I tried googling this but no cookies!
Are you supposed to eat before and after going to the gym? Apparently there is a grace period. I could be wrong but I read somewhere that said that you have a 40 minute grace period with protein after your gym work out. I’m so confused.

Before I work out I make sure I haven't ate an hour before. And then I eat right when I come home. I have no idea if its the right way, but I hear that the metabolism is always the highest right after you work out, and food will increase it even more.

Got this.

Eating after working out -- post-exercise food

Hi guys,
Eat something fairly easily digestible an hour or so before your workout so it's not going to sit in your stomach too long. Avoid a big meal. Carbs are best and I like a banana, maybe a yoghurt, a sports drink, a smoothie or shake, not too much protein though as it takes longer to break down than carbs.

After your workout, your metabolism will be raging and you've a 30 minute window to replace the carbs you've used. Your body is like a sponge, utilising the calories you consume and is unlikely to store any of these calories as fat.

Try keeping a banana, carb drink, energy bar, etc with you and eat/drink it whilst you shower and change.

50-100g of carbs is about right, depending on the length, type and intensity of your workout, and whether you're dieting and exercising to lose weight or to build muscle, improve your stamina, etc.

Once you've replaced the carbs, you've a 60-90 minute window after exercise to stock up on protein. Avoid eating protein straight after a workout as your body will simply use it to stock up your energy supplies, rather than use it to repair and build muscle tissue damaged during exercices.

Hope this helps,
Regards,
Marcus

I see people do these things and I don't really agree with some of them, especially with sports drinks. What happens is that when you drink these things before a workout, it spikes your blood sugar. When that happens, you get an insulin flood to cover the spike. Insulin blocks the paths to your fat stores, you cannot burn from fat until you burn up what is in your bloodstream, yet even once you do burn up everything that the insulin has covered, there is a time delay when you switch energy sources, resulting in the dreaded "sugar high and crash". This is bad. Whatever you eat/drink before a workout, do NOT spike your blood sugar.

Also I should mention that it's often recommended that you have a 4:1 ratio of carbs to protein for recovery. This is why Clif Bars and other energy bars are packaged in the manner that they are. The type of protein you consume and the type of workout makes a difference too, like soy protein is slow-release and isn't as effective after a hard weightlifting session as whey protein.