6 Post-Workout Tips!
It’s post-workout time! You’ve just finished training, what you do next has a tremendous impact on your results. With that in mind, here’s 6 Post-Workout Tips! It all starts with a shake, but then whole food becomes king. Here’s what to eat and what not to eat. Ready? Then let’s check it out!
Tip # 1 – Kick Off Recovery With A Post-Workout Shake
As noted, you’ll want to kick off your post-workout phase with a shake. It’s fast, easy, convenient and will hold you over until you get back home and can sit down to a meal. The key here is that it’s never too soon to push anabolism, so when your last set is done, drink a shake consisting of fast-digesting whey protein and fast-digesting carbs.
Tip # 2 – Follow It Up With A Whole Food Meal
I’m all for supplements but let me be real: whole food meals come first and foremost. Your nutrition is paramount. It has to be correctly proportioned and timed, of course, but whole food comes before supplements. It should be understood that supplements are just that, a “supplement” to a solid diet. With that in mind, here are some things to remember when choosing your meal.
Tip # 3 – Carbohydrate Ratio
First of all, I advocate consuming 50% of your daily carbs including all your simple carbs in the hours surrounding your workout. Of course, your carbs (and protein) should come from clean, quality sources. We’ve already talked about the carbs in your post-workout shake.
Therefore, now’s not the time for low carbs. If you’re following a low-carb diet, I suggest increasing your intake in the hours before and just after your workout. Begin with a little more carbs around dinner the day before, and the morning of, pick simple, faster digesting carbs. Then go back to low carbs after your post-workout meal.
Tip # 4 – Skip Fast Food
Skip the fast food, you never want junky food at any time, especially around your workouts. You should always focus on eating only clean, high-quality food. Think in terms of lean protein sources such as chicken, fish, turkey, beef, low-fat cottage cheese and low fat, low sugar Greek yogurt. Think of quality carbs such as oats, whole grains, sweet potatoes and brown rice.
Eat Your Post-Workout Meal No More Than 2 Hours After Your Shake
I don’t know if it’s still a thing, but for a while there the idea of eating/drinking anything post-workout was discouraged. The apparent thinking was you could eat/drink whenever, as long as you hit your macro goals by the end of the day. What nonsense! You just spent at least an hour training hard, why would you want to wait hours to ingest either a shake or a meal?
I know I don’t want to do that. I end the workout tired, hungry, and looking for calories. I have my shake before I leave the gym, and within 2 hours I’m eating a post-workout meal consisting of lean protein and a mix of simple and complex carbs. I recommend you do the same. (1)
Tip # 3 – Pick The Right Supplements
Piggybacking off the last section, a good alternative to eating more carbs is to use a supplement such as EFX Sports Karbolyn. This is a carb powder that absorbs quickly yet does not cause insulin spikes. I’ve used this product many times and I have to say, it works great. If you’re looking for ATP energy without eating a ton of carbs, this is the way to go.
Earlier, we talked about the post-workout shake. Karbolyn works well in this case. As far as whey protein, I suggest Hi-Tech Precision Protein, which is designed to release leucine in the initial phases of protein synthesis.
Of course, I also always suggest a great pre-workout and creatine. My picks here are Panda Supplements First Blood pre-workout, a great Pre with 10g citrulline and plenty of caffeine. As far as creatine, I suggest AllMax Nutrition Creatine Monohydrate. This product features ultra-pure, micronized, patented CreaSyn® creatine. Of course, remember to stop by illpumpyouup.com, check out our stunning new site and while you’re here, stock up!
Recovery Is Key
Remember, recovery is a major key to growth. The point is simple, but tragically overlooked by many lifters: you won’t grow if you don’t recover. The drive-home message is that you can’t train 6-7 days a week for hours at a time and never allow for recovery. Not only do glycogen stores need time to be replenished, muscle repair also takes time. That’s why I generally recommend a 3-Day Split, giving you 4 full days of recovery. Sure, you can do cardio on 1-2 of those days if needed, but for best results, use that time to rest, eat well, get some serious sleep, and let your body rejuvenate itself.
Summary
In this article, we have looked at the timeframe immediately following your workout, as well as the longer nutritional timeframe that leads to successful training sessions, and finally we looked at recovery in general. Follow the tips presented here so you can make the most of your time in the gym!