To help ensure that your workout is the most effective it can be for your body, having a good idea of what is proper to eat before and after a workout is consequential. While some people stubbornly refuse to eat before their workouts as they mistakenly view eating before a workout to be counterproductive, eating first may actually spur your body into burning more fat while exercising, and not the other way around. In order to endure a high level muscle building, fat burning workout, your body needs many nutrients to fuel it as the workout ensures. While you do not want to workout on a full stomach, you do want your body to have the necessary fuel it needs to not only make it through the first couple reps, but the last few reps as well.

If you still cannot grasp this idea, try working out on an empty stomach one day, and then on an adequately full stomach the next. When your body has more energy it will be able to work harder for you. This does not mean eating a buffet dinner before the lunch, but rather a light lunch or breakfast an hour before heading to the gym. When planning your pre-workout meal focuses on simple carbs such as fruits and vegetables and proteins that are oatmeal or a yogurt cup. You will notice the difference as your body has the energy to complete not only your normal routine, but afterwards you do not feel the need to indulge in a huge meal, but rather have extra energy to spare, which is how you should feel after a workout.

What you eat after you finish working out is equally important. Once again carbs and proteins come into play as you want to eat foods that will be absorbed directly into your digestive bloodstream and replenish your body’s nutrients without adding fat to the body. Eating within 30 minutes of your workout is the best way to consumer the nutrients needed as your metabolism is still high and you will burn off the fat and calories form what you eat. A whey protein shake is an excellent source of nutrients that will help maintain muscles you just helped build during your workout and prevent losing some of the muscle mass in between your recent workout and the next one.

Carbohydrates are also important because you need to maintain your muscle tissue because if it starts to breakdown you will be no farther ahead than when you started. Carbs that contain high fiber content such as oatmeal, whole wheat bread, or fiber cereals are great to this end. If this principle sounds familiar to you; that is because it is similar to how conditioning athletes carbo-load before a serious event. In your case however, you are not building mass, just simply protecting your muscle tissue so a small serving will be sufficient.

It is important for your workout to be most effective that you take in consideration both what you eat before and after a workout.

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While it is far too often overlooked, the very critical segments are the warm up and cool down portion of your exercise routine. Too often people jump into their weight training without a proper warm up and walk away with no attention to stretching or a cool down period. When not addressed you are putting yourself at a much higher risk for many physical problems including the potential for severe injury.

1. Let us first discuss an effective warm up.

The purpose is to increase the body temperature, flexibility and prepare your muscles and joints for some strenuous activity. By using movements that involve your major muscle groups, perhaps specifically targeting the area you are training you will be properly preparing yourself for a workout. Many who use resistance training with weights or machines will start their program with a set of exercises using much lighter weight to ready their bodies then move into using more weight after they have completed the warm up set. In other words you are running your muscles through a light drill using the muscles and the movement they will be performing when using the heavier weights that will tax them. This warm up serves a physical need but it can also work to mentally prepare you for an activity, or to gain some focus to undergo a sport or intense workout routine.

2. The cool down is likely ignored even more than the warm up.

When in a hurry you complete your set, clean and bolt out of the gym onto something else. Bad move however! Without properly stretching and slowing the heart down you are leaving yourself open to dizziness, fainting, blood pooling, cramps and muscle soreness. Proper stretching after your workout is very important. These are stretches that target the muscles you just put to the test. These stretches should last approximately 30-60 seconds and you do not bounce. This stretching process will also give you a chance to have your heart rate come back down to a resting rate gradually. Slow deep breaths in through your nose and out through your mouth will aid in this cooling down process. After an intense cardiovascular workout you need to slow down and cool down with a light walk as well. Reduce your pace gradually and bring your heart rate down over time, not just hopping off the treadmill after a 30 minute run. You need to keep moving but slowly to reduce the likelihood of blood pooling in this instance
Your warm up should last approximately 5 minutes, however in cooler temperatures or if you are tired it may take slightly more time before you feel 'prepared'. You need to listen to your body and feel comfortable with what you are undertaking. The cool down again means slowing yourself down to the level where you are relaxed and you have given the muscles you have used that nice, long, however gentle stretch so you can reduce muscle soreness and cramping. There is no such thing as a cool down that takes too long, this is a relaxing time and you can't put a timer on the need to relax.

These are two areas you need to learn about prior to taking on a resistance training program. They will ready your body to lift weights or when using your own weight for resistance, and also serve to slow the pace down after and assist in stretching out the muscles to prevent severe stiffness and soreness. Easily overlooked especially when we rush through a workout but these components of your program will be critical to your success.

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