Nutrient
timing means eating specific nutrients (carbs, fats, and proteins) in specific
amounts at specific times (normally before, during, or after exercise).
Having proper nutrient timing will enhance athletic performance, competition,
and daily life expectations. Having the right timing will help your body use
the food that you eat as fuel instead of turning it into fat.
When exercising a great starting point is to eat most of your daily carbs and
proteins before and after exercise and NO FAT. Eating fats before and/or after
your workout will slow down the digestion of the fuel you put in your body.
This means that our body will not get the fuel that it needs in time to either
fuel or recover for exercise.
What should I eat and when?
This all depends on when you workout. If you’re an early riser/exerciser, eat something small like a banana or half the servings of 1st Phorm’s Ignition and 1st Phorm’s Phormula-1. If you are a macro guy/gal, 25 grams of carbs and 25 grams of protein for breakfast. Then, eat more carbs during your dinner (the night before early exercise) and during that day’s lunch.
If you workout out in the evening, you may benefit from a higher fat and protein breakfast. Then, you would eat mostly carbs and protein at lunch and dinner. For you evening warriors, don’t eat a giant meal an hour before your workout and not expect to see it again. Keep your pre-workout snack small and compacted full of carbs and protein.
How soon should I eat after exercise?
This brings us to a term the metabolic window. Often referred to as the “window of gainz”. There’s no hard and clear threshold for when the opportunity to re-feed passes, but typically, you should have a carbohydrate and protein-rich meal down within 30-60 minutes of your final repetition of the day. Eating that meal right away maximizes the number of carbohydrates stored in the muscles as glycogen, instead of fat. This is when your insulin sensitivity and capacity for proper carb utilization and storage are at their highest. During this window, proper nutrition will shift our body from a catabolic state to an anabolic state increasing muscle mass and improving recovery.
How much should I eat after working out?
After working out, we need to have both carbohydrates and proteins. Without carbs post workout, our body will break down the protein as energy instead of using it to rebuild our muscles. A good post workout shake would consist of about 25 grams of carbs and 25 grams of protein. For us, this looks like ½ a scoop of 1st Phorm Ignition (carbs) and 1 scoop of 1st Phorm Phormula-1 (protein).
Eating the right food before and after a workout is very important. However,
what you eat the rest of the day plays a huge role in what your body uses as
fuel. If you have any questions about how to get your nutrition back on track,
ask any of the coaches at the gym. We are here to help!