This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Table of Contents
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.
Yummy. Skipped the coconut oil (I added chia and flax)
This smoothie is one of my new favorites!!! Loved it and will make often!
I love the taste of coconut and the addition of coconut oil. I used white peaches which gave a twist .
Absolutely loved today’s smoothie! The flavors worked well together, although I switched from the peaches to using loquats since I have a peach allergy. The addition of the coconut oil gave such a smooth feeling in the mouth, almost like it was silky smooth. This is a definite winner and I will make this one frequently.
Yummy! Gives much fuel for the workout!
I really enjoyed this smoothie! It was great for breakfast and just slightly sweet.
This is another smoothie I loved. I go for the pineapple, peaches, banana mix along with a hint of coconut. Any greens you put with that fruit mix is going to be great, I ‘ll be honest, I skipped the coconut oil and the 1/2cup of water and just used 1 full cup of cup coconut water. Still it was excellent. I have coconut oil but the bottle was not open yet and I didn’t want to opening just for this smoothie. When I am making things that use coconut oil I will use it in the smoothie at that time. I don’t want the oil to go bad. I like to use the oil when I make Hawaiian, and Indian dishes more towards the warmer weather. its still ccclld in Ohio near Lake Erie, I mean we have some warm days but its not near warm weather yet. Tomorrow they are calling for snow Tuesday and Wednesday it will be in the 60’s. We are going in the right direction but it is not the warmer weather yet. Can’t believe one more day of the challenge. I’ll be drinking this set of smoothies until the next challenge.
i made this smoothie as written except i used a nectarine instead of a peach. it was sweet and refreshing… despite the nectarine tasting poorly. (even if they were in season, it’s hard to get good produce anymore… .) then i added protein powder, along with wheat grass, kale, and spirulina powders. needless to say, it didn’t taste as seeet and refreshing! curiously, can the coconut oil be scooped in as a solid or does it need to be warmed? i didn’t used anything frozen and warmed mine…
Hi Kimberly! You can use the coconut oil either way!
Loved it… gotta another favorite!!!
This one had a good flavor. Kept me going through a long meeting followed by a nice long walk.
Not a fan but husband liked it.
Love this smoothie but only added half of the coconut oil.
Enjoyed this smoothie. Didn’t make as much as other recipes but tasted light and fruity. Subbed avocado for banana and left out coconut oil because I didn’t have any, but still tasted great.
Substituted mixed frozen berries for the peaches. I liked the taste but I wonder if it was the coconut oil that made it SO FOAMY that I had to eat it with a spoon and tripled the quantity. Not a smoothie that you can drink on the go. ;(
Very sweet that I like and good fuel for a work out it gave an extra boost
This is my favorite smoothie from the challenge to date. I enjoy the coconut and fruit flavors combination. I also appreciate learning about other healthy fats (coconut oil) that I can add to my smoothies. Definitely a keeper.