The following nutritional advice is from my guest Tone it Tuesday's contributor for the month of January, Jenna Klane of the
Training Fix. I'll be sharing Jenna's workout and nutrition advice throughout the Tone It Tuesday series. In today's post, Jenna will be sharing how to properly fuel yourself before and after your workout...
Hey everyone, its Jenna Klane Nelson, the owner of the Training Fix in Easton, MA.
There is no doubt in my mind that eating whole foods, improving posture, exercising often, and resting often, are the key ingredients to living a life filled with vitality ! Today, I am going to focus on the first ingredient: eating whole foods. After-all, a clean diet is non negotiable if you want to reap the full benefits of your workout.
When you spend time and effort at the gym to reach your fitness goals, you better be sure you’re refueling your body or else you may be wasting your time and energy. Think about the stress you’re putting your muscles under. You need to recover from the losses that you went through and the best time is right after your workout- within an hour.
Recent studies have found that low glycemic foods, which are digested more slowly, eaten before exercise may contribute to increased performance by increasing the availability of nonessential fatty acids during exercise. Examples of these carbohydrates include plain yogurt, strawberries, and oatmeal. Carbs are essential during exercise because it’s the body’s preferred fuel source. Therefore it’s important to not only eat them before a workout but also after to replenish glycogen stores.
Endurance and resistance training exercise both stimulate muscle protein synthesis, which is enhanced if protein is consumed around the time of the exercise. Eating protein immediately after exercising helps in the repair and synthesis of muscle proteins. If you’re looking to lose weight, then protein intake can help preserve lean muscle mass and allow weight loss to come from fat rather than the lean tissue. Protein not only repairs muscle, but also helps stimulate the development of new muscle tissue.
Different types of protein are better at different times. Whey protein is easily digested and is known for its ability to stimulate muscle protein synthesis. Casein protein is slowly digested and can last in the bloodstream a few hours. If you’re looking for optimum muscle building then one would suggest casein-based protein prior to exercise and whey-based protein during and following exercise. The body has a limited capacity to use protein to build muscle so it’s important to not be excessive in protein consumption. The average person requires .8-1.0kg/body weight and athletes need 1.2-1.7kg/body weight.
One thing you want to steer clear of in your post-workout snack is fat. Fat slows down digestion, and this isn’t something you want after a workout.
If you’re new to exercising then this can seem like a lot of info that you’re not necessarily looking for, but it’s important to have an understanding of why we want you to eat before and after a training session; to maximize your results.
Food Ideas:
- Banana with almond butter
- Plain greek yogurt with fruit
- Tuna on Ezekiel/whole wheat bread
- Sliced turkey and hummus wrap
- Protein shake with banana
- Rice cake with almond/peanut butter
- Hard boiled egg and apple
- Sweet potato with plain greek yogurt
- Quest or Rise Bar
- Chocolate Almond Milk with strawberries
Now that you have an understanding of what and why you need to properly fuel yourself you should be sure that your workout really requires the post-workout snack/meal you’re consuming. A 15 minute leisurely walk, a 30 minute light strength-training session or 30 minutes of stretching aren’t the moderate to high intensity workouts that burn up your muscles and deplete your blood sugar levels to a level where you need a snack to recover. So be mindful of the snacks you’re choosing based on your workout.
Your workout can never make up for a bad diet, so make sure you’re not “rewarding” yourself with a post-workout snack because “you deserved it.” Give your body the proper fuel it needs!
Create a toned Tuesday everyone! Below is your Tuesday dose of inspiration.
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