One question that people who regularly go for morning runs often find themselves confused about is whether it's better to eat before or after their run. They haven't been able to find a satisfactory answer, so today we will discuss this question thoroughly.
Morning Runs Before Meals are Better for Weight Loss
For individuals who want to lose weight through morning runs, running on an empty stomach is more effective.
When you wake up in the morning, your stomach is empty and no new fatty acids have entered your fat cells. Running at this time can convert fat into energy and burn it off. In addition, the lack of blood sugar can be compensated for by depleting liver glycogen or fat. Therefore, running on an empty stomach can help individuals trying to lose weight burn more fat and prevent fat accumulation. To prevent dehydration, you can drink a glass of water or lightly salted water before your run.
Running After Meals is Better for People with Poor Physical Condition
Individuals with weaker physical conditions are better off running after meals.
People with high blood pressure, low blood sugar, middle-aged and elderly individuals, and those who have been in a sub-healthy state are better off running after meals. In the morning, these individuals have less sugar in their liver, so running on an empty stomach can cause dizziness due to low blood sugar levels. Moreover, running on an empty stomach increases the levels of free fatty acids in the blood, which is detrimental to the heart muscle. Therefore, it is best for these individuals to run after meals.
How Long After Breakfast Can You Go for a Morning Run?
Generally, you can go for a morning run half an hour after breakfast. Before a morning run, it is common to eat foods that are high in carbohydrates and easy to digest, or drink lightly salted water or plain water. However, high-protein and greasy foods, as well as nuts, fruits, and vegetables, are not suitable to eat. Therefore, it is perfectly fine to go for a morning run half an hour after breakfast.
How Long After a Morning Run Can You Have Breakfast?
A morning run usually takes place within half an hour to an hour. Therefore, you can take a half-hour rest after the run and then have breakfast. Eating breakfast before this time is not conducive to food absorption because the peristaltic force of the intestines has not recovered and the secretion of digestive juices has not increased after the morning run. It is best to rest for half an hour first.
Tips
Whether you choose to run before or after meals, it is important to make decisions based on your own circumstances and not neglect your health in pursuit of blind weight loss.
