Why do foods matter?
Its a question that often crops up online and one we are often asked.  What is the best post workout meals?

You can fuel your muscle building efforts with many different types of food.  You can hit it with clean, quality foods and to maximize your gains, or choose to fill up your insides with greasy and sugary foods that add more to your belly girth than your bench!

 

You are what you eat?

In our sport like no other, with bodybuilding, you ARE what you eat, literally!

As bodybuilders, we’ve fine tuned nutrition over the years but the basic rules still remain. One should eat:

  • 5-6 meals a day, with meals every few hours.
  • Quality protein sources to build and fix muscle.
  • Good quality complex carbohydrates for energy needs.
  • Get your dietary fats in of high quality but in limited amounts, which provide some energy and are indeed needed for hormone production too.

 

Immediately post workout?
OK so we’ve established the basic ground rules for anabolism (muscle building) but what are the needs for post workout?

After your workout, your muscles are emptied of the glycogen, which is the name for stored carbs in the body — which powers/fuels muscular contraction and so movement as one is lifting.

After a training session, your body heads toward a muscle-wasting state, known as a catabolic state.

It is thus wise for one to refill your energy stores in the muscle after your workout and to begin the growth process known as anabolism.

You will want fast-digesting carbs and their postive effect on insulin to begin  repair.

A fast-digesting protein like whey hydro isolate can quickly shuttle protein into muscle cells.  This is taken alongside the fast digesting carbs, which is consumed 25 minutes after the post workout protein.   Carbs such as highly branched cyclic dextrin are perfect for this.

Research shows that after an intense weight workout you have a far greater need for dietary protein than sedentary individuals, and that fast-digesting proteins should be consumed before and after training for optimal gains – see Wilson, J. and Wilson, G. Contemporary issues in protein requirements and consumption for resistance trained athletes. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 2006.

 

Best post workout meal?
Well we know what to eat straight after we train, what then?

It may seem counter-intuitive, but eating after a hard training session is important — especially foods containing a mix of protein and carbs.

The aforementioned nutrients are essential in helping the body replace energy used whilst training also also helping worked muscles repair and recover.

When sweating through an intense workout may make you feel like you earned a burger and chips, quality foods are order of the day to aid recovery.

Now there isn’t a specific BEST post workout meal, its fairly clear based on the details discussed above that need to continue lean quality sources of protein and carbs to be digested within an hour or so of the workout.

However there is a good deal of information showing us that grains are linked to increased health and lower mortality risk.  They are shown to reduce inflammation in the body, improve blood sugar metabolism, reduce blood fats and increase blood vessel health.     A grain therefore, or similar (such as potato) will be beneficial to overall health.

Not only that, they are shown to aid satiety which is always a bonus when dieting down to lose body fat.

Take home notes?
The take home note is simply this:  have a fast digesting proteins and carb post workout, and a quality source of protein and carbs within an hour or so of training to continue recovery post workout.   Remember muscle is torn down in the gym, but repaired when you eat and sleep.   Eat right, and you’ll grow muscle and when in the right state, burn fat!