Fasting Workouts? Test Results

Fast all night, wake up and workout on an empty stomach. It’s supposed to burn fat reserves and help prevent weight gain. Working out fasted has many proposed benefits, so I decided to try it out earlier this week.

It had been ‘one of those’ weekends- too many carbs, too much sodium, not enough moving, so I thought it would be the perfect time to get myself back on track. I had coffee and water, and went out for my ‘wogging’ workout.

For those of you that are going ‘HUH?’ about that term, it’s our word for a walking and jogging workout. I’m not a runner. I hated running growing up, but I am learning and appreciating the hip and thigh shrinking benefits of running. So I wog- jog for 5 or 6 minutes, walk for 2, repeat until I hit 30-35 minutes.

Anyways, I did my wog fasted. Now typically I am  a fan of a carby breakfast with a fair amount of protein a couple hours before a workout, so it was a change to drag myself outside with my tummy rumbling. I did feel good during- I had energy, I felt empowered, I didn’t get a stitch or a cramp. I finished triumphant, but with a slight ringing in my head. Sadly- that ringing turned into nausea, dizziness, and a pounding headache . Signs of low blood sugar. I felt off  all day long- even after eating and taking some Advil.

Did I do it wrong? I’m not sure. But I am left to conclude that at least for me, working out fasted isn’t a good solution. I figured there might be a problem- I know I have low blood pressure and just do better eating every 2-3 hours.

Because it threw off my whole day- I am not going to repeat the experiment. After all- I work full time and have 4 children to chase after- I just can’t afford to be ‘off’!

If fasted workouts work for you- all the more power to you! Let me know in comments what I did wrong or what works for you, and perhaps I can check it out again. I do think it can have benefits, but for me- at least for now- I’ll stick to eating.