Does A Pre Workout Break Your Fast?
Will your pre workout supplement break your fast before hitting the gym? We bring you some of the key things to consider
If you’re wondering if your pre workout will break your fast, then you’re in the right place.
A quick internet search for information about whether a pre workout will break a fast or not returns a lot of results, and many of them are pretty inconclusive.
In this article, we’re going to walk you through everything you need to know about pre workout supplements, and take a look at whether or not they will break your fast.
If you regularly practice intermittent fasting, then finding a pre workout supplement can be a tricky issue, because many of them contain sweeteners and other ingredients that technically will break your fast.
You’ll be looking for a product that doesn’t contain anything that could potentially break your fast and undo all of your hard work.
Luckily for you, we’ve done all of the hard work for you.
We’re going to bring you everything you need to know about pre workout supplements, and whether or not the one you’re taking will break your fast or not.
Editor's note: The content on this website is meant to be informative in nature, but it should not be taken as medical advice. Our articles and the products featured in them are not intended for use as diagnosis, prevention, and/or treatment of health problems. Always speak with a certified medical professional before making any changes to your lifestyle, diet, exercise routine, and/or taking any supplements.
So let’s get started and begin taking a look at the basic facts about pre workout supplements.
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What Is A Pre Workout?
Pre workout supplements have become incredibly popular in recent years as the health and fitness industry has exploded.
More and more people are looking for products to help support them as they look to hit their fitness goals and take their training to the next level.
In case you didn’t already know, pre workouts are sports-focused supplements that are designed to be consumed before periods of exercise.
We’ve all had those dreary gym sessions before. You know the ones – where it’s basically impossible to stay focused and you’re lacking energy and motivation.
On the other hand, we’ve all experienced those absolutely amazing workouts. The ones where you don’t want to leave the gym at the end of your session, and you feel like you could life heavier and go for longer.
Pre workouts are popular fitness-focused products (Photo: Adobe Stock)
The idea behind a good pre workout is that it will be able to support you through your training as you look to achieve your health and fitness goals.
Pre workout supplements usually contain a range of different ingredients such as Caffeine, Creatine, and L-Citrulline to help you take your workouts to the next level.
They also sometimes contain other ingredients such as Taurine, Beta-Alanine and often some vitamins and minerals.
Generally speaking, most pre workout supplements are delivered as a flavoured powder which is designed to be mixed into water and consumed as a drink before your exercise session.
That being said, there are also plenty of supplements out there that are available in a capsule form which can be swallowed with a glass of water like a multivitamin.
Most pre workouts also contain a stimulant such as Caffeine, but there are also options out there that do not have any stimulants in their formulas.
Put simply, pre workout supplements can be a very useful tool as you look to get the best out of your time spent in the gym or playing sport and hit your goals.
The problem is that many pre workout supplements are delivered in powder form to be mixed with water. This means that they often contain sweeteners and other things to enhance the flavor, and some of these substances can break your fast.
Of course, that’s not the case with all supplements, but it’s something to be aware of.
So now it’s time to get onto the important facts about whether your pre workout supplement is going to break your fast or not.
Does A Pre Workout Break Your Fast?
This is a question that seems to split opinion, amongst experts and casual gym goers alike.
So, does a pre workout break your fast?
The answer is simple: it depends!
Put simply, the answer to this question depends purely and solely on the ingredients in the pre workout supplement you’re using.
There are certain sweeteners that pre workouts use that contain calories, and that would lead to your fast being broken.
That being said, there’s a little bit of debate about how many calories would actually be enough to break your fast. Some people claim that anything below the 40 calorie range is not enough to affect your fasted state.
Generally speaking, most pre workouts are pretty low in terms of calorie counts (some are even zero).
The thing you should look out for are supplements which contain sweeteners that can spike your blood sugar levels. This would generally be considered as a substance which breaks your fast.
If you want to be safe that your supplement doesn’t break your fast, our advice is to go for a pre workout supplement that doesn’t use any sweeteners at all, that way you can be sure that it’s not going to break your fast.
There are a few pre workouts without any sweeteners on the market, and you can see some of them in our dedicated guide to the best pre workout supplements.
Pre workouts are popular sports-focused supplements (Photo: Adobe Stock)
The key thing to bear in mind is that some pre workouts contain ingredients that will definitely break your fast, and some don’t.
A lot of the answer to this questions depends on how strict you are planning to be with yourself when it comes to your fasting protocol.
If you want to be 100 per cent sure that nothing is going to break your fast, then consuming only water during your fasting window is the best way to achieve that.
Anything Else To Consider?
You shouldn’t forget that you’ll need to put in hard work and show dedication to see real results from your workouts.
Yes, high quality supplements can help to provide support your health and fitness journey, but you should always make sure that you’re sticking to a good diet and training hard before adding any kind of new product to your daily regimen.
The building blocks of a good body is a good diet and solid training regime. You should always make sure that you’ve got those two things on point before thinking about using any supplements at all.
We do also recommend that you speak to your doctor before taking a new supplement or making any major lifestyle or dietary changes.
If you’re already clued up about intermittent fasting, then you’re likely to be well on your way to achieving your body goals.
And adding a quality pre workout that doesn’t break your fast can help you to take your gym sessions to the next level.
Conclusion
So, that brings us to the end of our guide to whether a pre workout will break your fast or not.
We’ve walked you through why you may want to consider taking a pre workout supplement to help support you through your training and exercise sessions.
We’ve also explained how some pre workout supplements contain ingredients such as sweeteners and other ingredients which could potentially spike your blood sugar levels and break your fast.
There is no simple answer to the question ‘does a pre workout break a fast?’, because it depends purely on the pre workout you’re using.
The best way to be sure is to carefully check the pre workout ingredients label for any ingredients that may break your fast.
It’s also important to remember that if you want to 100 per cent guarantee that you’ll remain in a fasted state during your fasting window, then sticking to just water during that time is your best bet.
