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How Pre-Workout Smoothies Fuel Your Workout
Slurping down a smoothie before a workout is a quick way to give your body essential macronutrients to feel strong while also hydrating you. Yet not all smoothies are equal when it comes to helping your body perform. A pre-workout smoothie should contain a good mix of carbohydrates, protein, fat, and fiber.
I love to run far distances— I’ve done 6 marathons, 2 x 50ks, 100k and lots more. I’m one of those strange people that actually likes to run…for hours at a time. I’ve learned that having a smoothie before, during and after a long run improves my performance and recovery.
Ingredients You’ll Need
This pre-workout smoothie is my-go because it’s packed with quick energy to help my body perform. The combination of greens and fruit blended together in this smoothie delivers the workout nutrition you need to keep you fueled for a long run, deep yoga session or a HIIT workout.
- Spinach: Leafy greens are powerhouse plants that provide nutrients, vitamins, minerals, and protein to any smoothie, to help you build muscle.
- Coconut water + water: Coconut water acts like natural Gatorade, providing hydrating electrolytes your body needs to replenish the energy lost during workouts.
- Pineapple: Naturally fights inflammation, helping your muscles recover faster after a workout.
- Peaches: Frozen peaches are picked at the height of freshness and flash-frozen to preserve as many nutrients as possible, making them irresistibly sweet and healthy.
- Banana: Adds natural sweetness to your smoothie and is rich in vitamin C and potassium, which supports muscle function and helps prevent cramps, making it an ideal pre-workout ingredient. A frozen banana chills down your creamy smoothie.
- Coconut oil: If you are looking to shed a few pounds then healthy fat is actually your friend, not your enemy. It helps break down the natural sugars from fruit to aid in your digestion and actually keeps you full longer. Feel free to swap it for chia seeds or hemp hearts if you want healthy fats with a protein boost.
This is one of my favorite smoothie combinations. It’s lightly sweet, I don’t even notice the spinach, and I can definitely feel the energy boost that helps me run faster and lift better during a workout.
Plant-Based Protein Powder
Protein can assist with muscle growth, muscle recovery and boost energy levels. I like to boost my post-workout smoothie with protein and leave my pre-workout smoothie lighter. If you want to add more protein to this recipe, try my homemade protein powder. It’s a blend of hemp protein, chia seeds, and flax.
How to Make a Pre-Workout Smoothie
I can’t stand a chunky smoothie. If I’m going to put the work into buying good ingredients to make something at home then I want it to be smoothie and creamy. Here’s how I blend my green smoothies for the best result, every time:
- Puree the spinach, coconut water and water until smooth. If you aren’t using a high-powered blender then stop and scrape down the sides as needed to get rid of all those leafy chunks.
- Add the remaining ingredients and blend again until smooth. If you’re using frozen ingredients, let them sit out for about 15 minutes before blending to help soften them a bit.
Using this two-blend method you’ll actually save time and get a better pre-workout smoothie as a result. I’ve been blending smoothies for 13 years now and this method hasn’t let me down yet! When it comes to blenders, I recommend getting a high-speed Vitamix blender.
Common Questions
Yes! Smoothies are a great pre-workout fuel to give you quick and lasting energy for activities such as a long run or high-intensity workout.
It’s best to consume a pre-workout smoothie 1-2 hours before exercising, giving your body time to digest it and absorb the nutrients.
My go-to smoothie before workout contains coconut water, fruit, spinach, and coconut oil for a super fast snack that gives me the energy to maximize my workout without weighing me down.
Coconut water is loaded with natural electrolytes, fruit provides a great energy boost, spinach and coconut oil provide protein and healthy fat and fiber to help your body break down the natural sugar into usable energy.
More Healthy Pre-Workout Smoothie Recipes
Looking for a high-protein pre-workout recipe? I’ve got a few that’ll enhance your workout. Blending smoothies is easy and affordable— and make the perfect pre-workout smoothies at home.
- Vanilla Protein Shake: More delicious than any powered version you can find, this easy smoothie is tasty and fueling without artificial vanilla protein powder.
- Chocolate Protein Shake: This will give you great natural energy as well as keep you full while exercising with this almond butter and chocolate banana smoothie.
- Flaxseed Smoothie: A great energy and fiber boost with unsweetened almond milk and flaxseeds.
- Caramel Protein Shake: A dessert wrapped up in a smoothie, protein powered and delicious.
- Almond Smoothie: Almonds and strawberries combine for a delightfully smooth snack.
After you sweat it out, I recommend having a protein-rich Post Workout Smoothie to help build and repair skeletal muscle.
Please rate and review this recipe once you’ve blended it. I can’t wait to read how it turned out!
Healthy Pre-Workout Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1 cup spinach
- ½ cup coconut water
- ½ cup water
- ½ cup pineapple frozen
- ½ cup peach frozen
- ½ banana
- 1 tbsp coconut oil
Instructions
- Blend the spinach, coconut water and water until smooth.
- Add the pineapple, peaches, banana and coconut oil and blend again.
Equipment
Notes
- Use frozen fruit to make a refreshingly cool smoothie.
- Boost with your favorite plant-based protein powder for extra protein and healthy fats.
- Swap spinach with the leafy green of your choice.
- For a smoothie with less natural sugar, swap out 1/2 banana for 1/4 avocado.
Delicious. I did oil free and powder free and added kale
I did not have coconut water so I used 1 cup of water. I thought this tasted a lot like a pineapple milkshake which was very refreshing.
I did not have any peaches on hand, but even so the flavor was great!
Love the tropical flavors…only used coconut water, no coconut oil, and added hemp seeds. Very tasty
Two thumbs up! This smoothie was so refreshing. The blend of pineapple, peaches, and coconut water was perfect and reminded me of being at the beach.
Refreshing!
LOVED THIS SMOOTHIE!! It provided me with so much energy for the rest of the day. My husband kept stopping by my desk to steal sips! So I had to make a second one for him. Highly recommend this smoothie!
Day 7. I love the Healthy Pre Workout Smoothie. I added the homemade protein powder for the added boost and make it a meal. It was so refreshing and delicious. It tastes great too. I will be adding it to my list of great smoothies.
Great kept me very full during my workout!! It taste really good!
Didn’t like this one. But I don’t like coconut water
Very filling.
So far there has only been 1 smoothie that I wasn’t crazy about in this 10 day challenge. I added protein powder, I used this smoothie as my pre-workout smoothie, truth be told all of them have been used as my pre-workout smoothie. I needed to add a little bit more water than the recipe called for but loved this one too.
One of my favorite, REALLY GOOD
5 Stars… I loved it!
Love the addition of the coconut water in this one. Very refreshing!
This was so energizing! What a great way to get ready for a work out. I see a pattern as I am going through this challenge for the fist time that I prefer the smoothies that have fresh greens in them and that is a good thing! I do not have the protein powder so added chia, flax and hemp. I may end up making this one tomorrow if I do not like the banana smoothie, that is how much I liked it. I will try the banana one however and if not, will know to fall back on this one.
Another good smoothie. I added 1/8 teaspoon each of ginger and turmeric as well as 1 Tbl hemp seed. I forgot to put the coconut water in the fridge to chill, so used oatmilk instead. I think the coconut water would have been a better choice. I also am not sure I like the combo of peaches and pineapple. I think an orange, kiwi, or strawberry would have suited my taste more.