I was asked earlier is it important to have a meal after you train!
Simple answer is - its very important, and not being prepared to have something post workout is a major failing on your behalf.
NOW - there are so many different opinions on the “post workout feeding window” - ranging from should you eat protein only, should you eat protein and carbs, or would a bowl of coco pops, reese’s or even chasing the rainbow with a packet of skittles suffice!
Personally for me - (as I said there many different opinions on the table here) a fast digesting protein option would be my go to. If you think about it like this - after a workout our bodies are catabolic as we have broken down muscle tissue during the workout - our aim is to become anabolic as soon as we can, once this happens we are well into the recovery process and hopefully promoting growth.
Along with protein its essential to intake carbs, and again a fast digesting source is a must to help speed the recovery process as soon as possible. In terms or carbs it would be advisable to have 1.5 to 2 times the amount of carbs over protein - and the reason we want both these fast digesting is to help ease or to minimise the amount of stress placed on the gut.
The reason we wouldn’t have fat (immediate) post workout is the fact it would take a lot longer to digest - and our aim is to start recovering as quickly as we can. For example, if you had a steak immediately after your workout our bodies would take a lot longer to break this down (and it would place more stress on the gut), fat takes longer to digest than protein and carbs.
By all means have your steak 90 mins to 2 hours after, but in that immediate window it certainly wouldn’t be beneficial for us.
Have a think about your post workout meal / snack - what do you have, if anything at all ?
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