P90x When to Eat
I get a lot of questions about timing meals/snacks with P90x, especially from folks with weird work schedules, so I thought I’d address it in a quick post:
Here are the basic rules for when to eat with the P90x nutrition plan:
| 1. Try to wait 45 minutes (ideally an hour) after you eat before you exercise.2. Take your recovery drink within 30 minutes of exercising (ideally immediately after), and then don’t eat anything else for at least 30 minutes. (Eating anything else messes up the 4:1 carb to protein ratio you’re going for with a recovery drink.)
3. Try not to eat in the 3 hours before you go to bed. |
A couple of caveats to #3:
- If you are exercising late at night, it’s OK to take your recovery drink then go to bed if you have to.
- If you are starving and have to eat something before bed, try to make it straight protein – your body can’t store protein as fat while you sleep!
The most important thing to remember is that you need to adapt P90x to you and make it workable – so if that means you have to tweak the timing slightly, don’t let that get in your way or stop you from making the attempt. 90 hour-long extreme workouts WILL make a difference in your body, how could they not?! =)
I hope this helps as you are planning out your P90x nutrition plan!
- CJ =)
20 comments
jill conyers
22/04/2011 at 5:18 am (UTC -7)
Great tips. I didn’t know that about protein at night.
I actually dropped by to say thank you. I just finished round 2 of P90X and will soon begin training for my next marathon along with continued P90X workouts. With the help of your food journal I created a menu that I told my husband was a work of art LOL
So much better than what I’ve been using for the past 6 months
CJ =)
22/04/2011 at 10:52 am (UTC -7)
Hey Jill!
Thanks so much for taking the time to comment. I’m so glad the P90x food journal is helping you create culinary masterpieces! lol
I checked out your site and I loved this quote on it:
“How often in life we complete a task that was beyond the capability of the person we were when we started it. ~Robert Brault”
How appropriate to P90x! =)
- CJ =)
MJ
28/04/2011 at 2:24 pm (UTC -7)
Can you tell me what the recovery drink is….
CJ =)
28/04/2011 at 3:06 pm (UTC -7)
I’m so glad you asked, MJ! My hubby and I were kind of stumped on that when we first started out too. Here’s a link to my article explaining exactly what a recovery drink is and does, and some P90x recovery drink alternatives that you can make at home! I hope this helps you. If you have any questions after reading it, just comment again with your questions and I’ll do my best to help you out!
- CJ =)
Irja
10/05/2011 at 9:45 pm (UTC -7)
Hey CJ,
Love the website. I visit everyday just to see what new and amazing things people are coming up with and what questions they ask. Keep it up.
I was just wondering how often to eat on the nutrition plan. I read (in someone’s article) that ideally you should eat every 3 hours but I feel hungry at around 2 hours. Could I eat then or is it something like every 2-3 hours.
Thanks.
CJ =)
13/05/2011 at 7:47 pm (UTC -7)
Hey Irja!
You can spread out your servings however you want during the day. So if you find yourself feeling hungry at 2 hours, by all means eat more frequently! As long as you are covering the correct amount of portions in one day, you should be good. =)
As a side note, along the same lines, it doesn’t matter if you eat your “snack” serving between your major meals, or as part of them. Even though it is called a snack, it’s really the portions you eat throughout the day that matter. I take advantage of this in several of my recipes, like the Healthy Mac and Cheese, where I use a snack serving in the dish in order to add in a bit more cheese! =)
- CJ =)
Cricket
28/07/2011 at 7:12 pm (UTC -7)
Hi CJ,
You mentioned not to eat 1 hour before working out — but is it okay to eat like half a banana or something? The reason I’m asking is that we typically work out right after waking up (5:30AM) and don’t really have time to eat before that. However, it’s so difficult to work out on an empty stomach that we end up eating half a banana before doing them (except for plyo because it makes me want to vomit).
Do you think this is okay?
–Cricket
CJ =)
29/07/2011 at 12:39 pm (UTC -7)
Hey Cricket!
I think this should be fine. I’m pretty sure that the recommendation not to eat an hour before exercising is similar to that of not eating an hour before swimming – a full stomach can pull blood from your extremities and cause cramping or nausea. But you need to go by what works best for your body, and if half a banana helps without any negative effects, I’d say go for it!
- CJ =)
Lisa S
30/08/2011 at 12:54 pm (UTC -7)
I was wondering this very same thing! Today was Day 1 of P90X for hubby and I and we are going to be getting up early at 5:30 every morning. We ate a protein bar before doing the workout this morning and felt alright but I was questioning whether we should! I think I’ll probably go with the half of a banana from now on..
And thank you CJ for this site! I am super excited to use your receipes and insight into P90X and I’m glad I found your site right when we are starting!
Jennifer
11/08/2011 at 8:22 am (UTC -7)
First, thank you for all this wonderful information… im just starting P90X today & have to say am really intimidated with the diet portion… ive never eaten on a schedule… never counted calories, or portioned my food so this will all be very new to me… o and i hate cooking LOL sooooo again thank you for this site it helps me a lot as it gives me other options then just the P90X nutrition guide.
On that note I had a question… (probably a very simple, silly question lol)
Can a protein drink count as a snack?
Thanks!
Jen
CJ =)
11/08/2011 at 8:56 am (UTC -7)
Hey Jennifer!
While it’s not listed on the official snack list in the nutrition plan, I believe the answer to this should be yes! The main criterion for snacks is lower-carb, low-fat options. So as long as you stick to the calorie requirements for snacks (Single = 100 calories, Double = 200 calories), I believe you should be fine to use a protein shake if you want. =)
- CJ =)
Milos
28/08/2011 at 9:13 pm (UTC -7)
Hello, great website!
I plan on starting P90X within the week, performing my workouts at 6 am before work. I’m confused about the timing of my breakfast and recovery drink. Can you give specifics about the recommended order for optimal results? I had planned on having a small fruit serving first thing when I wake up, workout, then have a scoop of whey powder in my milk including breakfast. Or should I have a full breakfast after the workout and a few hours later a scoop of whey for a snack?
The other logical question is: what tangible effects would you notice by having a scoop of whey in water after your workout versus a true recovery drink with the 4:1 carb:protein ratio?
Thanks, Milos.
Louise
21/09/2011 at 2:14 pm (UTC -7)
Hi, I just wanted to thank you in advance. My husband and I are starting P90x on Monday for the first time and we can’t wait! The only thing that was worrying me was the food plan, we don’t like most of the foods on the original food guide and we were starting to panic! Needless to say, I think you and your website are going to be our saviors! We live in Spain and alot of the ingredients in the original plan are not available here. I can breathe a bit easier now, plan our meals for the first week and get ready to bring it!
Louise
NB
21/11/2011 at 6:59 pm (UTC -7)
What is your advice if you are working out at 5 in the morning? Just doi it on an empty stomach
CJ =)
21/11/2011 at 7:40 pm (UTC -7)
My hubby worked out at 5 in the morning too. He did it on an empty stomach, other than just drinking a little water to hydrate. That would be my recommendation if it works for you. If not, try half a banana or something small. You don’t want to eat too much, or else it will divert your blood to your stomach for digestion. Save your blood for your workout. You’ll need it! =D
- CJ =)
Elizabeth
10/01/2012 at 10:01 am (UTC -7)
I really love you website. My husband and I just started the p90x workout program. For us, the diet is the most difficult part, so thank you for all the recipes. I would like to clarify something. In your post above you stated,
“If you are starving and have to eat something before bed, try to make it straight protein – your body can’t store protein as fat while you sleep!”
No matter what nutrient you take in–weather it is complex carbs, simple sugars, protein, or fats, if you consume more than you burn it will be stored as fat. No exceptions. This is how metabolism works. While you are working out, you will burn either calories from nutrients recently put into your bloodstream (i.e. the protein drink you ate right before) or you will burn stored calories (fat). If you eat and then immediately go to bed, I would think that at least some of that food–regardless of type, gets stored as fat since your metabolism goes down during sleep.
Gronk
12/02/2012 at 2:21 pm (UTC -7)
Hey awesome site and ideas here…I am about to start P90X soon, have been getting myself ready with the foods and equipment necessary…
Just curious, you said above:
“2. Take your recovery drink within 30 minutes of exercising (ideally immediately after), and then don’t eat anything else for at least 30 minutes. (Eating anything else messes up the 4:1 carb to protein ratio you’re going for with a recovery drink.)”
In the P90X nutrition guide it has breakfast, then the next meal is “recovery drink + Protein bar”
You didn’t mention a protein bar with the recovery drink, so do we have the drink 2x a day?
Thanks!
CJ =)
12/02/2012 at 11:59 pm (UTC -7)
Hey Gronk – I keep looking at my nutrition guide trying to figure out where exactly it says “recovery drink + Protein bar” to try to see what you’re referring to, but I can’t figure it out. Anyway, the answer to your question is that you only have the recovery drink one time in the day, right after your workout. You can also have a protein bar during the day, but NOT with your recovery drink. Eating the protein bar with your recovery drink would definitely count as messing up that 4:1 carb to protein ratio.
Does that make sense?
- CJ =)
michele
02/03/2012 at 1:10 pm (UTC -7)
I recently had a baby about 7 weeks ago and Im currently breastfeeding. Would you recommend P90X for me? I really want to get it but I know I cant take the recovery drink. Will that slow down my results?
CJ =)
09/03/2012 at 8:13 am (UTC -7)
Hey Michele -
Yes, I’d recommend it. Just make sure that you add an extra 300-500 calories to the number recommended in the plan in order to account for the calories you are losing through breastfeeding!
- CJ =)