Optimal pre- and post-workout nutrition is essential for both performance and recovery. By helping time nutrient intake, you can optimise the efficiency of your workouts moving forward.
The consumption of complex carbs and protein, for example, a few hours before training or post-workout protein and carbs within 60 minutes of working out, can all be helpful when it comes to repairing muscle and replenishing glycogen.
If you need improvement when it comes to pre- and post-workout nutrition, then it’s good to know what works and what will hinder your efforts.
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Pre-Workout Nutrition - Fueling Your Body
Before your workout even begins, pre-workout nutrition is essential. It helps by fueling your body and getting you energised for any manner of workout or exercise you’re going to be tasked with completing. The goal is to maximise energy stores, but also protect muscle tissue.With that being said, it’s important to start with the timing of your food intake. You should eat 2-3 hours before the session, and this should be a balanced meal. That could be chicken with brown rice or oatmeal with fruit, depending on the time of day.
Opt for a small carb snack around 30-60 minutes before, whether that’s a slice of toast or a banana. Focus on carbohydrates for energy and a moderate amount of protein for the benefits of muscle protection.
When it comes to things to avoid, high-fat and high-fibre foods should be something you skip on. This type of food will take longer to digest and therefore cause sluggishness or discomfort when you’re trying to work out.
Hydration is a big part of keeping your body healthy and ready for a workout. Drinking around 500-600ml of water around 2-3 hours before and then 200-300ml 10-20 minutes before will help keep your body hydrated and ready for the workout.
During Your Workout - Maintenance
There’s not much you’ll need to do when it comes to consuming food during a workout unless that workout is over an hour. Under an hour, and your body will suffice on just water alone.However, for high-intensity training that lasts over an hour, 30-60 grams of carbohydrates per hour is recommended. This is particularly the case when you’re doing long-distance running and may be running for a number of hours. You want to ensure anything you’re consuming during this period is still highly nutritious and, as mentioned, isn’t going to be made up of high-fat or high-fibre foods.
Post-Workout Nutrition - Recovery Mode
Once you’ve sweated everything out, post-workout nutrition is one of the most important aspects of your workout and not something to skip. It’s where your body needs to go into recovery mode, and so what you’re consuming will influence just how sore you are the following day.The goal of this post-workout nutrition is to initiate muscle protein synthesis and restock energy. With that being said, you should aim to eat within 30-60 minutes of your post-workout for maximum effectiveness.
When it comes to eating, a combination of high-quality protein and fast-acting carbohydrates to spike insulin and deliver nutrients.
Such examples of this type of nutrition could be a bowl of Greek yoghurt with berries. Low-fat chocolate milk is a nice treat, or you may prefer something more savoury, like chicken with sweet potato.
How to Keep Your Body in Good Shape
It’s important that you’re looking at keeping your body in good shape in general and not just through fitness. There are plenty of ways that you can continue to look after yourself beyond just going to the gym or attending a sports club every week.Daily movement
Beyond just the moderate to intense workouts and strength training, try to get in daily movement where you can. Whether it’s taking the stairs at work instead of the lift, or parking further away from places so that you have to walk a little longer.Flexibility and balance
Incorporating yoga, Pilates, or stretching helps to improve mobility and balance. This is something that your body and mind will benefit from. Having flexibility is good for your body, especially when you’re lifting or reaching for anything in your day-to-day life.Consistency
Consistency is key when you’re doing anything in life, and that includes exercise. Try not to go all in too early. Start small with daily 30-minute walks and gradually increase that intensity as you go.A balanced diet
Consuming food is something that needs to be balanced in order to keep your body healthy. Consume whole grains, healthy fats, lean proteins and plenty of fruit and vegetables where possible.Hydration
You want to be drinking around a litre or two of water a day, where it’s possible. This is a great way of keeping your body in good shape and energised throughout the day. You should also be drinking a glass of water in the morning, and ideally, having water next to you in bed should you wake up and feel thirsty in the night.Rest
Ensuring adequate rest days helps allow your muscles to recover. If you don’t rest, then recovery is likely to take longer, which ultimately puts you out of action from being able to exercise.Damaging your muscles isn’t a productive way of keeping your body healthy and it’s only going to set you back.
Weight management
Monitor your weight in order to help reduce the risks of any chronic diseases like heart disease and diabetes.For Sustained Results Keep it Consistent
In order to sustain the results you’re looking to achieve through workouts, make sure it’s consistent. From the workouts themselves to anything you do on a daily basis to look after your body. Consistency creates habits, and those habits become routine eventually.
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