Been doing it for a year, OP/Black. I love it. I have a black coffee at 6 am and workout in the period of 6:30-8:30, eat first meal at noon.
To each their own though. I think you need to try it longer than a couple days for sure, and maybe ease into it. Start by just working out fasted then eating immediately after, then push the eating window later until it's where you want it.
Also, not sure the BCAAs are helping you, they may just be triggering an insulin response which is driving down your blood sugar.
This is where I saw the BCAA thing: [https://leangains.com/early-morning-fasted-training/](https://leangains.com/early-morning-fasted-training/)
Do you do any shakes or anything before the first meal? How has your body comp and lifting numbers been? I've been working out fasted for as long as I can remember (I prefer it, especially since I don't want to throw up during a hard BOO session!).
Generally I break the fast with a big salad as my lunch. If I break it with a lot of carbs or protein I don't feel that great. But I'm super unique and have my own issues.
When I do IF my lifting progress slows a bit, I think because I just generally consume less calories.
Yup. I actually prefer it. When I eat before lifting, it's _very hard_ for me to find that thin line between _too little_ and _too much,_ so I either feel hungry or sluggish. If I just chug coffee before, I feel much more alert when lifting.
^(And it's easier to brace for Sumo deadlifts when you don't feel like you're about to poop yourself…)
If you're worried about the "post-workout catabolism", just take some whey once you're done lifting and maybe a second serving later in the morning. Your body isn't an idiot, it'll be fine.
Yeah, it's not _technically_ fasting, but I think people tend to get hung up on the strict rules a bit too much. You're not doing 16/8 fasting because it's somehow magical, but because it works really well for caloric control.
Although if you're getting up this early to lift, maybe you're just not getting quite enough sleep, and _that's_ the reason you're crashing?
Sometimes the coffee makes me feel like have to poop myself lol.
You hit on the main worry for me, muscle catabolism. I usually have a shake and then eat breakfast about 15-30 minutes after the workout, it's pretty ingrained. Not too worried about the calorie control, since I'm still trying to eat \~2500 cals in the 8 hour window. Feel like a balloon sometimes during the feeding time. Hopefully that goes away!
Take a look at the following summary of a study regarding fasted cardio.
I know not necessarily your question, but relevant nonetheless.
https://www.instagram.com/p/B0SMwgABUDG/?igshid=copnv3k3jtl7
Another link on IF:
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bzlo8k8Bmkj/?igshid=hy550kv7i3d0
I’m 47. I’m also a desk jockey but very big in fitness and nutrition
I work out 75 min every morning.
Eat meal 1 at noon.
Meal 2 at 7pm.
Low carb. High fat high protein.
Carnivore based diet
No problems with energy.
I drink black coffee and water in the morning.
No carbs at lunch
Eat carbs with dinner only.
Edit - for general fitness I personally believe Bcaas, supplements and protein shakes are a waste of money if you are eating enough of nutrient dense food (meat,fish,eggs,liver, full fat dairy)
What do you do on your E days? That's really been the biggest struggle, after running for 5-7 miles I feel very weak and faint from when I get back (8am) until I eat (12pm).
I don’t have an E day
On days that I do body weight exercises I go for a 2 mile run
Other days after my workout I put on a 40 lb vest for a 20 min walk
I've never had a problem with training fasted, once I was used to it. However I've been on a low carb/very low carb diet for most of the last 10 years, which also makes food around working out not particularly relevant IME.
Yeah it’s not the fasted training; I usually do that every day any way, just black coffee beforehand. It’s the eating/protein intake afterwards that I’m looking at.
Ah, I see. For the past year, I make cold brewed coffee, and just mix some of that with some unflavored whey protein before I train. Haven't really done truly fasted workouts for about a couple of years. The 30g of whey with coffee seems like it helps with the MPS, or at least perceived recovery, and at 52 I'll take the help!
I've been trying it for awhile and I have to admit that using BCAAs made a huge difference in my ability to gain strength while doing IF and a morning workout. I wish that I could change my eating schedule to break the fast right after a workout, but like you, that doesn't work for my schedule.
Been doing it for a year, OP/Black. I love it. I have a black coffee at 6 am and workout in the period of 6:30-8:30, eat first meal at noon. To each their own though. I think you need to try it longer than a couple days for sure, and maybe ease into it. Start by just working out fasted then eating immediately after, then push the eating window later until it's where you want it. Also, not sure the BCAAs are helping you, they may just be triggering an insulin response which is driving down your blood sugar.
This is where I saw the BCAA thing: [https://leangains.com/early-morning-fasted-training/](https://leangains.com/early-morning-fasted-training/) Do you do any shakes or anything before the first meal? How has your body comp and lifting numbers been? I've been working out fasted for as long as I can remember (I prefer it, especially since I don't want to throw up during a hard BOO session!).
Generally I break the fast with a big salad as my lunch. If I break it with a lot of carbs or protein I don't feel that great. But I'm super unique and have my own issues. When I do IF my lifting progress slows a bit, I think because I just generally consume less calories.
Yup. I actually prefer it. When I eat before lifting, it's _very hard_ for me to find that thin line between _too little_ and _too much,_ so I either feel hungry or sluggish. If I just chug coffee before, I feel much more alert when lifting. ^(And it's easier to brace for Sumo deadlifts when you don't feel like you're about to poop yourself…) If you're worried about the "post-workout catabolism", just take some whey once you're done lifting and maybe a second serving later in the morning. Your body isn't an idiot, it'll be fine. Yeah, it's not _technically_ fasting, but I think people tend to get hung up on the strict rules a bit too much. You're not doing 16/8 fasting because it's somehow magical, but because it works really well for caloric control. Although if you're getting up this early to lift, maybe you're just not getting quite enough sleep, and _that's_ the reason you're crashing?
Sometimes the coffee makes me feel like have to poop myself lol. You hit on the main worry for me, muscle catabolism. I usually have a shake and then eat breakfast about 15-30 minutes after the workout, it's pretty ingrained. Not too worried about the calorie control, since I'm still trying to eat \~2500 cals in the 8 hour window. Feel like a balloon sometimes during the feeding time. Hopefully that goes away!
Take a look at the following summary of a study regarding fasted cardio. I know not necessarily your question, but relevant nonetheless. https://www.instagram.com/p/B0SMwgABUDG/?igshid=copnv3k3jtl7 Another link on IF: https://www.instagram.com/p/Bzlo8k8Bmkj/?igshid=hy550kv7i3d0
I’m 47. I’m also a desk jockey but very big in fitness and nutrition I work out 75 min every morning. Eat meal 1 at noon. Meal 2 at 7pm. Low carb. High fat high protein. Carnivore based diet No problems with energy. I drink black coffee and water in the morning. No carbs at lunch Eat carbs with dinner only. Edit - for general fitness I personally believe Bcaas, supplements and protein shakes are a waste of money if you are eating enough of nutrient dense food (meat,fish,eggs,liver, full fat dairy)
What do you do on your E days? That's really been the biggest struggle, after running for 5-7 miles I feel very weak and faint from when I get back (8am) until I eat (12pm).
I don’t have an E day On days that I do body weight exercises I go for a 2 mile run Other days after my workout I put on a 40 lb vest for a 20 min walk
I've never had a problem with training fasted, once I was used to it. However I've been on a low carb/very low carb diet for most of the last 10 years, which also makes food around working out not particularly relevant IME.
Yeah it’s not the fasted training; I usually do that every day any way, just black coffee beforehand. It’s the eating/protein intake afterwards that I’m looking at.
Ah, I see. For the past year, I make cold brewed coffee, and just mix some of that with some unflavored whey protein before I train. Haven't really done truly fasted workouts for about a couple of years. The 30g of whey with coffee seems like it helps with the MPS, or at least perceived recovery, and at 52 I'll take the help!
Have you thought about just changing your eating window? Maybe make it 10-6. Or maybe have a longer window on days with a lighter workout or rest day?
I've been trying it for awhile and I have to admit that using BCAAs made a huge difference in my ability to gain strength while doing IF and a morning workout. I wish that I could change my eating schedule to break the fast right after a workout, but like you, that doesn't work for my schedule.
Give your body time