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This morning, I got up to make my pre-workout shake, and was sadly out of rice milk with which to mix my protein powder, and there were no other acceptable substitutes in the house. Super sad face. But I thought 'meh... what's one day. I'll be fine'. W-R-O-N-G. SERIOUS lesson learned this morning. Do NOT... under ANY circumstances, skip your pre-workout shake. And if you're not currently drinking a pre-workout shake, you are cheating yourself HUUUUUUGE. 10 minutes in to the workout and I thought I was going to pass out. I was dizzy, and nauseated, and had absolutely no oomph at all.
Do yourself a massive favour and get on board the morning shake train. I guarantee from day ONE you will notice a difference. I'm not a professional in the department of what's best for you, but I'll give you my favourites that are both delicious, and extremely nutritious. Give them a shot if you want to completely change your fitness life. I kid you not. I NEVER thought a silly little swig of something so simple in the morning, could make such a difference in my day. I cannot emphasize this enough. And I'm not even remotely exaggerating right now.
My morning shake selection(s):
One cup of Ryza Vanilla Rice Milk
A scoop of Prairie Naturals Organic Rice Protein Powder (Cafe Caramel... YUM)
OR a scoop of Vega OneShake Chocolate (also YUM!)
And a teaspoon of Flax Oil which helps get the protein to your muscles faster (also really fantastic for hair and skin).
Advantages of the Rice Milk/Protein - WAY easier for your system to digest, meaning your body isn't wasting energy on processing food, so you get more effective energy going into your workout. I highly HIGHLY recommend skipping the dairy before and/or after workouts. I've heard several people recommend chocolate milk for after a workout, but in fact, your body has to work quite hard to digest dairy, which takes away from your workout and makes your recovery time longer. (As Will Ferrell said once upon a time... "MILK WAS A BAD CHOICE!") Now obviously I'm a little biased, because I do follow an almost completely plant based diet - but if you're interested in why I do that, and some of the advantages, check out one of my favourite websites - No Meat Athlete which has brilliant ideas, amazing recipes (Umm... chocolate avocado mousse? Ginger Pear Smoothie? Yes please!) and undeniable results for those who have used it for training.
Okay - so that's today's lecture: DON'T. SKIP. YOUR. SHAKE. Let me be a lesson to you. I can save you the agony and frustration of a really rough workout. Or help you realize how much more potential you've been hiding unbeknownst to you!
Alright - today officially marks the halfway point of my challenge. 20 FitCamps down, 20 still to come. I'm overdue for a weigh in and measure - so that will be Sunday's blog. If you haven't subscribed via email yet... the link is just on the right hand side. Right over there. Yup. *nodding to the right*. Just sayin'.
Now if you'll excuse me, I still haven't managed to ingest anything useful - so I'll leave you with this, and catch up with you this weekend:
I concur with this... though I usually just have a piece of fruit, Larabar, or fresh-made juice. This morning I didn't have one, and nearly died. STUPID, STUPID FAITH. My pushup reps were pathetic... *sigh*
ReplyDeleteMy EVERYTHING was pathetic! My jump squats were more hops than anything, and my pile hops were little more than steps! And my steps were more just draaaaags. LOL Won't make that mistake again - but at least lack of fuel in my body, gave me extra fuel for writing. ;)
DeleteHUZZAH for silver linings!...I think? :P
DeleteDid you do any weights this morning? Let me tell you, weights without fuel is a great recipe for dropping things on your head (or the floor and causing the cat to flee in terror and/or your husband to come running, thinking you've died). DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME!!! ...lol...
Hahaha thankfully not too much in the dumbbell department with actual lifting. More just for added resistance when doing our cardio stuff. Almost crapped out entirely on our machine pulldowns though - practically dropped the stack a couple of times!
DeleteNeeds more glycogen stores, if you have to miss your shake, try to have some quick sugar carbs like a banana or some other sweet fruit. It may not do much for muscle gain but it will help you get through your workout.
ReplyDeleteAlso remember how much a routine becomes a mental entity of its own. So when you miss step 2 of a 5 step routine, don't let it get to your psyche.
DeleteIve only ever had the pre-workout energizer drink from vega before workouts. Ive always learned npt to eat before a workout. Maybe this has been my problem all along. Thanks for the recipie. Ill try it out.
ReplyDeletePaige