Proper Nutrition After Exercise: Why It’s Important & What To Eat
•Nutrition
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Consuming proper nutrients after a workout is crucial for recovery, muscle repair, and optimal performance for your next session.
Post-workout nutrition replenishes energy stores, helps to repair muscle tissue, and provides you with essential nutrients that enhance recovery.
It’s a post-workout step you should prioritise for numerous reasons.
Why It's Important
Similar to how rest days are just as important as workouts for muscle recovery, refuelling our bodies with the proper foods after exercise is vital and can help improve your fitness levels!
Replenishing Glycogen Stores: When we exercise, our muscles use up their glycogen stores – one of the body’s fuel sources. While our muscles will naturally rebuild their glycogen stores, proper nutrition lends a hand.
Muscle Repair & Growth: During a workout, our muscles experience micro-tears, especially during high-intensity workouts. This is why rest days are so important, but the right nutrients can promote recovery and increase strength.
Reducing Soreness: Proper nutrition after a workout can help with muscle soreness, especially foods with antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties.
Macronutrients To Prioritise
There are different macronutrients you should eat after exercise to target different recovery requirements.
Carbs: Consuming carbs after a workout helps replenish your body’s glycogen stores, giving you more energy throughout the day. Make sure you’re eating complex carbs rather than refined carbs – they’re the good kind!
Protein: Protein is essential to help repair and build muscle. Eating a high protein meal after working out provides your body with the amino acids necessary for repairing muscle tissue and increasing strength. If you’re on a weight loss journey, you’re going to need to up your protein intake anyway! And you’ll need even more as you age.
Healthy Fats: Healthy fatty foods have been shown to promote muscle protein synthesis after a workout, while studies are limited, there’s no harm in incorporating fatty foods! Check out these fatty foods that actually burn fat.
Foods To Eat
One meal that will do wonders after a workout is The Lady Shake! It’s packed with protein to support muscle recovery and growth. But here are some other ideal foods:
Complex Carbs: Wholegrains like brown rice or quinoa, fruits and vegetables.
Protein: Lean meats like chicken or turkey, fish, eggs, Greek yoghurt, lentils and beans.
Healthy Fats: Avocados, nuts and seeds, fatty fish like salmon or mackerel.
Takeaways
Your post-workout meal should include complex carbs, protein and healthy fats to enhance overall recovery. By prioritising nutrition after exercise, you’re setting yourself up for success!
Along with a proper cool down, nutrient-dense foods after a workout will support the effectiveness of your future workouts and help you maintain a healthy lifestyle.
