The first 45 - 60 minutes following a strength training workout is a window of opportunity for maximizing potential muscle gains. It is during this time after a workout that gylcogen stores are depleted, and the enzymes that convert glucose into glycogen are in a state such that sugar (glucose) can be consumed and is rushed directly to the muscles to replace lost glycogen stores.
Here is a list of 5 post-workout meals that are quick to prepare and easy to digest:
1. A post-workout shake that has a blend of quality protein (whey, casein, soy or a combination of these proteins) and carbohydrates (e.g, a banana).
2. Low-fat yogurt with fresh berries (stay away from pre-packaged yogurt with fruit on the bottom!).
3. A sports drink that has a blend of protein and carbohydrates.
4. A can of tuna and whole-grain crackers or Ezekiel bread.
5. Nonfat chocolate milk.
If you have a favorite post-workout meal I would love to hear about it! Feel free to post comments on your meal of choice!!
Train hard; stay strong.
Peace.
Susan
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10 Responses to "Ask The Trainer"I do a shake - I put vanilla protein powder (sweeted with stevia instead of aspartame or sugar), 4 oz raw milk (you can use skim or water), a banana, and 1TB natural peanut butter. Add ice cubes mix, and feel like you just got a major reward for your hard work. Love it!
Cutting the peanut butter reduces the calories a lot, but I'm not trying to lose weight (anymore) and I like the flavor so I keep it in there.
Another thing I've had as post-workout is whole wheat pita (toasted) dipped in hummus. YUM! Not as high in protein as some of the other suggestions, though.
Hi Susan,
I would like to know your opinion on DOMS. Should one work out lightly the next day or allow a few extra days for the body to complete repairs to affected muscle tissue?
How can one discern the fine line between working out the correct way and overtraining?
Thanks,
Tony
Orange juice with vanilla protein powder makes a great recovery shake. It has about a 4:1 ratio of carbs to protein.
Liz, your protein shake sounds yummy! I'm a huge PB fan and for some reason have never tried it in my shake. I think you've inspired me!!!!!
Hi Tony ... thanks for stopping by!! Your questions are good ones and I'm a firm believer that over-training is an under-rated problem.
I'm a big fan of following intense workouts with an active recovery day as this not only helps to accelerate recovery, but minimizes DOMS. I also personally take 2 days/week of passive rest, although depending on your fitness goals, 1 day of passive rest per week should be sufficient.
To determine whether or not you're over-training, you should look some common symptoms of over-training including persistent fatigue, insomnia, persistent muscle soreness that lasts more than 3 days, increased resting heart rate, general irritability, lowered resistance to colds and sore throat, irritability.
That's quite a laundry list of symptoms but basically, they're what you would expect of someone who is not getting enough rest -- exactly the problem over-training causes.
As a rule of thumb, take 2 active rest days and 1 passive rest day/week and you should be able to avoid over-training.
Hope this helps!
Julie, I've always used chocolate protein powder so never really thought of mixing it with juice, but your mix sounds like a pretty nice change!
I hear a lot about post-workout recovery shakes/meals/snacks... I'm still (STILL!) trying to lose weight, so allocating calories to a pre-workout snack and then a post-workout snack, well, that means way less calories for my main meals and I just haven't been able to commit to it. I'm trying to stick to 3 meals and a snack (like a good JM follower ;), but I'm increasingly interested in trying a protein powder/shake.
dilemma, dilemma...
Norwego, you need to re-think your philosophy. If you've been following the same routine and still haven't realized the results you hope to achieve, than it makes sense that perhaps there are tweaks that can be made to your program.
Just as all foods are not created equal, not all times of day are created equal in regards to how you process what you eat.
The first 45 – 60 minutes following a strength training workout is a window of opportunity for maximizing potential muscle gains. It is during this time after a workout that gylcogen stores are depleted, and the enzymes that convert glucose into glycogen are in a state such that sugar (glucose) can be consumed and is rushed directly to the muscles to replace lost glycogen stores.
And remember, the more lean muscle mass you have, the more calories you'll burn at rest.
My post workout supplementation consists of 2 scoops designer protein mixed with 8 oz of water. All in I'm looking at 200 calories, 4 g fat, 6 g carbs and 36 g protein.
in the interest of full disclosure, I spent a couple of months not paying attention to how many calories I was eating and I set myself back 20ish lbs. so I have no one to blame but myself.
however, I have been thinking of changing things up a little bit. I was reading around on your blog and also on the turbulence training blog, and I saw there's a contest going on that started already. maybe I can catch the next one.
I have a couple things I'm not willing to change about my exercise, for example I work out 4 days a week at lunch time with my workout buddy Jocelyn and I'm not willing to stop that, thought I am willing to change up what our workout consists of. Also, now that spring is here, I'm commuting by bicycle and I don't want to give that up, I love it too much.
With regard to my food, I'm willing to make changes there. I'm bored out of my mind with the routine I have going, the same dozen foods I'm eating, etc. I could consider a protein shake for lunch (which directly follows my workout, conveniently), I'm loving the idea of getting that much protein in, I struggle with getting enough. I'm always way too carb heavy.
I'm going on and on too much here, so I'll stop now ;)
There's no need to change your workout schedule -- it's great that you have a workout 'buddy'.
As for the protein drink -- it's not a meal replacement, nor should it be considered one. It would be in ADDITION to your mid-day meal (although it does not need to be consumed at the same time).
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