Matt's Top Tips

Post Workout Nutrition

Have you ever heard/read that training, recovery, health and overall well being is 70% diet and 30% exercise?

Well it’s true, so listen up.

Don’t get me wrong training is great, it makes you fitter, stronger, keeps your joints healthy, gives you a massive confidence and feel good factor and most of the time it’s great fun (well our classes are anyway ). However if your diet lacks nutrients, your training and your recovery will SUFFER and this is where things go wrong. It is so important to tailor you’re diet according to the demands you place on your body...

You have just completed a Fitter London Kettlebell class on a Tuesday morning, which we all know hits every major muscle group in the body and is always a challenge.

Your muscles have been depleted of sugars; your muscle fibres have been broken down and are now in desperate need of fuel in order to replenish, recover and be ready for the day ahead and training sessions to come.

A typical guy will opt for a post workout protein shake; this is a wise choice however most drinks out there contain a ton of sugar and typically way too much protein. Remember your body can only use a certain amount of protein in one go (normally 20 – 30 grams) the rest is quite simply wasted and stored, most shakes contain anywhere up to 55g protein and 50g of sugar in one serving. Where there’s sugar there are calories so beware. Not only is this way too much but the last thing your body needs after it’s already been stressed from a full body workout is a protein and sugar overload. This will just create more stress for the digestive system.

Now for the ladies (and I’ve seen you ;-)) who grab a post workout coffee on the way to work. Bear in mind that you have just lost a load of water during your workout, grabbing a dehydrating caffeine filled coffee is not ideal.

So to keep things simple, here is a list of things to avoid and things to consider after your workout:

Avoid:

• Lucozade
• Sugar laden protein drinks.
• Excessive protein (20-30g is ideal)
• Caffeine.
• Saturated fats.

For immediately after your workout:

• Fruit (dates are great)
• A protein shake with no carbs and between 20-30g protein (no ladies this will not make you big and muscular).
• 100% pure coconut water (amazing)
  

It is also important to make sure your meal following this one should also contain all the right nutrients to aid your recovery further.

For example scrambled eggs with smoked salmon and a piece of fruit would be great. A great protein hit from the eggs and salmon (ideal to repair those hard working muscle fibres), Iron and B vits from the yolk, healthy fats from the salmon and of course vits, minerals and antioxidants from the fruit.

Remember you are what you eat.

Yours in training,

Matt