To relieve fatigue and grow muscles after exercise, try "sugar-containing" soy milk for better results

Many people have the habit of drinking soy milk after exercising or working out, hoping to accelerate muscle growth through protein supplementation. Many people even insist on drinking "sugar-free" soy milk to be healthier! However, sports nutritionists remind us that building muscle is like building a house. Although unsweetened soy milk contains the building materials "protein", it lacks the "carbohydrates" that do the actual work. It is recommended to drink some "sugar-containing" soy milk in moderation, which may be more effective in building muscle and reducing fatigue!

In recent years, fitness has become popular, and many people want to turn their loose fat into firm muscles and pursue a well-proportioned and strong body. In addition to regular training, post-exercise diet is also key. However, how should we eat and drink to make it really effective?

Carbohydrates + protein are essential nutrients for muscle growth

In order to increase muscle, weight training is usually performed. Weight training is an exercise that requires rapid force application in a short period of time. The energy consumed is mainly the "glycogen" (a type of carbohydrate) in the muscles. Therefore, after exercise, it is important to replenish carbohydrates and protein needed for muscle growth.

Sports nutritionist Yang Zhexiong recommends that after exercise, you can eat some root vegetables with a higher GI value (toast, rice, yam, potato, etc.) or fruit foods to supplement carbohydrates, and supplement protein through various bean products (soy milk, tofu, tofu pudding, etc.), meat, eggs, milk, etc. Right after exercise, muscles are most likely to absorb nutrients and synthesize muscle. Replenishing nutrients as soon as possible after exercise will be more effective.

Muscle-building diet revealed: choosing soy milk with sugar is more ideal

As for the amount of supplements, it will vary according to each person's weight and training intensity. The following is a relatively simple reference combination. You may as well choose one that is the type of food you like!

Combination 1: Sugary soy milk or chocolate milk

Both drinks contain carbohydrates and protein, and the human body absorbs liquids quickly, so they can quickly replenish the energy and water lost after exercise. It is important to note that if the goal of exercise is to increase muscle, nutritionist Yang Zhexiong recommends that drinking "sweetened" soy milk is better than sugar-free soy milk.

Although unsweetened soy milk is rich in protein, which can help muscle growth, it does not contain enough carbohydrates to induce insulin secretion. Insulin is a synthetic hormone in the body that promotes muscle repair and generation. Therefore, protein alone is not enough to grow muscles, but also a moderate amount of carbohydrates is needed.

In addition, as mentioned earlier, weight training consumes the carbohydrate "glycogen" in the muscles, which is difficult to fully replenish with sugar-free soy milk. When the body lacks glycogen, it is easy to feel tired, so drinking only sugar-free soy milk will be slightly less effective in reducing fatigue.

Especially for people who exercise every day or a lot, drinking only unsweetened soy milk after each exercise may not be able to effectively recover from fatigue. It is recommended to drink sugary soy milk and a banana.

If you don’t like soy milk, what other food combinations can you choose? The next page will tell you!

Combination 2: Fresh Fruit + Yogurt

Fruits are rich in carbohydrates and yogurt contains protein. The combination of the two has a sweet and sour taste, which is very suitable for rewarding yourself and replenishing nutrition after exercise. It is important to note that you should try to choose natural and fresh fruits, which are healthier. In addition, remember to drink extra water after eating fruit yogurt.

Combination 3: Steamed Egg + Pure Fruit Juice

Nutritionist Yang Zhexiong suggests that people who like to eat hot food may try a bowl of hot chawanmushi, which contains rich protein from eggs, while the carbohydrate part can be supplemented with a 300cc glass of 100% pure fruit juice.

Nutritional supplementation golden ratio for beginners to increase protein

Generally speaking, the ratio of nutritional supplements after exercise is approximately carbohydrate: protein = 3:1 to 4:1. If you have already drunk a 500cc cup of sugary soy milk, you can eat a banana, or two fist-sized pieces of fruit, or a slice of toast with natural jam.

Nutritionist Yang Zhexiong said that the muscles of beginners will have a slightly poorer ability to absorb nutrients and promote muscle growth during the process of "unstimulated" to "stimulated". Therefore, in the first two weeks of training, you can supplement a little more protein after exercise (the above meal combination plus 1 tea egg) to make up for the poor nutrient conversion.

Take advantage of the 2 hours after exercise to replenish nutrition for beginners

In addition to choosing the right diet, beginners must also pay special attention to the timing of intake. After exercise, the muscle nutrient delivery channel is like a gate that has just been opened, which is when nutrient absorption is best. But after about 2 hours, this gate will gradually close, and the effect of nutritional supplementation will be greatly reduced. Therefore, for beginners, it is best to replenish nutrition immediately after exercise to better help muscle growth.

Advanced people can gain better muscle by supplementing protein in batches

As for advanced people who have been exercising for a long time and have received training for a period of time, the diet is somewhat different from that of beginners. Nutritionist Yang Zhexiong said that in terms of timing, the sooner you replenish after exercise, the better. However, it is recommended to replenish 20 to 30 grams of protein 2 hours later (you can choose one of the aforementioned dietary combinations) to stimulate muscle growth again and achieve better muscle-building effects!

In addition, advanced athletes should avoid supplementing a large amount of protein at one time after exercise, because the body's absorption and utilization of protein within a fixed time is limited, so multiple supplements every 2 hours are more appropriate.

In addition to natural protein foods, can I take additional high-protein nutritional supplements?

To grow muscles, it is not only protein and carbohydrates that are essential

Generally speaking, most fitness and sports people have supplemented sufficient protein, but often ignore the importance of carbohydrates. Although consuming large amounts of protein can increase muscle, the effect is not optimal. Nutritionist Yang Zhexiong pointed out that if the growth of muscles in the body is likened to building a building, eating only protein is like having sufficient building materials on the construction site, but lacking enough workers to move the materials and build the walls. The efficiency of building the building will naturally be lower.

Natural food supplements nutrition, builds muscle and takes care of health

On the other hand, some people have the habit of supplementing with high-protein nutritional supplements. Although it helps to quickly achieve the goal of muscle gain, don’t forget to use more natural foods to supplement the required nutrients, so that you can also absorb the vitamins, minerals and other trace nutrients needed by the human body on a daily basis, so that you can grow muscles and take care of your health!