After training nutrition

FayloD

Hi all,

I am in a bit of a catch 22 at the moment.. I play basketball twice a week but we play quite late and by the time I get home and showered it's at least 11pm. I'm up early for work so don't usually eat anything when I get home (just water and sleep, when I've cooled down properly) but my body finds the next morning quite difficult as I'm completely drained. Any suggestion on what would be good to eat/drink that won't keep me awake? I know it's not great to train so late at night and it's also not great to eat so close to going to bed but need to try something.

Cheers

Protein Shakes would be ideal. Or a tin of tuna, not much calories, plenty of protein.

You could also do with a small portion of carbs to aid in recovery (taken with the protein). A small apple with a tin of tuna. Or a banana with your protein shake (if that's the route you're after).

Some lean protein (Chicken, Turkey, Tuna) with a light dose of carbs directly after training wont keep you up late, and should help you recover.

shikaakwa312

You need to eat after a workout. Thats when your body burns the most calories during the day and your muscles need to be replenished. You are diminishing the effectiveness of a workout if you dont eat within 30 minutes after training. I would go with dairy, like greek yogurt, because it high in protein, fat ,and sugar and contains tryptophan- the amino acid associated with aiding sleep. I truly think it helps with sleep b/c I found out it had tryptophan only after it had noticeably aided my rest. I always eat a dairy protein at night and have absolutely no problem sleeping but obviously everyone is different. To be honest a Mcdonalds cheeseburger would be better to eat after playing than nothing, I dont recommend it but you need to eat something afterwords. Preferably high in protein, low in carbs, with a moderate amount of fat.

runawaybishop

shikaakwa312 wrote: »

You are diminishing the effectiveness of a workout if you dont eat within 30 minutes after training.

Not really, not enough for it to be noticeable.

FayloD wrote: »

it's also not great to eat so close to going to bed but need to try something.

Its fine to eat before bed.

shikaakwa312

http://caloriecount.about.com/must-eat-within-minutes-exercising-q11036

It will definitely be noticeable- that is why he doesnt feel good in the morning. If you wait until the next morning you have already passed the window, hence the reason you feel awful in the morning. It isnt life or death 30 minutes but you need to eat asap post workout. Dont take my advice for it- google it.

runawaybishop

shikaakwa312 wrote: »

http://caloriecount.about.com/must-eat-within-minutes-exercising-q11036

It will definitely be noticeable- that is why he doesnt feel good in the morning. If you wait until the next morning you have already passed the window, hence the reason you feel awful in the morning. It isnt life or death 30 minutes but you need to eat asap post workout. Dont take my advice for it- google it.

Your body doesn't just shut down after 30 minutes nor will you have 0 in your system in the first place. The elevated levels you linked to can extend up to 2 hours btw, depending on your exercise. Sure, you will restock faster but he's goign to bed then - the timing isnt so important.

shikaakwa312

So now eating before bed is an issue? Before you said it wasnt, but now it matters. Well your first answer was right it doesnt. I never said the human body shuts down or that you have 0 in the tank without food before hand- but thanks for putting word in my mouth. Alls i said was is that you will have more health benefits and feel better about your training if you have the energy before hand and the recovery afterwords(asap). They dont last to 2 hours- it is 1 hour max. The sooner the better.

Im a triathlete and former college soccer player and have been to various nutritional clinics and i have never heard someone argue that the benefits of eating soon after a workout arent noticeable.

FayloD

Thanks lads.

I'm normally good for eating after a workout. If I go for a run during the day or the odd time I get to the gym I eat a decent meal within the hour but it's just difficult because going to bed so soon after training.

shikaakwa312 I should have mentioned that I'm lactose intolerant so yogurt isn't going to do me much favours. Also, I would agree that eating anything at all would be better than nothing, especially as I fell so rough the next morning.

Think I'll start cooking some extra food at dinner time and save it until after training, whether it's chicken/beef/fish and some rice/potato/etc. With a bit of trial and error I'll figure out how much to have.

runawaybishop

shikaakwa312 wrote: »

So now eating before bed is an issue? Before you said it wasnt, but now it matters. Well your first answer was right it doesnt. I never said the human body shuts down or that you have 0 in the tank without food before hand- but thanks for putting word in my mouth. Alls i said was is that you will have more health benefits and feel better about your training if you have the energy before hand and the recovery afterwords(asap). They dont last to 2 hours- it is 1 hour max. The sooner the better.

Im a triathlete and former college soccer player and have been to various nutritional clinics and i have never heard someone argue that the benefits of eating soon after a workout arent noticeable.

I didn't say eating before bed was an issue, you are misunderstanding me.

Its not essential to eat within 30 mins after working out - it really doesn't make much of a difference for several reasons that are pertinent to the ops situation.

shikaakwa312

Turkey also has tryptophan and it is widely seen as the best protein in terms of overall health. Maybe try that, but i think you have the right idea with trial and error. Good luck.

FayloD

Thanks, and thanks runawaybishop the info all helped.

runawaybishop

No problem, just eat something decent if you can before bed. Don't worry about eating within X timeframe, or eating turkey to help you sleep (it doesnt).