What to eat after gym?

Clár

Is it ok to have like a piece of fish like cod and baked beans with veg after a cardio workout with some weights. Or should you have like a potato or rice or something with the fish. I find im ravenous after a work out but get home from gym at about 8pm and want my bed at 9 so want something to fill the hole but not to stuff me. O and i obviouly want the food i eat to be beneficial to me post workout.

I tend to have complex carbs at breakfast and lunch time to prepare me for the workout.

Any suggestions??

kwalsh000

You could try some protein shakes, quick and easy to make and some flaxseed oil.. But to be getting the best from when you workout, you should try to get it done a bit earlier. Fish/rice etc are great for after a work out..as are chicken fillets (if your not sick of eating them all the time:P) Is your goal to add mass? or just try to get a lean look? There should be more people here with better advice, but after a workout i normally scramble 4 eggs and have a roll. Then about 40 or so mins after that il have a protein drink then back to usual meals. I should be adding more carbs to the post workout meal though...hope some of this helps. The best thing would be try to get it done a bit earlier or sleep an hour later..that is if it wont affect you the day afterwards

trollybus

Hi Clar. You need a 2:1 ratio of simple carbs to fast acting protein for recovery. At this time you body will absorb supplements faster than whole food. Try 2 scoops of Cell X with 1 scoop of Pro X. Your recovery time should improve dramatically and you won't eat the person in front of you on the bus.

Emerson

I eat alot of fruit straight after working out.
It's important to get blood sugar levels up, fast to prevent your body eating up its own muscle for energy. The raw antioxidants, vitamins & minerals help with prompt muscle regeneration.
Past few weeks, I'd usually eat a whole mango, organic strawberries and some nectarines after. Fast release sugars!

The fruit is digested almost instantly, so it should come first to prevent indigestion.

Then about 15 mins after, I eat a large salad with beans, chicken, grated carrot, broccoli or whatever is available.

Clár

My goal i suppose is defo not to bulk up (god no way) i just wanna add definition.

I always make sure i have a piece of fruit for after the gym. Trying to eat right is always on my mind after the gym, i can never know if im eating the right amount or the right type of foods. I suppose you cannot be right 100% of the time.

I would not go near those protein drinks or shakes I just rather stick to food tbh.

Dragan

Cl&#225 wrote: »

My goal i suppose is defo not to bulk up (god no way) i just wanna add definition.

Clar , it is is unlikely that despite your best efforts in the gym that you would be able to bulk up to any large degree. You just lack the hormones that are required to be able to do so.

g'em

Cl&#225 wrote: »

I would not go near those protein drinks or shakes I just rather stick to food tbh.

they aren't evil!!! shakes are just a way to supplement the diet with needed protein. and you won't bulk up if you eat healthily and train hard, even if you *gasp* lift heavy weights. Which btw is what you need to do to add 'defintion' along with losing the layers of fat covering the muscle up. Bulking up with lean muscle is a lot harder than getting fat, and its something women can't do as our testosterone levels are 10 times less than a mans.

Get your protein from lean white meats like chicken and turkey, fish, dairy, nuts, eggs.

yomchi

g'em wrote:

they aren't evil!!! shakes are just a way to supplement the diet with needed protein. and you won't bulk up if you eat healthily and train hard, even if you *gasp* lift heavy weights. Which btw is what you need to do to add 'defintion' along with losing the layers of fat covering the muscle up. Bulking up with lean muscle is a lot harder than getting fat, and its something women can't do as our testosterone levels are 10 times less than a mans.

Get your protein from lean white meats like chicken and turkey, fish, dairy, nuts, eggs.

They are EEEEEVVIIIILLLLLLL i tell you!!!! Them protein shakes are just for wrestlers!

Im kidding, supplements are always the best way after training to get exactly what your body needs. Which is fast acting carbs like dextrose/fructose and good whey protein. Steer clear of fats or oils directly after training as they will slow doen the absorbtion rate of the other 2 key macro nutrients.

TripleX (xxx) is a great new product for your complete after workout supplement

DubNside

Dont think there are many women out there who want to build a substantial amount of muscle?

I think most women just want to tone up/loose weight, so would not need to even think about additional food supplements.

Maybe im wrong?

Dragan

DubNside wrote:

Dont think there are many women out there who want to build a substantial amount of muscle?

I think most women just want to tone up/loose weight, so would not need to even think about additional food supplements.

Maybe im wrong?

Indeed, taking a whey shake and some creatine will cause ladies to look like She Hulk. :rolleyes:

Come on dude, girls need exactly the same nutrients as blokes do throughout the day, and need the same things after a workout.

Angelina Jolie eats high protein meals six times a day and we all know she is massive. Jessica Biel was using Muscle Milk and Sci Vation creatine while she was training for Blade and we all know she is huge.

The defining factor is female size vs male size is test and muscle fibre types. Plain and simple.

Besides, there is a lot more to gaining size than just taking supplements. At the end of the day, be you male or female, the numbers of overall calories you eat a day will ALWAYS be the controlling factor of your size.

g'em

DubNside wrote:

Dont think there are many women out there who want to build a substantial amount of muscle?

I think most women just want to tone up/loose weight, so would not need to even think about additional food supplements.

Maybe im wrong?

Well you're not wrong in the sense that the majority of women don't want to 'get big' (which ladies, is NOT going to happen from weight training.. there's uh, a little more hormonal manipulation involved with the big female bodybuilders you see).

But 'additional food supplements' are just as applicable to women who want to lose weight as those who want more muscle mass. A girls' muscles grow and repair themselves the exact sameway as a guys' do, just not to the same size. Whey and whey based products are very often used for slimming aids and meal replacers. Taking whey protein doesn not magically make your muscles big. In fact whey is just the serum or watery part of milk that is separated from the curd in making cheese, and it gets dried, flavoured and stored in big tubs to make it easier for athletes to consume.

A woman who incorporates a good solid weight training program in her wworkouts could likely benefit from supplementing with whey, if her normal diet isn't protein rich enough to allow her body to repair itself post-training.

Transform

Clar lay out your training program - weight lifted, exercises, reps, sets etc

Your weight height age, typical diet

All else is guess work until you provide this

Clár

Transform basically i am;

5'3 105 lbs and 23 years of age. I am essential "underweight" on paper but i dont look like i am im just toned looking.

I train 3-4 times a week and do 10 mins on bike as a warm up, 30 mins on Crosstrainer and then 5-10 mins on the stepper. Then i do mainly fixed weights like the back extension, chest press, abdominal cruncher, internal and external leg weight thingy and then 5 kilo free weights for my arms. I do 3 sets of 15 reps of all of the above.

My diet consists (on my gym day)

Breakfast: Porridge

Mid Morning: Fruit

Lunch: Pitta/wholemeal bread stuffed with salad and cheese or meat.
or Tuna Salad and 3 ryvitas

Mid afternoon snack: banana

Dinner: Omlette filled with meat and veg or
A hearty dinner (made my Daddy) if i get home early. And i eat a yogurt every nite as a snack.

As i said in my first post i dont eat too much after the gym as i just want my bed early. I eat a lot the day after the gym and would eat a bigger hearty dinner. I dont really eat nuts as i dont know when to stop eating them, i have a bit of a problem with portion control.

I eat red meat twice a week, and chicken stir frys or meat and veg with rice or potatoes.