So is it possible to train on an empty stomach?

The answer is yes, but there are a few caveats.

The only thing you can afford in the morning on an empty stomach is cardio (running, walking, swimming, cycling, dancing). No strength exercises - you simply do not have enough strength and energy for them!

The second nuance is that training should not be daily, it is enough to do 2-3 workouts on an empty stomach per week. On other days, if you really want to achieve results in losing weight, be sure to wake up immediately and have breakfast to disperse that very basic metabolism.

• Be sure to make sure that you do not have problems with blood sugar levels - a constant low level of insulin in the blood can provoke hypoglycemia, diabetes, vascular problems, arterial disease and exacerbation of chronic diseases.
• Get enough sleep when planning to go to the morning workout on an empty stomach - at least 7-8 hours.
• You should not exercise too intensely - it is better if a 20-minute run is replaced by a 40-minute walk uphill.
• Drink plenty of water during exercise - it is she who helps to flush out the split fat during this physical activity.
• After training, be sure to have breakfast - it should be a complete meal, including proteins, fats, and carbohydrates (for example, oatmeal and fruits, cottage cheese and vegetables, scrambled eggs, etc.).

Now you know for sure whether or not you can train on an empty stomach, so it's up to you to choose. But do not forget about all those tips that we gave - they will help you not only quickly get in shape, but also stay healthy!

This controversy continued for a huge amount of time, when the phenomenon of fitness turned into a brand new such subculture. There were topics with the ideal number of workouts per week, with the consumption of a certain amount of calories or with the consumption of a large number of "quality calories", the topic is about and. But one of the most important topics for a fierce debate is training on an empty stomach. Someone is categorically against, someone is for, and someone is for cardio on an empty stomach only. Today we will try to understand this topic.

First, it is worth noting that different people are suitable for different things for training and a healthy lifestyle. Someone really can’t eat after six, someone needs one leg day a week, someone needs a lot of leg days a week, someone has biceps and shoulders grow after a month or two of training, and someone they begin to stand out only after six months of high-quality diligent training. This is not a Korean random, all this is influenced by a huge number of factors, for example, body type, sports experience, age, metabolic rate and other things. Also, eating and not eating certain things after a workout and before it depends only on which path you have chosen for yourself for training.

Remember this thread about fractional nutrition? Contrary to popular belief, studies show that eating small meals throughout the day has no effect on metabolism. I personally have never dabbled in fractional nutrition and managed to achieve results. Skipping a meal won't make you fat, and training on an empty stomach won't invalidate the entire workout. In fact, skipping meals or even the holy of holies can be quite a profitable business.

Recent studies surprisingly show that an empty stomach triggers a cascade of hormonal changes in the body that improve muscle building and fat burning. However, these are not the latest studies, but relatively old ones, but they were somehow forgotten using outdated methods.

Benefits of training on an empty stomach and fasting in general

1. Improved insulin sensitivity

The body produces insulin when we eat to help us absorb nutrients from food. The hormone takes sugar from our blood and sends it to the liver, muscles and fat cells, which will be used as energy later on. The trouble is, when we eat too much and too often, it makes us more resistant to insulin, it adds to the risk of heart disease, cancer, and the difficulty of losing fat. Eating less frequently is one way to help correct this problem, because it leads to improved insulin sensitivity, muscle blood flow, and even curbs the impact of an unhealthy diet.

2. HGH

Somatotropic hormone is almost a legendary thing. It promotes muscle growth, fat reduction, bone growth. Along with regular strength training and adequate sleep, dietary restriction, fasted stomach training and not eating breakfast are one of the better ways increase growth hormone in the body. One study found that 24 hours without food increased hormone production in men by 2,000 percent (!!!) and 1,300 percent in women. This is a good reason to regularly restrict yourself from eating, skip breakfast, starve and not eat after six or four. This keeps the amount of growth hormones at the highest level.

3. Testosterone

We can't talk about muscle hormones without talking about testosterone. Testosterone helps increase muscle mass and reduce body fat. At the same time, it helps to increase energy levels, libido and even fights depression and heart problems in men and women. Therefore, people who have begun to actively train look at life more positively. Exercising on an empty stomach by itself may not affect testosterone production in any way, but there is a surprisingly simple way to get more testosterone and growth hormone, creating an optimal environment for building muscle and burning fat.

Exercise, especially intense strength training that involves many muscles (such as deadlifts and squats). This causes a big spike in testosterone and that's why you can combine strength and fasted training.

Exercising on an empty stomach is especially effective for burning fat. Moreover, all the same researchers notice that fat continued to be deposited, but in minimal reserves. During such a workout, you use your fat reserves for energy. In addition, the endurance of the heart muscle increases.

It would be unfair if I didn't say that some exercises on an empty stomach are not as good to perform as they are on a full stomach. However, if you eat well before training, you can suffer from a full stomach.

How can you train hard on an empty stomach? Are you crazy??

Usually those who disagree with our articles write comments in this spirit, but we will not respond in a similar way. We will be tricky.

1. Not only water

You can use coffee, tea, various isotonic drinks (I have no respect for them at all) to fill the stomach. You can also chew gum.

2. Break your abstinence

Don't overdo fasted workouts. Sometimes you can afford to eat if you really want to or if the training is tiring. If you go in for sports in the morning, and you get to eat during the day with great difficulty and only in the evening, it’s better not to starve at all, otherwise you will lose muscle mass.

3. No matter how big your portions are

Remember that the main thing is the number of calories consumed. At night, of course, it is better not to eat, so as not to drive sleep, but in the middle of the day you can afford almost anything and in almost any quantity.

People are slaves to their habits. I remember a large number of angry comments on the article, and I understand that I didn’t lie anywhere there. But we stubbornly cling to our habits and try in every possible way to explain our attachment to a particular topic, covering up the banal laziness to change something. But if you want results, you need to sweat!

Recently, this topic has become one of the most popular, along with such interesting techniques as carbohydrate cycling and intermittent fasting. Personally, I have always been a believer in the classic postulates that tell us that to maintain mass, you need to eat every few hours, especially if there is a calorie deficit. I also believed in high protein/moderate carb and high protein/moderate fat pre-workout meals to prevent muscle catabolism and energize the entire body. The fact is that there is a number of evidence that can shake our faith in these seemingly obvious facts. These studies prove that training on an empty stomach, such as after waking up before breakfast, can create a more powerful anabolic response. In this article, I will describe these studies. In fact, the arguments were so convincing that even I started experimenting with it.

This study accompanies a scientific explanation of the effects of two types of training process - training on an empty stomach and after eating. When we lift weights, the body responds by activating myogenic (within the muscle) genes that control protein synthesis. P70S6 is referred to as a muscle growth activator and is often used in research to determine the latter. In this study, two groups of young people were studied who had to complete a full body workout, with one of them exercising after a meal and the other on an empty stomach. The food group ate 722kcal for breakfast, of which 85% came from carbohydrates, 11% from protein, and 4% from fat. After training, both groups rested for 4 hours and drank recovery drinks. The results showed that the fasting group had twice the p70s6k levels one hour after exercise compared to the breakfast group. After another 3 hours, p70s6k values ​​began to become similar in both groups. Here is a quote from the study:

"Our results show that fasted training is able to stimulate an increased muscle intracellular anabolic response to a carbohydrate-protein and leucine-containing drink immediately after a hard training session."

From my layman's point of view, it seems to me that the increase in P70S6 concentration can be even higher if the anabolic window is closed with amino acids, since they enter the blood at a faster rate. We all know that training on an empty stomach causes muscle catabolism to some extent. These data suggest that the body is trying to compensate for weight loss due to catabolism, but that this process leads to greater weight gain later on. Fascinating, isn't it? I think insulin is also involved in this, since when glycogen is depleted, sensitivity to it increases. After all, when enough glycogen is stored in your body, the response to insulin is not as strong, because it does not need to transport glucose to close the deficit. When you eat before a workout, your glycogen is replenished. After such a workout, insulin is simply not needed, because you already have everything you need. As a result, with regards to the release of insulin, a plateau occurs. But on the other hand, when exercising on an empty stomach, the insulin response to a post-workout shake or meal will be extremely pronounced, the muscles will simply absorb all the necessary nutrients like a sponge.

I do not urge now to always train with a feeling of hunger. If you work out at night, it can be extremely difficult, because the need to eat during the day is added to the fatigue. I advise you to try to train on an empty stomach in the morning, before breakfast. To prevent morning catabolism, it is a good idea to drink 5-10 grams of BCAAs. Moreover, the positive effect on the rise of P70S6 is explained. I've been experimenting with all of this in the past week and can honestly say that I feel great. It seemed to me that I would not have the energy to lift weights, but it was not at all like that. Also, oddly enough, it was during these days that my deadlift was stronger than ever ... try to figure it out. For some people it may take a week or so to adapt, but for me this experiment was a pleasure. It's too early to talk about actual results, but I'll be sure to let you know in a month or so. I also want to add that in the mornings I began to feel energetic, and during the day I became more attentive. Try it yourself. If you don't like something, you can always return to the standard scheme, but remember one thing - you will never get results from something that you have never tried.

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There is an unspoken classical setting, according to which the athlete's diet before training should consist either of food containing proteins and carbohydrates, or of sports nutrition with the same composition (for example, gainers). The circuit is used to provide the muscles with enough energy for training. It is recommended even for drying, and by experienced athletes.

But, there is another opinion on what is presented as an axiom. Many athletes find that training in the morning on an empty stomach is more effective. How justified is this, is it worth training on an empty stomach and breaking the existing rules? This is what we are talking about today.

Many people think that morning training on an empty stomach is dangerous because by morning glycogen there is very little left. They are sure that if you do not have breakfast, then the body will have to spend own potential. Therefore, it is urgent to replenish it so as not to faint on the simulators and not go into the “other world” from catabolism. However, not everything is so sad.

During sleep, the body enters the anabolism stage. Adrenaline and corticosteroid levels drop, and the body begins to produce growth hormone, which is responsible for protecting and repairing muscles and bones. For the work of brain cells, cardiac activity, nervous system and other important functions performed in the absence of food, the body uses liver glycogen.

The breakdown of muscle glycogen occurs only during the work of the muscles and is used by them exclusively for their own needs. Sleep muscle catabolism is not true. A night “hunger strike” will not reduce the supply of muscle glycogen, and, in fact, the liver, too.

You should not load yourself with protein at night - drink milk, protein, eat cottage cheese, this is not no need.

How fast is glycogen used up?

It is known that the fastest supplier of energy in the body is glucose. Fats and proteins are its “slow” form, because much more time is spent on their fermentation.

The athlete's daily diet should contain 60% carbohydrates. Under this condition, glycogen is preserved to the maximum. Its total amount in the body is from 300 to 500 g, the muscles account for 200-300 g, the rest accumulates in the liver.

Every hour of intense strength training on an empty stomach causes the body to expend about 150 g of glycogen. After it is spent, the destruction of muscles will begin, and only then - adipose tissue.

Glycogen stores are vital for the body, so they are not completely depleted (we are not talking about prolonged fasting). Active training processes reduce glycogen stores, but not enough to switch to a strategic type of fuel - fat. In one workout on an empty stomach, it is unlikely that you will be able to completely extract all the glycogen, therefore:

• do not rush to immediately pounce on food because of the threat of death from catabolism;
• replenish glycogen stores not within 20-30 minutes. after training, but within 24 hours.