Eating like this after exercise won't make you fat ~ Principles of nutritional supplementation after exercise

I once had a case where a 37-year-old wanted to lose weight. She was very serious about controlling her diet and doing weight training three times a week. She was the most serious exerciser I had ever met, and she maintained this routine for three years, but her body fat was still too high and her muscle mass had not increased. The answer was immediately clear after the question. She wanted to lose weight, so she didn't dare to eat after exercise, for fear that all the previous exercise would be in vain. But this is actually a completely wrong idea.

After exercise, as long as you eat within the golden 30 minutes, it is actually not easy to gain weight. When we exercise, muscle contraction requires energy, which increases the activity of the glucose transporter GLUT4, allowing muscle cells to obtain glucose as an energy source more quickly. You can think of GLUT4 as the gateway for energy (glucose) to enter the muscles. After 30 minutes of stopping exercise, the GLUT4 activity of muscle cells began to decrease (as shown in the figure below), and decreased rapidly after 45 minutes of stopping exercise.

(Image source: Performance Nutrition)

What does this mean? That is, when you eat within 30 minutes after exercise, most of the calories will enter the muscle cells to be used, and no excess calories will be converted into fat and stored, so it is not easy to gain weight. But on the contrary, if you wait too long before eating after exercise, the activity of GLUT4 will decrease, making it difficult for these calories to enter the muscle cells. Any remaining unconsumed calories will be converted into fat and stored, which will make you fat.

In a 2006 study by Cribb & Hayes, the group that supplemented with protein and carbohydrates before and immediately after exercise increased muscle mass and reduced body fat percentage compared to the group that ate in the morning and evening, while the group that ate in the morning and evening did not reduce body fat percentage. This means that the timing of eating before and after exercise is crucial.

(Note 1: Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2006(11):1918-25)

Golden principles of post-exercise diet

1. Golden replenishment time: within 30 minutes after exercise.

2. Golden supplement ratio: The best supplement ratio after aerobic exercise is "carbohydrate: protein = 3~4:1". If it is strength training, it can be adjusted to "carbohydrate: protein = 2~3:1".

It is advisable to choose high GI carbohydrates after exercise

Many people drink high-protein drinks after exercise, especially those who do weight training. However, if you only supplement protein after exercise, the muscle-building effect is not very good, because muscle synthesis requires the help of "insulin". If you want insulin to be secreted faster, you must consume high-glycemic index (GI) carbohydrates (for example, bananas, sugary drinks) to promote muscle growth.

A few years ago, I taught a class for a group of trainers from a chain gym. During the class, I talked about the importance of replenishing enough carbohydrates after exercise. At that time, a senior coach (instructor) strongly disagreed, thinking that eating so many carbohydrates would make people fat. A year later, I was invited to teach classes for more than 100 fitness coaches in other units. This group of coaches chose to believe and experience it for themselves. After 6 weeks, a coach said to me in surprise: "I never thought that I could eat so many carbohydrates after exercise. After 6 weeks, not only did my body fat decrease, but my muscles also increased by 1.9 kg. This speed of muscle gain scared me." I also specifically asked him if the amount of training during these 6 weeks had increased. He said no, it was the same as before, but the muscle growth rate was not so fast before. Therefore, please do not insist on only taking high-protein food after exercise. Combining it with sufficient carbohydrates can help you increase your muscle mass and save money (protein food is more expensive).

In addition, another purpose of consuming high GI carbohydrates after exercise is to replenish glycogen in the muscles. Eating the right foods after exercise to replenish glycogen can accelerate physical recovery and shorten the time of fatigue after exercise, which is very important for people or athletes who have regular exercise habits.

Post-exercise dietary supplement example

1.50~60 kg

• (1) 450ml sugary soy milk + 1 banana

• (2) 400ml sweetened soy milk + 1 medium sweet potato

2.60~70 kg

• (1) 450ml sugary soy milk + 1 rice ball

• (2) Grilled Chicken Burger + 200ml Juice

3.70~80 kg

• (1) 500ml sugar-sweetened yogurt + 1 tea egg + 1 banana

• (2) 6-inch submarine burger + 300ml juice

Tips from Donna, a nutritionist

With the popularity of exercise, more and more people hope to pursue "gain muscle and reduce fat". Exercise can indeed achieve some effects, but if it is not accompanied by dietary supplements, the effectiveness will be discounted. When supplementing your diet after exercise, keep in mind the "golden time" and "golden ratio" to make your exercise more effective. However, the concept of post-exercise nutritional supplementation mentioned above may not be suitable for everyone. After all, everyone’s exercise purpose, content, time, intensity, etc. are different, and the same method cannot be applied to everyone. Therefore, if you want to sculpt your body more accurately, or have special exercise purposes, it is recommended that you find a nutritionist who specializes in sports nutrition to help you plan your diet!

This article comes from: Donna Nutritionist Chen Yichun's blog

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