Lets dig in (ha) to what you should be eating after a workout, and why.
Am I wasting my workout if I dont eat the right thing afterward?
Good lord, no.
Post-workout nutrition is often a subject of these garbage claims.
The truth is: You cannot waste a workout.
Exercise has a great many benefits, and the timing of your nutrition onlyslightly modifiessome of them.
So, no, you havent wasted any time.
You might see improved results if you get your nutrition in order, though.
What does your body need after a workout?
Provide some carbs to help replenish muscle glycogen (carb stores) quickly.
Digest quickly enough to allow those nutrients to reach your bloodstream soon.
Contribute appropriately to your overall nutrition for the day.
How soon should I eat after a workout?
Look, theres no law about this.
In that case, verify to eat some carbs as soon as youreasonablycan after the first workout.
Theres no hard deadline, but ideally youd eat those carbs within maybe an hour or so.
It doesnt matter very much when you do your workouts.
We also store carbs in our muscles, and those carbs are available during exercise as well.
This storage form of carbohydrate is called glycogen, and each muscle has their own stash of it.
If you want to optimize post-workout carb intake:Buckle up, this is intense.
Thatsfive to seven slicesof bread.
Then youd do that again every two hours for the next six hours.
Fortunately, theres no need to cram your glycogen stores full after every workout.
If you want to eat a good enough post workout meal:Have a meal withsomecarbs.
A sandwich with two slices of bread would be a good start.
Or a smoothie with about a cup of fruit.
Or just your regularly scheduled next meal.
A cup of brown rice contains about 45 grams of carbs.
(Plant protein works too, of course.)
Resistance training (like lifting weights)alsotriggers MPS.
If you want to build or maintain muscle, you should lift weights and eat protein.
That said, it wont hurt to get some of your daily protein in a post-workout meal.
within a few hours after your workout.
For most of us, normal meals will do the trick without planning anything special.
Youll have breakfast after your morning workout, for example.
I havemore information hereon how to figure out how much protein you need in a day.
Yourtotal calorie intakeshould also be a factor in deciding what to eat.
