Optimize your nutrition by calculating the ideal timing for meals around your workouts and daily activities.
Consume carbs 1-3 hours before for energy, with moderate protein.
For sessions over 1 hour, consider intra-workout carbs.
Consume protein and carbs within 45 minutes after training.
Enter your workout details and calculate to see your personalized meal timing plan.
The chart shows the optimal distribution of nutrients throughout the day based on your workout schedule and goals.
Essential for muscle repair and growth, distributed throughout the day.
Primary energy source, timed around your workout for optimal performance.
Important for hormones and health, typically reduced around workout times.
Meal timing is the strategic scheduling of nutrient intake throughout the day to optimize energy levels, workout performance, recovery, and body composition goals. It involves coordinating when you eat specific macronutrients (proteins, carbohydrates, and fats) relative to your exercise time and daily activity pattern.
Ideal pre-workout meal timing is calculated based on meal size and workout intensity:
Pre-workout time (hours) = Meal size factor (0.5-3) × Intensity adjustment (0.8-1.2)
Larger meals require more digestion time. Higher intensity workouts need more buffer time.
The post-workout anabolic window is calculated based on:
Optimal window (minutes) = Base window (30-45) + Duration adjustment (workout duration × 0.1)
Longer, more intense workouts extend the optimal post-workout nutrition window.
Research shows that nutrient timing can influence workout performance, recovery, and adaptations. The importance varies based on training status, goals, and individual factors. The post-exercise "anabolic window" for protein and carbohydrates appears more flexible than previously thought, extending several hours after exercise. However, pre-exercise nutrition remains critical for performance during moderate to high-intensity workouts.