Why you should be eating breakfast before and after your a.m. workout, according to Anna Victoria

Welcome to My Morning Routine, where Anna Victoria and other good-life gurus share their personal (frequently surprising, often healthy) morning rituals—to help you make your a.m.’s more awesome. 

Anna VictoriaFounder of Fit Body Guides; Instagram fitness phenom

I wake up at 6 a.m. and drink 16 ounces of water. Drinking water right when you wake up will help hydrate you after a night’s sleep, plus it will get your metabolism going.

Then, breakfast. Since this is a pre-workout breakfast, it’s important to have a balanced meal that has both protein and carbs. I have smaller portions than I would in a normal breakfast, because I need to digest quickly and get to the gym. This could be either a protein shake and a serving of oatmeal, or two hardboiled eggs and a banana.

Although I can do my Fit Body Guides (FBG) workouts at home, I enjoy working out in a gym, so I head there as soon as I’m digested—typically about 30 minutes after a snack and 60 minutes after a full meal. After a quick warm-up and a light stretch, I begin my FBG workout.

During my workouts I listen to a few of my favorite artists like Rihanna, Beyoncé, and Selena Gomez—[usually on] iTunes Pop Radio. After my workout, when I’m eating breakfast, I listen to Michael Bublé to relax before I start my work day.

Around 8 a.m, I arrive home and have my full breakfast. Usually my favorite breakfast is scrambled eggs, but this can get a bit boring sometimes. I started experimenting with adding different veggies—my favorite combination at the moment is zucchini, tomatoes and chopped onions. Then for the carbs portion I’ll have oatmeal. This is hands-down my favorite food of the entire day. I’ll add coconut milk, a teaspoon of cinnamon, and either blueberries, goji berries, or cranberries. It’s so good!

One thing I often hear from people who do morning workouts is how tired they get throughout the rest of the day. This is why eating a breakfast or snack before your workout and a full breakfast right after your workout is so important: Your body needs that food for fuel and energy, especially the carbs.

Need a few more options to get out of the scrambled-eggs rut as well? Try this gut-healthy “superhuman breakfast,” or star yogi Tara Stiles’ favorite morning smoothie.