There are a million ways to answer this, obviously, but I hired an IFP trainer and bodybuilding champ who has been training with Chris Cormier, and he wrote my nutrition program for me, for what that is worth… Here’s a tiny bit of his wisdom:
When you first wake up you want to kick start your metabolism just enough to start the burning process. Don’t eat a lot, about 100–150 calories. I usually eat a banana and drink black coffee, or a fiber one bar. Yes, carbs are important for this meal because it’s an immediate energy source that burns quickly. Once burned off, your body seeks to burn fat to maintain that energy through the workout. Warm up, lift weights, then do cardio. If you plan to break it up into two rounds of exercise a day, do cardio in the morning and lift weights in the evening, followed by another short spurt of cardio. Weights before cardio is key, however. Don’t burn your energy in cardio, because then the slacking off is in the weights. Hit weights, then burn up what’s left.
Anyway, protein heavy AFTER workouts. I totally agree with a 4 ounce cut of lean red meat (I buy a big cut and cut it into 4 ounce cubes that are easy to toss on the grill in the morning), along with a two egg scramble that I have tossed a ton of veggies into (celery, onion, red peppers, broccoli, and mushrooms are my go to, for nutrient reasons). You’re looking at around 350 calories, mostly protein, in the 30 grams range.
That’s already two ‘meals’ before 11am. Eat 6 meals, caloric intake based on your needs, but don’t starve yourself. Eat as many grams of protein as your ideal body weight. For me, that’s 130 grams a day. It’s a lot, you will get gassy, but that passes (haha, get it?).
Long answer, but in short, yes, eat something with natural sugars and carbs right before workout, heavy protein after. You’ll burn off the carbs and protein will build the muscle tone. Do NOT be afraid of carbs, just choose them wisely.