Whether your workout is in the morning, noon or evening, what you snack on after your workout is important ! You don’t want to spoil your efforts by eating empty calories but you want to make sure you feed your body to help repair muscle tissues and replenish glycogen stores which are depleted after a workout. Don’t starve after a workout ! You can’t cancel out the calories you just burned during your workout. Weight loss and the human body don’t work like that. When working out, your body burns fat to be used as energy. After working out, your body needs to start restoring and repairing itself from your training session. In other words, it needs calories. It may seem a little counterintuitive, but immediately after your workout is the best time to eat. Eating immediately (even just a snack) after you finish a workout is beneficial for many reasons. Your body will automatically use the calories you eat for repair and recovery, which is good, and not for storing fat. What matters is “what” you eat. Ideally, you should eat a snack with protein and complex carbohydrates along with 8 ounces of water to hydrate.If your workout is longer than 60 minutes, ideally, you need a replenishing drink like a protein shake with some carbs in it, which doesn’t require much digestion. It may not always be convenient to have a protein shake so just aim for a carb-protein combo. A higher glycemic carb like banana would be great. Its rapid digestion and absorption make it optimal for uptake into recently worked muscle tissue for the replenishing of muscle glycogen. Team this with peanut butter or some cheese.However long the length of your workout, it’s important to eat the right snack after your workout. Take advantage of the metabolic and hormonal changes that happen post workout to refuel and enjoy a good snack.
To check out some great protein carbo snack combinations, check out the slide show below !
Protein shake with whey protein
High protein shake with whey, 1/2 banana and peanut butter would make a perfect post workout snack ! Combo of protein, fat and carbs ! Not to mention potassium and fiber.
Banana and peanut butter on a slice of bread
Or just eat a banana and a tbsp of Peanut butter (PB) or apples slices with PB.
Granola bar or Protein bar
Get a bar that is high fiber, high protein and not too high in calories. Good bets are Fiber one , GNC protein bars, Cliff bars, Lara bars. read labels to see if gives you at least 15% of your RDA for protein and fiber.
Low Fat yogurt with fruit and granola or cereal
You get a good dose of protein, fat, carbohydrate and fiber in this snack ! Not to mention calcium & vitamin D !
Trail Mix
Pretty handy snack to carry around ! Make your own trail mix with your favorite nuts, seeds and dried fruit. Add some granola is you want.
Fruit Smoothie
Have a fruit smoothie. Blend fruit with a little coconut milk almond milk, soy milk , milk or yogurt. Combo of fruit and milk or yogurt will be refreshing & give you a nice healthy boost of protein and carbs.
Crackers with Cheese
Low fat cheese with wheat crackers or pretzels make a great protein carb snack ! Crackers with tuna or meat are also a good option.
Turkey sandwich
Half a turkey sandwich on wheat bread would make a great protein carb snack and a whole sandwich after a workout would make a nice after workout meal. Add some veggies to give it fiber.
Hummus and Pita chips
Hummus and pita chips or wholegrain chips would make a winning protein carb snack ! Lots of fiber and protein in hummus. Veggies and hummus also make a yum good protein carb snack
Cottage cheese with fruit
Low fat cottage cheese and fruit make a healthy high protein carb friendly snack ! Addded bonus: Boost of calcium and vitamin D !
Be creative and come up with your own high protein, complex carb , high fiber snacks ! Reward yourself with a healthy snack after your workout !!
Hi there! I’m Sunithi, AKA Sue, a registered dietitian with a sweet tooth and a passion for eating healthy (quite a combo) currently working as an independent consultant in the DC Metro area. I’m also a blogger, health nut, nutrition geek who jogs to keep sane :)! I love to revamp recipes and add some ‘Nutrition Bytes’ to them. All my recipes are gluten free! I also blog on natural health and fitness! Visit often and drop me a note if you have any nutrition queries!
I like to idea of something light immediately after exercise. A banana is great because you can carry it with you. I also like smoothies or nuts.
Bananas dipped in yoghurt and LSA also taste good. It’s also good with cottage cheese.
That is really a good post. You made some really good points and I am grateful for your research. This information helps all of us to stay fit and healthy in our day to day life. Thanks for the tips. It is pointless to go to the gym and not eat right. You body needs lots of rest and good food to build muscle.The benefits of body building for a physical boost are clear and proven. No-one can deny that.
It’s so true – its always concerning when I see people leave the gym and walk into the donut shop next door. I love to have a fresh fruit smoothie with protein powder after a workout – stops the tummy rumbling and helps repair the muscles.
very informative post…you have pointed out important facts to stay healthy..thanks for sharing .. 🙂
Very helpful post. Best is have a balanced meal post work out but it you don’t have access to food soon then you can have protein shake or a protein bar/ or more than handful nuts/ chicken salad with whole grain toast/grilled chicken vegetables and whole wheat bread/fish with brown rice /anything that we give the muscles the depleted energy. For more information checkout: http://www.livenutrifit.com/