Yes! Despite popular belief, eating a carbohydrate-based snack, such as an energy bar, banana, handful of pretzels, or an apple, just 5 minutes before a workout can boost your energy at the end of a one-hour session. Research also suggests that eating 15 minutes before you exercise is as effective as eating an hour before.
Your body can digest food while you exercise and use it to enhance your workout, as long as you are exercising at a pace that you can maintain for more than half an hour. Most athletes train at a moderate pace, hence they can benefit from a pre-exercise energy booster. If you’ll be doing a sprint workout, you might want to eat an hour or two pre-exercise, so the food has time to empty from your stomach.
Your best bet is to experiment with different pre-exercise snacks, to determine when you can eat them without causing distress, and which ones settle best and help you perform at your best.
Having a drink of water right before exercise is also a smart idea, even if you will be exercising for less than an hour. Water is also helpful during exercise. In only 10 minutes (in trained athletes), water can turn into sweat. Ingested fluid moves rapidly, so don’t hesitate to keep drinking even towards the end of your workout.
Eat smart, play well.
Nancy
For more information: Nancy Clark’s Sports Nutrition Guidebook
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