If your goal is to get in shape but you find it hard to structure your diet, this blog post is for you! Post-workout nutrition is essential for any training regimen as it allows the body to refuel and recover. If you find yourself struggling to recover from workouts, difficulty sleeping, and lacking muscle growth, you may not be fueling your body properly post-workout!

Good news! Today's blog post dives deep into the importance of nutrition after your workouts and provides examples on what to eat for maximum gains!

Importance of post-workout nutrition:

Whether your goal is to lean out or put on muscle mass, it is important to prioritize your post-workout nutritional needs. The phrase, "80% of results comes from your nutrition and 20% of results come from your workouts" says it pretty clear when dialing in on your fitness goals.

Going hand-in-hand with pre-workout nutrition, post-workout nutrition is just as important in enhancing progress made outside of the gym. Not only do post-workout meals replenish nutrients and energy that are burned off during your workout, but they also aid in muscle growth, regulating energy levels, and enhancing quality of sleep.

During exercise, muscle fibers are broken down through a cellular process where they are fused together to form new muscle strands (J.L., 2022). Given this information, it is necessary to replenish these muscle fibers with a combination of rest and nutrition post-workout to enhance your progress.

What to eat post-workout

Now that we know the importance of having proper nutrition after an intense workout, it's time to dive into what to eat post-workout. Although having a consistent nutrient-dense diet will enhance your overall fitness goals, the primary objective to a well-balanced post-workout meal or snack is to supply nutrients back to your body after exercise. When structuring your post-workout meal, there is no need to overcomplicate things!

A good rule of thumb for a post-workout snack or meal is to think: protein, carbs, and hydration. Keep in mind that post-workout meals and snacks may look different for everyone based on what type of training you are doing. For resistance training, protein is going to be your main priority. For endurance training, carbohydrates, hydration, and electrolytes are important to focus on (Purdie, n.d).

The basic recommendation is to consume 10-20 grams of protein after any training says Leslie Bonci, a registered dietitian. Of course this is going to be different for everyone depending on body weight and training style, but a good goal to keep in mind. “You want to think about fueling up while you’re cooling down—that’s the purpose of a post-exercise snack," says Bonci.

Additionally, it is important to keep in mind the intensity and duration of your training. The longer the workout, the more fuel your body needs to be replenished and restored.

Protein, Carbs, & Fats

Protein, carbohydrates, and fats are the three main macronutrients within every snack or meal. To dive a bit more into these specific categories in your post-workout snack or meal, below is a more in-depth review of the importance of each macro.

Protein: Whether you're weight lifting or running a 5k, any exercise will essentially trigger the breakdown of muscle protein. Consuming adequate amount of protein after your workout will recover and rebuild the tissue required for new muscle growth. Studies suggest that consuming 20-40 grams of protein within 2 hours post-workout will maximize your results and enhance the ability to recover after exercise.

High protein foods:

• Eggs

• Chicken breast

• Turkey breast

• Cottage cheese

• Greek yogurt

• Quality protein powder

• Clean protein bar

• Fish

• Nuts & seeds

Carbohydrates: During exercise, glucose stored in your muscles is broken down and need to be replenished with carbohydrates and glycogen. This is common for runners who keep fruit gummies on them during and after their run to restore the glucose burned off. Current studies suggest intake of 0.4 grams of carbs per pound of body weight (0.8 grams of carbs per kg) with 0.1-0.2 grams of protein per pound of body weight (0.2-0.4 grams of protein per kg) during each hour of recovery (Kerksick, 2022).

Food high in carbohydrates:

• Fruit

• Rice cakes

• Oatmeal

• Potatoes

• Rice

• Sweet potatoes

• Whole grain bread

• Chocolate milk

Fats: Although healthy fats are not top on the list of priorities post-workout, it's important to keep in mind what a balanced snack or meal looks like: one that includes protein, carbs, and healthy fats. Like nuts, seeds, and nut butters, some healthy fats may also have a significant amount of protein per serving!

Healthy fats:

• Nuts

• Nut butters

• Seeds

• Avocado

• Trail mix (chocolate & nuts)

Does the timing of your post-workout meal matter?

Now that we have covered the nitty gritty of post-workout nutrition, I bet many of you are wondering if meal timing after your workout matters. Is there a post-workout anabolic window? Although this topic is a bit controversial, recent studies have shown that consuming a combination of protein and carbs within 2 hours after exercise is recommended for best results.

Correspondingly, this research has also found that the post-workout window for intake of protein and carbs is a bit more extended than what sought to be in the past. You can still get muscular response and glycogen synthesis several hours past your workout; however, for maximized results, it is recommended to consume a meal or snack as soon as possible.

Additionally, your body will adapt to exercising regularly and consistently; therefore, muscle recovery is an ongoing process. To get the best results and enahnced recovery, it is recommended for protein and carbs to be consumed every 3-4 hours throughout the day!

Bottom line

Post-workout nutrition is important for recovery, muscle growth, regulating energy levels, and enhancing quality of sleep. Having a well-balanced meal or snack within 2 hours after your workout will be beneficial, but as soon as possible is ideal. This way the nutrients will be supplied to the muscle tissue right away, thus working to recover glycogen stores and speeding up protein synthesis.

No need to overcomplicate your post-workout meals or snacks! Simply prioritize protein and carbohydrates, build your meal/snack, and go from there! A good rule of thumb for protein intake after your workout is to aim for 20-30 grams. When paired with carbohydrates, the combination of protein and carbs in a post-workout meal or snack will replenish the body and work faster towards enhanced recovery.

Make sure you are focusing on proper nutrition and hydration before, during, and after exercise and you are sure to see optimal recovery and results!

RESOURCES

7/14/2022, J. L.- U. (2022, July 14). How do muscles grow? the science of Muscle Growth. BuiltLean. Retrieved March 13, 2023, from https://www.builtlean.com/muscles-grow/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10198297/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23360586/

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/eat-after-workout#TOC_TITLE_HDR_7

https://www.verywellfit.com/the-best-foods-to-eat-after-a-workout-3121369#citation-9

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