Confused about pre-workout meal... please help!

[dtg]

I've been debating working out in the early morning vs. evening and I find that I do much better early in the morning.

I wake up at 5:30, take a glass of water with 10g of L-Glutamine. That is it.

At 6:00am, I hit the weights hard for 45 mins to an hour.

At 7:00am, I start drinking my PWO shake (40% prot, 20% each dextrose and maltodextrin, 10% Creatine and 10% L-Glutamine) and I'm usually finished drinking it by 7:30am.

At about 9am, I eat breakfast (1/2C oatmeal and whey) then I eat four more meals after that.

Is this OK, or is there a way to have Breakfast BEFORE my workout?

I've read about Rilose and how it's supperior to Dextrose and Maltodextrin in terms of insulin spike prior to workout. I also read about mixing in Oats with whey prior to workout, then I read about EAAs... I'm confused!

Somebody please help me!

[John Black]

You definitely want to get some protein as soon as you wake up to break the catabolic state. Combine that with some starchy carbs about forty five minutes before working out. Oats and whey are your friends.

[dtg]

So would that be my breakfast?

I'm doing a cutting diet and so I don't want to have too much starchy carbs.... meaning, i'm only allowing myself one helping of oats per day.

so, if i mix oats with whey pre-workout... should I count that as my breakfast?

[joneser3eb]

yes one of the best things you can eat pre workout is oats and whey. however you prefer to eat them seperate or combined, combined is the most convienet but again its preferance. After your workout of course do the PWO shake then you could have one more meal that consists of a starchy carb (being that you are on a cut) example. whole wheat bread,sweet potatoe, black beans ect...... but go for the oatmeal and whey pre workout for you breakfast

[dtg]

Great help... Thanks so much.

Does this go for Cardio days too, or should I do cardio on an empty stomach followed by the Oats/Whey for breakfast?

I don't do the PWO shake on cardio days. Is this ok?

[joneser3eb]

This is where you get into a difference in opinion. If you do cardio on empty stomach you can lose muscle mass. I myself still eat a small amount of whey and oatmeal hour before cardio. That way I dont chace losing muscle mass but still burn fat. afterwards I eat a normal meal consisting of a carb. usually chicken or whey with some brown rice or a sweet potato and a large helping of a a slow burning carb, also know as any green vegatable.

[rootb33r]

dtg: similar to you, I wake up early (4:45) and am at the gym by 5:25. Right when I wake up I take a caffeine pill, put on my gym clothes and sweats over them (it's cold up here!) and head out to the kitchen to down 1 scoop of protein. that's 120 calories and 24ish? grams of protein. I chug that, so that means at the latest by 5AM I have protein in me.

If I could afford it, I would do an amino shooter every morning, but I figure that protein is better than nothing.

I do this regardless of whether I'm lifting or doing cardio. And I only drink water when I work out. I've tried a malto/dext/protein drink (for lifting), but it doesn't do anything for me.

After I get a couple of my smaller student loans paid off, I'm thinking about using amino shooters for pre-cardio only, and staying with my 1 scoop of protein for lifting days.