What should I eat after a workout?

A typical morning, when I manage to work in a run, looks like this:

Get out of bed early enough to give myself some quiet wake-up time before the family rises. Immediately get coffee started. Turn on my tablet to read news, emails, facebook, and my favorite running blog to get my mind in a state of motivation. Pour giant cup of coffee and enjoy limited precious minutes of me time. Once caffeine has lifted the fog from my brain and body, reluctantly peel myself off the couch and throw on running attire to hit the road for about 30 minutes or as long as my morning schedule will permit. Come home feeling so glad I made the effort but wishing I had time to go longer. As husband and stepson are getting ready for school/work wake up my 15-month-old, get him ready for day care, feed him Cheerios and milk, and stretch out leg muscles while he’s in the high chair and dog vies for my attention. Wipe down baby’s face and hands, put on shoes/coat, pass him off to husband as he and stepson are hurrying out the door and send love and goodbyes and have-a-good-days their direction, jump in the shower, get ready, run out the door with more coffee in hand…

And forget to eat anything, so that by mid-morning I am ready to eat my arm. Oops.

“The post-workout meal is different from any other meal you eat throughout your day because what you consume after working out plays a huge role in whether you meet your goals or not,” said Derek Mendoza, athletic supervisor at Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Hurst-Euless-Bedford. “In short, good post-workout nutrition can help to increase muscle size, refill energy stores, and repair any damage caused during the workout. So, without it, you could potentially workout intensely every day and still not meet your goals.”

If 100 people were asked what is needed after a workout, Mendoza said, the vast majority of them would say protein. While this answer isn’t wrong, it is not completely correct either. Working out is a process of damaging and tearing down muscle tissue. Because of this, repair is required in the short term to ultimately make the body stronger, leaner and more muscular. During intense training sessions, stored carbohydrates are depleted as well. So, a good balance of protein and carbohydrates is needed for the process of repair to take place.

Mendoza recommends consuming post-workout carbohydrates and protein in a liquid form at a 2:1 ratio within the first 45 minutes after a workout is ideal to maximizing the body’s absorption rate – such as a liquid shake that contains 20 grams of protein and 40 grams of carbohydrates. He said liquid shakes are ideal because whole foods take longer to digest and to achieve the goal of nourishing the muscles immediately after a workout. You should, however, eat a normal whole food meal within two hours of consuming your liquid shake.

If you have fitness or athletic goals that you want to accomplish, Mendoza said, start incorporating better post workout nutrition to help you reach your goals at a much safer and faster pace.

Need some smoothie recipe ideas? Amber Massey, dietitian for the Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Fort Worth Executive Health program, offers the following suggestions:

350-400 Calorie Smoothie Recipes
Add ice and water to desired consistency.
Add spinach to any recipe to make it a Mean Green Smoothie!

½ scoop whey protein
1 (6oz) light yogurt
½ cup berries
2 tsp. milled flaxseed OR safflower oil
  
½ scoop whey protein
1 (6oz) light yogurt
½ cup berries
1 Tbs. honey
2 Tbs. dry whole oats
2 tsp. milled flaxseed
  
1 cup skim or low-fat milk
1 banana
1 Tbsp peanut butter
½ scoop whey protein

1 ½ cups skim or low-fat milk
½ banana
½ cup mixed fruit
½ scoop whey protein
1 tsp flaxseed oil
  
1 ½ cups skim or low-fat milk
½ banana
½ cup blueberries
½ cup strawberries
½ scoop whey protein
1 tsp flaxseed oil 

1 ½ cups skim or low fat milk
½ banana
½ cup blueberries
¼ cup dry whole oats
½ scoop whey protein

My goal = EAT BREAKFAST, so maybe I could switch out that to-go coffee with a to-go smoothie and my whole day will go smoother. And if I can get faster and as a result fit more running into my 30-minute window, that’s even better!

Megan Brooks is a Sr. Public Relations Specialist for Texas Health Resources and running Mama/Stepmom of two boys.