Eating the right foods after exercising will help your body recover quicker and better.
While the pre-exercise meal can ensure that adequate glycogen stores are available for optimal performance, as glycogen is the source of energy most often used for exercise, the post-exercise meal is critical to recovery and improves your ability to train consistently. So, should you eat after working out? If so, what should you eat, when should you eat it and how much should you eat? Here are some guidelines for eating after exercising.
What and when should you eat?
Your muscles need raw materials to recover after you work out. A light meal or snack within 2 hours after exercise is great. This post-workout meal should have protein, some complex carbohydrates and some healthy fats, too. Energy bars, a lean turkey sandwich on whole grain bread and simple fruit would all make a nice post-workout snack.
Hydration is important for your health. You’ll deplete water through perspiration when you exercise. Drink a glass of water roughly an hour before your workout and again after your workout. You can also sip water throughout your workout, too. Weigh yourself before and after exercise and replace fluid losses. Drink 20-24 fl oz water for every pound lost.
It is also important to consume carbohydrates, such as fruit and juice, within 15 minutes after you finish working out to help restore glycogen.
Research has shown that eating 100-200 grams of carbohydrates within two hours of endurance exercise is critical to building ample glycogen stores for sustained training. Waiting longer than two hours to eat results in muscles storing 50% less glycogen because carbohydrate consumption stimulates insulin production, which aids the production of muscle glycogen.
Drinking water immediately after working out will help your body remain hydrated and recover more efficiently.
Carbohydrate Plus Protein Speeds Recovery
Research shows that combining proteins with carbohydrates in the two hours after exercise nearly doubles the insulin response, which results in more stored glycogen. The optimal carbohydrate to protein ratio for this effect is 4:1, or four grams of carbohydrate for every one gram of protein. Eating more protein than that, however, has a negative impact because it slows re-hydration and glycogen replenishment.
One study found that athletes who refueled with carbohydrates and proteins had 100% greater muscle glycogen stores than those who only ate carbohydrates. Insulin was also highest in those who consumed a carbohydrate and protein drink. Consuming protein has other important uses after exercise. Protein provides the amino acids necessary to rebuild muscle tissue that is damaged during intense, prolonged exercise. It can also increase the absorption of water from the intestines and improve muscle hydration. The amino acids in protein can also stimulate the immune system, making you more resistant to colds and other infections.
Conclusion
If you are looking for the best way to refuel your body after long, strenuous endurance exercise, a 4:1 combo of carbohydrate and protein is your best choice. While solid foods can work just as well as a sports drink, a drink may be easier to digest, making it easier to get the right ratio within the critical 2-hour window.
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http://nutrition.about.com/od/askyournutritionist/f/eatexercise.htm