Will eating after exercise make you fat? Nutritionist busts myths

I recently shared a course on sports nutrition with some athletes. When I was explaining to the students how to replenish nutrition before, during and after exercise to make the body more obedient and stronger, one student asked this question: Will I gain weight if I eat within an hour after exercise?

Would you do the same as an athlete who is sweating profusely, wearing a vest and shorts and has just finished a half marathon, eating pizza and drinking Coke?

Eat high-sugar + protein wisely after exercise

Maybe you think that you will get fat if you eat like this! In fact, the answer is not necessarily, because whether it is before or after exercise, excessive calorie intake may lead to increased fat synthesis and storage in the body, causing obesity. Please be sure to remember what I said: one hour after exercise, you should pay special attention to the "type" and "amount" of food you consume.

A large amount of glycogen in the muscles is consumed during exercise, and glycogen is the fastest and most direct source of energy for the muscles. Therefore, the first priority after exercise is to replenish the consumed glycogen so that the muscles can return to a full state of strength.

In general, the foods recommended for consumption 1 to 2 hours after exercise can be roughly divided into two types:

1. High-sugar foods:

Foods whose main ingredients are carbohydrates, and high GI is preferred at this time. Such carbohydrate foods are easily digested, absorbed and utilized by the human body, can quickly replenish glycogen, and are very helpful for muscle repair after exercise, such as white rice, pasta, potatoes, yam, taro, etc.

2. Adequate protein:

During exercise, as the intensity increases, muscle damage will become more severe. Therefore, in addition to replenishing glycogen after exercise, you must also have appropriate protein intake to repair and build muscles. It is recommended to consume protein sources with low fat content, such as soy products, soy milk, fresh oysters, boiled eggs, etc.

Diet depends on exercise time and intensity. Record calories every day.

So how much "portion" should we eat? In fact, this depends on your exercise time and intensity. Everyone's body shape and condition are different, so they should have a customized and personalized menu. However, basically, you can control your daily calorie intake to the target calorie calculated according to your body position data. You don't have to deliberately limit how many calories you must consume after exercise.

How to control the calorie intake throughout the day? It is very important to keep a food record. Eating is the most important thing. Only by "recording" can you know what food you eat every day and how much calories it contains. So friends who care about their health, start to pay attention to the food you eat from now on!