Due to my schedule I workout M/W/F @ 5:00 a.m. on about 7 hours of sleep. I find I can get through 2 to 3 compound exercises (2 - 3 sets, 8 reps/set) before being totally zapped of energy and nausious which takes away from the rest of my workout. I typically don't eat anything before the workout and drink gatorade/water during.

Are there any morning people out there who have found a good way to sustain energy through a 6-8 exercise workout? Any pre-workout snacks that are easily/quickly digested (so I don't have to wake up at 4 to eat something)?

Just eat in the morning, god dang you will get a way better work out. Who the hell works out and doesnt eat..I bet if you ate you would be able to do double what you orginally do...

I tried going to the gym in the morning once before eating, I found it hard to cycle for more than 2-3 minutes on a decent resistance without constantly stopping, and then drifting off into my own world of thoughts oblivious to everything around me.

It's great to go in the morning without eating if your trying to loose weight though, not so great for bulking etc though.

How long have you been going in the morning? I found it extremely difficult when I first started, but after a few months of doing it regularly it gets easier. I have tried eating, shakes, etc. before, but now i just drink 2 16 ounce glasses of water and on the rare occasion that I workout at another time of the day, I actually seem to have less energy. You just have to condition yourself to it like anything else. Be sure you eat a good high protien snack at bed time (cottage cheese is good) so you aren't totally ravenous in the morning (and 5 other good high protien snacks/meals during the day).

I've been working out this early for just over a year. I have tried eating 30 mins before but that made me feel even more nausious. I did a little searching around and some people have suggested complex carbs (e.g. oats) and a protein shake 1 - 1.5 hours before working out. That's fine for evening workouts but that will be tough to sustain in the morning (i.e. getting up even earlier) Maybe its just me, but I'm not hungry at all @ 5 in the moring.

I was an early morning lifter for a while. I couldn't eat before I got there. So I would grab my coffee, do some stretching, and start working out. As soon as I was done I would guzzle about a quart of milk. It wasn't perfect, but it worked for me. Like you I tired eating before I got there, but the time was too compressed and I wound up feeling very nauseous.

I work out at 5:30 in the morning. I work out at home, so I basically roll out of bed and walk down to my basement to work out. I've never eaten before my workouts, though I do see how it makes sense. But I agree with you - I'm just not hungry at 5 in the morning. If I were to eat something, it'd probably be a granola bar. I drink a protein shake during my workout but have not always done that - and have not experienced nausea.

I would be interested in seeing what other people eat before working out this early, though.

I'm a bit unique in my blood sugar processing to begin with, so take this with a grain of salt, but:

I used to play hockey - or have powerskating or practice/drills - very early in the AM.

If I didn't eat anything, I would get dizzy in the middle and need to have something to raise my blood sugar before I passed out. The challenge is that I would never feel hungry or like eating anything when I got up. The key is finding SOMETHING you can stomach, that is most likely to stay down. I had better luck with liquid (e.g, yogurt smoothie), but it wasn't perfect.

One thing I found that DID help was paying attention to the last thing I ate at night before I went to sleep. I don't know if you have a pre-bedtime snack, but maybe you can experiment with this & it'll help.

So, I took dswithers advice and ate a good snack before bed time (Kashi GoLean cereal and a protein shake) and I had a banana about 30 mins before my workout this morning and I felt significantly better. Thanks for your input all... I'll keep experimenting to see what works best for me and let you all know.

I get up around 4:30 a.m M-F and drink a energy booster such as Super pump 250 or Universal nutritions Shock therapy. I get down to my basement gym by 5:00 a.m and usually have a great 1 hour workout. Most of the time I feel like I could go longer. I usually have a protien shake right after the workout. I'm 48 and this works for me ... I hope this helps.

When wrestling season starts I usually am forced to workout in the morning as practice can go from 3 till about 6 or 6:30. Just like dswithers said, it is extremely difficult at first, then gets a bit easier. Get as much sleep as possible, eat a good meal before bed, and quick carbs in the morning if I needed it are the three things that get me through it during wrestling season. It sucks and I would never lift in the morning by choice lol

Good luck

When I get up no matter what the time is the first thing on my mind is breakfast. I cant function without it.

How bout a few bananas before the workout? Fast acting carbs, will take you all of 2 minutes to scoff down 3 bananas...Yeah, get some bananas.

eat before you workout and wait at least 30 minutes after you wake up before you workout. Your body will thank you.

Here is what you should do..

1. Wake up, get your clothes on...
2. Eat breakfast
3. Brush your teeth
4. Do your dynamic warm up
5. Your ready to work out!

No shower?