{"id":67410,"date":"2021-09-28T03:59:52","date_gmt":"2021-09-28T07:59:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/?p=67410"},"modified":"2021-11-01T15:33:11","modified_gmt":"2021-11-01T19:33:11","slug":"top-10-healthy-pre-workout-energy-snacks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/health\/top-10-healthy-pre-workout-energy-snacks\/","title":{"rendered":"10 Healthy Pre-Workout Energy Snacks"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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If you\u2019ve ever finished a workout <\/a>and felt euphoric, it\u2019s not just in your imagination! Studies show<\/a> that physical activity brings on those feelings thanks to tiny neurochemicals called endorphins<\/a>, released by your body when you\u2019re exercising. That\u2019s why we often experience an energy boost during the workout and feel ready to fly when finished.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But still, there are days when fatigue<\/a> takes over, and it gets really hard to push yourself to step into the gym or press play on a workout. In most cases the solution is pretty simple: you just need to add some gas to the tank. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Doctors and nutrition experts agree that there are four essential nutrients types in the best pre-workout meal: carbohydrates<\/a>, sugar, protein, and electrolytes<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Carbs are the body\u2019s primary energy source as they can be converted into glucose<\/a> and give you an immediate energizing effect. Sugar is something our body naturally craves when it\u2019s working hard in a fitness class. It\u2019s quickly absorbed by the body and provides an instant and significant energy boost. Protein is not usually used for energy, but it is a necessary aid for post-workout recovery<\/a> as it helps repair and rebuild muscles. Any sweaty activity<\/a> leads to salt loss, and electrolytes like sodium and potassium can help your body resume the water-salt balance<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having a snack before your workout may not only give you a kickstart by replenishing your energy reserves but also increase your performance and endurance \u2013 as long as you\u2019re snacking smart and fueling your body with natural, energy-rich, and easy-digestible foods. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are our Top 10 simple high-energy healthy snack ideas to power<\/a> your workout efforts and help you perform at your peak<\/a>. And for most of them, you won\u2019t spend a single minute cooking! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

10 Healthy Pre-Workout Energy Snacks\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Grapefruit <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Grapefruit is guaranteed to boost your energy levels and make you confident about tackling even the most challenging workout<\/a>. It\u2019s a generally super healthy choice as it\u2019s rich in fiber, contains over 15 vitamins and minerals, and is high in nutrients but low in calories. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Banana <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Bananas are a quick source of sustained energy. They are rich in natural sugars but fiber-packed, so the sugar is digested more slowly. Plus, bananas are high in potassium<\/a> and magnesium<\/a>, both crucial for regulating your body fluid and electrolyte balance and necessary for maintaining proper nerve and muscle function. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Grapes <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Complex carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and water content make grapes not only an ideal pre-workout snack but a healthy and sweet everyday treat. The compound resveratrol<\/a> found in grapes is proven to improve energy metabolism, too!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Berries <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Berries like blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries provide a yummy energy boost. They are high in natural antioxidants<\/a> that help your body create energy at the cellular level and reduce fatigue. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dried Fruit <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Despite being dried, dates, apricots, and plums retain most of their vitamins and minerals, and contain more natural sugar than their fresh counterparts, which means a more intense energy-boosting effect. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nuts <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Nuts are high in protein, providing your body the fuel it needs to recover the muscles<\/a>, and also contain high amounts of unsaturated fats that help reduce the risk of heart diseases. And, depending on the type of nut, they have a pretty high percentage of fiber, important for energy production. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Greek Yogurt <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Plain Greek Yogurt is an ultimate pre-and post-workout meal as it contains tons of protein. Plus, it\u2019s very nutritious without being heavy. You may consider adding some berries or granola to consume some healthy sugars. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Granola Bars<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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A granola bar is a nutritious and delicious pre-workout snack delivering a powerful natural energy hit. Granola, and added components like dried fruit, berries, nuts, or honey, are all quick-digesting carbs<\/a> needed for your muscles to get energy. Stick to bars that are as unprocessed as possible as there can be a lot of hidden sugar in some granola bars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Honey <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Honey delivers a decent dose of healthy energy. Its natural unrefined sugars are easily absorbed by the body, providing a fast-released and sustained energy shot. Honey has tons of health benefits as it\u2019s composed of a unique combo of natural sugars, antioxidants, enzymes<\/a>, minerals, vitamins, and amino acids, so downing a teaspoon or two of honey every day can be a yummy and beneficial snack.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Smoothies  <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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If you have five minutes and a blender, mix up some of the foods listed above into a light, energy-filled smoothie<\/a>. The choice of recipes is endless so that you can treat yourself to something new, healthy and delicious every day! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Make sure to eat your pre-workout snack with enough time for your body to digest before you start exercising! Usually, if a workout is under an hour, it\u2019s recommended to eat 30-60 minutes beforehand. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s also important to stay hydrated! Plain old water is always the best workout companion. Watermelon<\/a> is also a refreshing swap; it\u2019s over 90 percent water, contains useful electrolytes, and provides a solid sugar hit to boost energy.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, when you\u2019re fueled up and full of energy, go to dailyburn.com<\/a> to discover thousands of great workouts!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All images via Shutterstock <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Probably everyone has days when fatigue takes over, and it gets really hard to push yourself to workout. In most cases the solution is pretty simple: you just need to add some gas to the tank! Here are the Top 10 simple high-energy healthy snack ideas to power your workout efforts and help you perform at your peak. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":67422,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[23,7,9,427],"tags":[51,71,388,100],"class_list":["post-67410","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-diet-nutrition","category-health","category-recipes","category-snacks","tag-food-choices","tag-nutrition","tag-tax2nutrition","tag-workout"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67410","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=67410"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67410\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/67422"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=67410"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=67410"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=67410"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}