Tonight I had a little scare. One of my clients started feeling badly toward the end of her workout. She felt weak and light headed. She sat down and dropped her head. She began to sweat and turned pale.
I started asking her questions to rule out a cardiac event. She told me she hadn’t eaten anything since lunchtime, which was six hours past. And then she’d only eaten a salad with chicken.
I figured her blood sugar was in the tank so I grabbed some OJ and a banana from the gym café. After drinking the juice and resting, she began to revive and feel better.
This wasn’t the first time I had a client’s blood sugar drop during a workout. Always they had not eaten for hours before the workout.
Your body needs fuel to work. It’s just like a car engine. It has to have something to burn and create energy with. If you run out of fuel, well, you’ll shut down.
When a workout is coming up, plan your food intake. You should have a meal 2 hours before or a snack 30-60 minutes before. Then after your workout, eat something within 30 minutes. This will fuel, and refuel, your body.
Of course, make healthy choices. Choose good snacks like yogurt, fruit, nuts, protein bar, etc. Don’t eat junk (like candy bars). Always fuel your body with good things and then work it hard.
