Pre-Workout Snack

Hey doc. I have a question regarding pre-workout nutrition for strength training. I lift before work, so I don’t have time for a regular-sized meal before my training session. I’m currently using 1 scoop of whey and 50 grams of carbs (Karbolyn) before my workout. I find that I get extremely hungry during my workout, from the liquid Calories. I was thinking of switching to a Clif bar before my workout, since it has 40-43 grams of carbs per serving (depending on flavor), but it only has 10-11 grams of protein per serving (depending on flavor). Is 10-11 grams of protein enough to stop muscle protein breakdown? Or should I use 2 to get the 20 grams of protein before my workout? I can’t find any energy bars with 20 grams of protein. I know this seems like a stupid question, but your opinion is appreciated.

Thanks for your time.

Bekegren,

Ah, the AM workout struggle. Been there a number of times, man. To your question, it is unlikely 10g of protein is going to do anything related to muscle protein breakdown (MPB) during your workout. On the other hand, neither is 20g, 40g, or even 80g of protein. I would not really make this a point of consideration for pre workout nutrition in this case. Rather, my criteria would look something like this:

  1. Easy to prepare
  2. You tolerate it well , e.g. no upset stomach during lifting
  3. Fits total day’s nutrition goals After that, I’d be looking at something that provides ~ 200 Cal or so of energy consumed ~ 30 min before a workout lasting < 90 minutes or so. For longer workouts, particularly high volume or conditioning-focused ones, I’d consider trying some intraworkout nutrition with a highly branched cyclic dextrin or combination of carbohydrates (like what you’re taking now). Also, Clif makes a Builder bar with 20g or protein. Those are my fav FWIW.

-Jordan

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Thanks for the information, Jordan. I’ll have to try those, the FitCrunch bars are pretty tasty too. So you don’t have a minimum Carbohydrate or Protein target for the pre-workout snack?

last question. I promise lol.

Not really. It’s mostly personal preference!