In gyms around the world nowadays, HIIT is everywhere. But if you are trying to learn how to build muscle and drop unwanted body fat using this method you need to pay particular attention to one area which most gym users overlook.
Of course, we are talking about nutrition. In fact it is the pre-workout period of nutrition which we will be discussing in more depth today because this is the area which many people don't pay any attention to at all.
If you can take the necessary steps to provide your muscles with the right fuel for each session then you will in turn increase your overall results by almost 30%, according to the latest scientific studies on the topic. []
Before you can work out what you should be eating prior to a high intensity interval workout you need to look at what type of food your body uses for fuel during this type of exercise because it's slightly different to regular training. While long, steady state cardio primarily burns fat stores, albeit at a very slow rate, high intensity intervals uses your carbohydrate stores for fuel.
The real benefits of this training happen after you leave the gym, where your body continues burning off calories at an increased rate for up to 14 hours. You may have heard this phenomenon called the afterburn effect. Instead of slowly chipping away at your fat stores and then ending the process when you leave the gym like regular cardio exercise, a high intensity workout depletes your carbohydrate stores first before going to work on fat stores. In doing this, your body enters a process called EPOC after your training has finished. It protects what little carb stores you have left and burns off excess fat instead. This process lasts an incredibly long time, and one calorie burnt during a high intensity session equates to around nine calories burnt during a long cardio workout.
As you can see, what we want to be doing in the gym is depleting your carb resources as quickly as possible so that we can force the body to enter the afterburn effect immediately when you finish working out. So, for this very reason, it would be foolish to eat a big bowl of oatmeal before you trained.
Does this mean you should train on an empty stomach?
Actually, no it's not. While it is more effective than training after a carb heavy meal, there is an ever more superior method. Research shows that consuming a good source of protein before a workout increases both fat loss and muscle retention even further. Remember, in the absence of enough carbs to handle your workout there is a chance your body will turn to protein as a fuel source. By consuming a whey protein shake before a workout you buffer your body's supply and hang onto your hard earned muscle tissue.
Furthermore, many people like to add a BCAA supplement to their post-workout nutrition. Not only is it more beneficial to take it before you train, but it's actually recommended that you swap out the BCAA's for EAA's. The BCAA products you see on the market only contain the three main branched chain amino acids. However, BCAA's are like a car, they need all parts in order to function properly. Essential Amino Acids contain everything your body cannot produce by itself and have been shown to increase uptake into the muscles by 30%.
Most people who use the gym these days are familiar with protein shakes but they take them after they workout. Research reveals that you can dramatically increase your success if you also consume 15-20 grams of whey protein before you perform any high intensity activity, as well as your regular shake afterwards. This makes perfect sense because your body would naturally begin looking at your protein stores once it's carbohydrates are running low.
The topic of HIIT is as popular now as it has ever been in the past, but learning how to build muscle or lose weight with this approach often comes down to your nutrition plan surrounding those tough workouts. Now you have the key scientific research on the crucial pre-workout period, you'll be able to take your own results one step further.
Of course, we are talking about nutrition. In fact it is the pre-workout period of nutrition which we will be discussing in more depth today because this is the area which many people don't pay any attention to at all.
If you can take the necessary steps to provide your muscles with the right fuel for each session then you will in turn increase your overall results by almost 30%, according to the latest scientific studies on the topic. [
See the top 5 types of hiit sessions and what they are designed for.
Before you can work out what you should be eating prior to a high intensity interval workout you need to look at what type of food your body uses for fuel during this type of exercise because it's slightly different to regular training. While long, steady state cardio primarily burns fat stores, albeit at a very slow rate, high intensity intervals uses your carbohydrate stores for fuel.
The real benefits of this training happen after you leave the gym, where your body continues burning off calories at an increased rate for up to 14 hours. You may have heard this phenomenon called the afterburn effect. Instead of slowly chipping away at your fat stores and then ending the process when you leave the gym like regular cardio exercise, a high intensity workout depletes your carbohydrate stores first before going to work on fat stores. In doing this, your body enters a process called EPOC after your training has finished. It protects what little carb stores you have left and burns off excess fat instead. This process lasts an incredibly long time, and one calorie burnt during a high intensity session equates to around nine calories burnt during a long cardio workout.
As you can see, what we want to be doing in the gym is depleting your carb resources as quickly as possible so that we can force the body to enter the afterburn effect immediately when you finish working out. So, for this very reason, it would be foolish to eat a big bowl of oatmeal before you trained.
Does this mean you should train on an empty stomach?
Actually, no it's not. While it is more effective than training after a carb heavy meal, there is an ever more superior method. Research shows that consuming a good source of protein before a workout increases both fat loss and muscle retention even further. Remember, in the absence of enough carbs to handle your workout there is a chance your body will turn to protein as a fuel source. By consuming a whey protein shake before a workout you buffer your body's supply and hang onto your hard earned muscle tissue.
Furthermore, many people like to add a BCAA supplement to their post-workout nutrition. Not only is it more beneficial to take it before you train, but it's actually recommended that you swap out the BCAA's for EAA's. The BCAA products you see on the market only contain the three main branched chain amino acids. However, BCAA's are like a car, they need all parts in order to function properly. Essential Amino Acids contain everything your body cannot produce by itself and have been shown to increase uptake into the muscles by 30%.
Most people who use the gym these days are familiar with protein shakes but they take them after they workout. Research reveals that you can dramatically increase your success if you also consume 15-20 grams of whey protein before you perform any high intensity activity, as well as your regular shake afterwards. This makes perfect sense because your body would naturally begin looking at your protein stores once it's carbohydrates are running low.
The topic of HIIT is as popular now as it has ever been in the past, but learning how to build muscle or lose weight with this approach often comes down to your nutrition plan surrounding those tough workouts. Now you have the key scientific research on the crucial pre-workout period, you'll be able to take your own results one step further.
About the Author:
Further info: Russ Howe PTI coaches people in the gym and online. If you'd like to know how to build muscle or require advice on a good hiit routine, his tips will help you improve results.
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