Nice article. Jill’s pattern is almost identical to what I see in my metabolic patients. Chronic underfueling, particularly skipping breakfast, creates a sustained cortisol elevation that destabilizes glucose regulation throughout the day and accelerates visceral fat accumulation over time. The liver feels this first. In patients with early metabolic liver disease, morning underfueling is one of the most consistent and most overlooked drivers of disease progression I encounter in clinic. The engine analogy is exactly right. You cannot expect metabolic resilience from a system you are quietly starving.
Thank you for sharing the underlying biology/hormone response to underfueling that lead to metabolic unhealthiness and eventual metabolic dysfunction. Unfortunately, most of us (myself included) are good at focusing for short periods (i.e. breakfast) but if we skimp on breakfast and then start our day underfueled, we often overeat (snack or post-dinner cravings). I have found that loading my day with diverse macronutrient decreases my poor choices throughout the day.
2 ways to generate protein synthesis (muscle growth): ingest protein and resistance training. I also agree that protein helps with satiety (and making good later morning and after choices - for me anyways). Thank you for the ongoing dialog and education.
IMHO, there is no need to seek for a perfect protein goal after a workout. We have got long timeframes/rythms in the body to adapt. I have fallen in the trap to chase every optimization for my sports endeavors and I feel we have an epidemic of optimization chasers that lead to some level of performance anxiety and burnout. Eat real food with variety, eat food you cook seems like a good pattern to me…
To answer your question I almost always eat before the morning workout. I can train fasted, I do not fear this, but it’s not in my habits. (A very good friend of mine who has done Tor des géants twice runs 17k fasted everyday.)
Jake, great article. I practice the 12 hour eating window and 12 hour overnight fast. It has eliminated my acid reflux at night and helped me sleep.
Breakfast has gone from the most important meal of the day to the easiest one to skip. I workout first thing in the morning in a fasted state. Then I eat breakfast. My glucose levels seem to do better when I eat breakfast. I'm a big fan of breakfast!
Ali - thanks for reading! I find that resting my gut helps me sleep, I too have no GERD/reflux symptoms. I also start the day with 12 of cool water. I follow your similar routine and it has normalized my glucose, made my day easier to avoid "snack attacks" and overall I feel better.
I can go fasted for up to 90 minutes on a low intensity (Z1-2) bike ride. I do have a recovery drink and a banana or some such quickly after finishing.
Anything longer or more intense I MUST eat or it will get ugly. If I’m starting soon after getting up, maybe only 300 calories and then start eating on the ride around 30 minutes in. If I have more time until starting, bigger breakfast 600+ calories and delay eating on the bike until 60 minutes in.
Keith, thanks for sharing. This is a great example of knowing your body and how to adjust in real time or "top off" the tank to get a solid workout in the morning despite time for a proper breakfast.
Ok, my knees don’t like running, so I swim. Welcome to being over 50, I guess. I find that if I wait less than about three hours after eating, my swimming (rhythm, pacing, etc.) goes to heck because of reflux. What seems to work for me is cottage cheese and a hard-boiled egg for breakfast, cup of coffee with cream (yeah, yeah, I know) later, and I’m good to hit the pool by 9-9:30. I try to be more protein-forward afterwards with lunch. Although, I have to say that when I was growing up, I never thought I would find sardines on a triscuit remotely appealing for lunch, and yet, here I am…
I love that you have found what work Noel - we all need to trial and error. if you're feeling good during your swim workouts are maintaining health/fitness and feel good throughout the day, you're winning and have figured out your native circadian rhythm. Onward! Swimming is fantastic for your health!
As a diabetic on a GLP1 and also an athlete in my late fifties eating properly and at the right time is a struggle. I’m getting better but I’ve definitely been out on runs and wondered why I felt like crap and then literally 🤦♀️ after realizing I “forgot” to eat before I left the house. I’m finding I need to plan the fuel at the same time I’m pulling out my clothes - the night before. Thanks for the great information!
I'm so glad you shared your experiences. I didn't want to get into all the quick fixes but I often will bring food along on an early run and nibble throughout to keep energy and workout energy stable. I also learned the peanut butter on banana while heading out the door from my wife. it works great to start the run with a 5 minute walk and PB/banana warmup. Keep up the great work!
Nice article. Jill’s pattern is almost identical to what I see in my metabolic patients. Chronic underfueling, particularly skipping breakfast, creates a sustained cortisol elevation that destabilizes glucose regulation throughout the day and accelerates visceral fat accumulation over time. The liver feels this first. In patients with early metabolic liver disease, morning underfueling is one of the most consistent and most overlooked drivers of disease progression I encounter in clinic. The engine analogy is exactly right. You cannot expect metabolic resilience from a system you are quietly starving.
Thank you for sharing the underlying biology/hormone response to underfueling that lead to metabolic unhealthiness and eventual metabolic dysfunction. Unfortunately, most of us (myself included) are good at focusing for short periods (i.e. breakfast) but if we skimp on breakfast and then start our day underfueled, we often overeat (snack or post-dinner cravings). I have found that loading my day with diverse macronutrient decreases my poor choices throughout the day.
Agree. That first protein meal of the day helps a lot with muscle protein synthesis and maintaining satiety that prevents future cravings.
2 ways to generate protein synthesis (muscle growth): ingest protein and resistance training. I also agree that protein helps with satiety (and making good later morning and after choices - for me anyways). Thank you for the ongoing dialog and education.
Hello Jake, why whey ? Why UPF food with emulsifiers ?
IMHO, there is no need to seek for a perfect protein goal after a workout. We have got long timeframes/rythms in the body to adapt. I have fallen in the trap to chase every optimization for my sports endeavors and I feel we have an epidemic of optimization chasers that lead to some level of performance anxiety and burnout. Eat real food with variety, eat food you cook seems like a good pattern to me…
To answer your question I almost always eat before the morning workout. I can train fasted, I do not fear this, but it’s not in my habits. (A very good friend of mine who has done Tor des géants twice runs 17k fasted everyday.)
Jake, great article. I practice the 12 hour eating window and 12 hour overnight fast. It has eliminated my acid reflux at night and helped me sleep.
Breakfast has gone from the most important meal of the day to the easiest one to skip. I workout first thing in the morning in a fasted state. Then I eat breakfast. My glucose levels seem to do better when I eat breakfast. I'm a big fan of breakfast!
Ali - thanks for reading! I find that resting my gut helps me sleep, I too have no GERD/reflux symptoms. I also start the day with 12 of cool water. I follow your similar routine and it has normalized my glucose, made my day easier to avoid "snack attacks" and overall I feel better.
My fasted vs not rule of thumb:
I can go fasted for up to 90 minutes on a low intensity (Z1-2) bike ride. I do have a recovery drink and a banana or some such quickly after finishing.
Anything longer or more intense I MUST eat or it will get ugly. If I’m starting soon after getting up, maybe only 300 calories and then start eating on the ride around 30 minutes in. If I have more time until starting, bigger breakfast 600+ calories and delay eating on the bike until 60 minutes in.
For reference I’m ~90 kilos body weight.
Keith, thanks for sharing. This is a great example of knowing your body and how to adjust in real time or "top off" the tank to get a solid workout in the morning despite time for a proper breakfast.
Excellent review!! Thank you from a 66yo avid cyclist.
I'm glad it resonated with you and you got somethign out of it RH. Keep cycling!
Ok, my knees don’t like running, so I swim. Welcome to being over 50, I guess. I find that if I wait less than about three hours after eating, my swimming (rhythm, pacing, etc.) goes to heck because of reflux. What seems to work for me is cottage cheese and a hard-boiled egg for breakfast, cup of coffee with cream (yeah, yeah, I know) later, and I’m good to hit the pool by 9-9:30. I try to be more protein-forward afterwards with lunch. Although, I have to say that when I was growing up, I never thought I would find sardines on a triscuit remotely appealing for lunch, and yet, here I am…
I love that you have found what work Noel - we all need to trial and error. if you're feeling good during your swim workouts are maintaining health/fitness and feel good throughout the day, you're winning and have figured out your native circadian rhythm. Onward! Swimming is fantastic for your health!
As a diabetic on a GLP1 and also an athlete in my late fifties eating properly and at the right time is a struggle. I’m getting better but I’ve definitely been out on runs and wondered why I felt like crap and then literally 🤦♀️ after realizing I “forgot” to eat before I left the house. I’m finding I need to plan the fuel at the same time I’m pulling out my clothes - the night before. Thanks for the great information!
I'm so glad you shared your experiences. I didn't want to get into all the quick fixes but I often will bring food along on an early run and nibble throughout to keep energy and workout energy stable. I also learned the peanut butter on banana while heading out the door from my wife. it works great to start the run with a 5 minute walk and PB/banana warmup. Keep up the great work!