When you're on a diet: should you eat after an evening workout? Is it possible to exercise at night? What to eat after training at night.
For many evening workouts very comfortable. Some people can't find time to physical activity during the day because of work, while others simply prefer to study at a time when there are few people in the gym - late in the evening. Of great importance for success in sports is not only working in the gym with maximum efficiency, but also correct selection diet.
You need to know what to eat after an evening workout and be careful about the foods you eat after an evening workout to get maximum results.
General principles
The correct approach to nutrition suggests that the main meals should be taken in the first half of the day. In this case, the products contained nutrients are assimilated in the best possible way, and the likelihood of their transformation into excess fat reserves is minimized.
But if you train in the evening, you should deviate a little from these recommendations. A nutritious dinner, which will provide the body with the nutrients necessary for its recovery, is a prerequisite for effective training.
Some may think that in order to maximize the fat burning process, they should greatly limit the amount of food they eat, but this is the wrong approach. If you expose your body to such stress, it may begin to intensively accumulate fat reserves, and your weight, despite a meager diet, will remain the same. Dinner is necessary, but it is important to understand what you can eat after training in the evening, be careful about your food choices, and refrain from overeating.
To ensure the maximum effect from your workouts - quickly burning fat or building muscle mass - it is worth using a calculator to calculate the number of calories you should consume during the day. The evening diet must be selected in such a way as to comply with this norm. In such a case, dinner will only be beneficial.
Eating immediately after training
Immediately after finishing sports, you need to take quickly digestible protein and simple carbohydrates. For this purpose, you can drink a so-called post-workout cocktail. There are different options this type of sports nutrition, which usually includes:
- protein;
- creatine;
- glutamine;
- dextrose and other components.
You can add a banana to your post-workout shake - this fruit is a valuable source of easily digestible carbohydrates, which are necessary to fuel the body with energy and will contribute to better absorption of protein by muscles.
Evening meal
After you come home from the gym, you should have a full dinner. In this case, preference should be given to protein-carbohydrate foods. In the evening after training you can eat:
- lean meat, fish;
- eggs, cottage cheese;
- buckwheat or rice porridge;
- vegetable salad.
Dinner can be supplemented with a protein shake made with milk, kefir or water. The evening diet must contain complex carbohydrates, which take a long time to digest, because the next meal will be only after 6-7 or more hours. You can also eat fast carbohydrates after an evening workout.
Thus, you should not go hungry after exercise, but you should also avoid overeating. Carefully choose the products that make up your dinner. Then the muscles will receive the necessary nutrition and will be able to recover, while eating after a late workout will not lead to the formation of excess fat. Thanks to proper diet, an important part of which is dinner, you will be able to exercise with maximum efficiency and get good results from the training.
Many people prefer to train in late time days. The reasons may be different, some cannot conduct classes until 22.00 in the evening because of work, others simply like to study alone, since the hall is almost empty and they can fully concentrate on work and not be distracted by anything. Fitness centers that are open 24 hours a day give night workout enthusiasts the opportunity to get a good workout in. Imagine having all the exercise equipment at your disposal. In any case, the conversation will not be about the training itself, but about nutrition after a late evening workout.
What to eat after late classes in the gym? This question interests many people, especially those who want to lose weight, but for the above reasons, cannot or do not want to train in a gym with the main stream of people. The thing is that nutrition after an evening workout is radically different from standard concepts. Many popular publications say that in the evening you need to reduce the amount of food consumed, reduce the amount of carbohydrates, and so on. This is all done in order to reduce the percentage subcutaneous fat in the body. However, if you exercise late, none of these nutritional principles apply. After any workout, whether it ends late or in the middle of the day, you still need to eat and replenish the energy reserves in your muscles. Our body simply needs nutrients, vitamins, minerals for recovery processes. So eating late at night changes dramatically.
SPORTS SUPPLEMENTS
If you use sports nutrition, you can make a post-workout shake, which should include: protein, dextrose, glutamine, creatine. You can also take 1-2 bananas to eat after a protein shake to replenish the supply of fast carbohydrates, so that all the nutrients get to their destination in an accelerated manner. The shake itself should contain approximately 30-40 grams of protein, 3-5 grams of creatine, 5-10 grams of dextrose and 3-5 grams of glutamine.
I think I'll explain what it is protein, you don't need to. Dextrose is glucose that is found in many juices, including grape juice. Due to the complex pharmacodynamic stage, that is, the transport of creatine from plasma to muscle tissue, it must be thoroughly mixed and taken with glucose. At this stage, almost all of the supplement taken is wasted, and some substances, such as dextrose, help transport creatine into muscle cells, with almost no loss. The most effective component in transporting this substance is insulin. This is a natural peptide hormone, of natural origin, which is formed in the pancreas and directly affects metabolism throughout the body; also, its main task is to reduce glucose in human blood. If anyone knows, diabetics are prescribed insulin to lower their blood sugar levels. Accordingly, as you can understand, the more glucose, the more insulin is released into the blood to lower sugar levels. Everything is extremely interconnected. Also, insulin has an anabolic effect, causing muscle tissue to absorb all nutrients, improving the process of recovery and muscle mass building. To provoke the release of insulin into a person’s blood, you can consume fast carbohydrates in an amount of 10 to 20 grams. You can use pomegranate or grape juice as a source of simple coals. When I forget to buy juice, I just take it and add it to the water along with creatine regular sugar, quite a good effect.
Glutamine is a fairly well-known essential amino acid that is part of protein, that is, protein. It is very important for our body, it promotes anabolic processes, that is, the growth of muscle tissue. Also, glutamine improves the human immune system. This amino acid is very important for recovery, since half of our muscles consist of this conditionally essential amino acid. This once again emphasizes the importance of this sports supplement in bodybuilding. In addition, glutamine is the same source of energy as glucose.
Creatine is a sports supplement that increases the anabolic effect and promotes the growth of muscle tissue. The main function of the supplement is that it retains water in the body, which helps to increase the athlete’s strength, has a positive effect on recovery, increases a person’s endurance, and so on. In general, in terms of function, this nitrogen-containing carboxylic acid is somewhat similar to steroids, in particular to such a well-known drug in the world of bodybuilding as methane. You can read more about this supplement here, but we move on.
FOOD AFTER LATE WORKOUT
We've sorted out sports nutrition. Now, as for the main meal. Nutrition after a late workout should include two stages:
- Eating immediately after training
- Meals for the night
We have dealt with the first point, however, if you do not use sports supplements or do not have them on hand, of course, the first stage can be accomplished using natural food. After the training, you definitely need to replenish your energy balance, in order to do this, you need to consume a sufficient amount of proteins and carbohydrates. As for coals, the base must necessarily be fast carbohydrates so that the recovery process occurs faster. For example, if you are gaining muscle mass, then the percentage of protein and carbohydrates should be 30/70, but if you want to lose weight, you need to increase the amount of protein and reduce the amount of carbohydrates. It looks something like this – 70/30. This applies to the first meal, immediately after training.
Now let's talk about eating before bed. In our case, we need to increase the amount of proteins and reduce the percentage of carbohydrates. By the way, if in the first meal we used fast carbohydrates, now we will need slow or complex carbohydrates that act over a long period of time, which is exactly what we need, since you will be able to take the next meal only after 6 days. 9 o'clock. Of course, during sleep the body slows down all its processes, but restoration work still continues, and in order to provide the body with nutrients for recovery, you need to eat and replenish your supply with slow-acting carbohydrates and proteins. Moreover, this applies to absolutely all people, regardless of whether you are gaining weight or losing weight.
You can also dilute your diet with not only slow, but also fast coals. Your dinner should look something like this: the amount of protein should be higher, and carbohydrates should be about 1/3 of the total diet. As I already said, you can consume both fast and slow coals, their percentage should be approximately 50/50.
Here you go sample menu, which you can use. You can supplement it a little with a complex of vitamins, which are sold in any pharmacy.
First meal:
- You can make an egg cocktail, namely: mix 5-6 eggs in a blender along with a banana. If desired, you can add 100 grams of low-fat cottage cheese to the cocktail.
Second meal (before bed):
- Buckwheat porridge or rice with boiled chicken and salad for better absorption.
- You can also make a protein shake by mixing it with milk. In addition, the protein can be mixed with kefir, if there is no milk, or with water.
There can be a lot of options for late meals. The main thing is to stick to the percentage of protein and carbohydrates, and also consume the right nutrients, with a slow or fast glycemic index.
Very important point is to comply with the required amount of calories taken per day. If you don't know what your caloric intake should be daily ration when losing weight or gaining muscle mass, you can use the calculator from our website here. It will calculate the exact number of calories you need to burn excess fat or, conversely, gain muscle mass. If you don't want either one or the other, you can choose a criterion that will calculate the required number of calories to simply maintain physical fitness.
Everything works like this, for example, you entered the criteria into the calculator that you want to gain weight, it gave you the number 2800 Kcal. This is how much you need to consume per day to start gaining muscle mass. Depending on how often you eat, there will be a distribution of calories per serving. For example, you eat 4 times a day, divide 2800 by 4 and get 700 Kcal. One serving of food should contain exactly the same number of calories. Let's say you've already eaten 3 times and have dinner left, that is, you still need to consume about 700 calories. That's all, good luck to you!
Most people who want to reset overweight worried about what to eat after an evening workout. Both men and girls are puzzled by this question.
It seems like our muscles need restoration, and if we need to lose weight, maybe we should fast?
Below we have presented compelling arguments on the topic of post-workout nutrition.
How to eat during the day to lose weight:
1. Eat small meals, four to five times a day, in small portions at intervals of three hours.
2. Two to three hours before, the last full meal with a small amount of fat is possible. The maximum serving weight is 400–500 g.
3. If there is less than an hour and a half left before training (but not less than 40 minutes), and you really want to eat, choose liquid, soft (mashed) food with a minimum amount of fat. Maximum serving weight is 300 g.
4. When there are less than 40 minutes left before training, you can only drink - water, infusions of herbs, rose hips.
5. Watch your fluid intake, especially if you exercise. You need to drink 1.5–2 liters of clean water per day. Water in the body affects many metabolic processes, including helping us lose weight by removing harmful substances. Do not replace water with tea, coffee, juices. Moreover, for every cup of coffee or tea you will have to add a cup of water to your diet.
What is better to eat for dinner to avoid gaining excess weight:
Within 40 minutes after training, you can consume juices containing a minimum of carbohydrates (for example, grapefruit, tomato juices, but it is better not freshly squeezed, as they stimulate the appetite and it will be difficult for you to control yourself).
If you are thinking about it, then you need to do the following after training: we advise you to eat an hour after training, but not everything in a row, but only raw vegetables or salads without dressing. Serving weight: no more than 170–250 g.
Chew your vegetables thoroughly to avoid overstraining your digestive organs and reducing blood flow to your muscles. The exception is breakfast after a morning workout on an empty stomach - then you can eat almost immediately. Cereals, such as water-based oatmeal, are best. To prevent it from becoming boring, add pieces of fruit, dried fruits, seeds, and nuts.
what to eat in the evening? A very common question
especially in light of what I advise after
training is not two hours, if the goal
weight loss So you can eat at night,
if training is late in the evening?
What to eat in the evening.
Questions from those who cannot choose a time to train at will are very similar. Most often they ask what you can eat in the evening or at night if your workout is late. The fact is that if the goal is to lose weight, then I recommend closing the carbohydrate window with whey isolate in water and not eating anything for two hours. And it often turns out that after these two hours it’s time to go to bed, and my other recommendation is to have your last meal two hours before bedtime. So what should we do? What to eat at night? or not to eat at all?
What to eat in the evening video
What to eat in the evening
We have such a wonderful hormone - somatotropin. It's also called growth hormone. He's an accordion. It is also known as somatotropic hormone and – abbreviated as – growth hormone. This wonderful hormone has both fat-burning properties (lipolytic) and anabolic (helping to grow muscles). And today I will talk about two of its properties:
- The level of secretion (production) of somatotropin is maximum in the morning and in the hours after strength training
- Somatotropin and insulin are antagonists. That is, if there is a lot of insulin, then somatotropin is not secreted
Now let us remember that any carbohydrates will cause a greater secretion of insulin, and as a result, insulin blocks the action of the somatotropic hormone that is useful to us. It is for this reason that I recommend not eating for two hours after training. However, what should we do if two hours after training is already time to sleep?
What to eat at night?
In fact, my recommendation will be the same for those who want to lose weight and for those who want to gain weight. At night you can eat proteins and... fats. We will need “long-lasting” proteins that take a long time to digest. And fats are the right ones.
It’s right to eat low-fat cottage cheese at night and, if you really want to, add it to the cottage cheese walnuts or almonds.
Also, if you don’t disdain sports nutrition, miscellaneous casein in water is suitable. It will be even better, but it will cost more.
What not to eat at night
I would not recommend eating a lot of meat at night, especially without fiber. I wouldn't recommend eating carbohydrates -by that the same reason with somatotropic hormone and the tendency to store fat in the evening. Scrambled eggs or protein would be worse - because it will “fly by” too quickly
What can you eat in the evening...
...if you don't exercise at all? That is, if your goal is to lose weight, but you don’t have any workouts? Then, I would advise doing the same carbohydrate-free meal, but two hours before bedtime (last meal).
What if you don’t eat at all in the evening?
If you don’t eat at all, then the carcass’s metabolism, of course, will not slow down. Strength training has a prolonged metabolic response. That is, you don’t have to worry about it. But losing muscle mass overnight, even if not large, is highly undesirable. So, it’s better to eat at night than not.
What to eat at night...
...if you are gaining weight? If you are not a hard gainer who can eat everything at night, then the recommendation is the same as for weight loss: Cottage cheese or casein. The main thing here is to maintain a calorie surplus during the day, and at night - let the growth hormone work better.
Each of us has our own optimal time for sports. In fact, we all have different life rhythms. Therefore, it would be a mistake to believe that there is a specific period during which our body is best prepared for physical exercise. However, is it possible exercise in the evening? Domyos can help you understand this issue.
When is the best time to exercise?
Depending on motivation the best time for sports activities varies slightly. First of all, it should be noted that body temperature changes depending on the time of day. The most low temperature the body is established in the period from one to three hours before waking up in the morning. The most high temperature observed in the late afternoon, around 17:00. It has been proven that The higher the body temperature, the better our physical capabilities. Based on this, we can assume that the most suitable time for training is late afternoon.
Better late than never
Do you have a question - what best time to play sports? Preference should still be given morning hours, because the body is in excellent condition and ready to perform at its best. However, this does not mean that the possibility of exercising in the evenings is excluded. It is often said that it is harmful to the body. But don't worry: better late than never! Evening physical activity allows you to relieve tension after a long day. It also allows you to improve your appetite and lose excess weight, which is one of the factors that causes sleep disorders (difficulty breathing, snoring, etc.).
Sports in the evenings: exercise should not negatively affect the quality of sleep
You'll often hear that to improve your sleep quality, you shouldn't exercise late in the day. Indeed, after 19 hours, body temperature decreases and activity decreases. The body gradually prepares for sleep. Therefore, playing sports at this time may disrupt your biological rhythms. Sport certainly has a stimulating effect: adrenaline and other stimulating hormones that are produced during exercise disrupt sleep. Generally, it is recommended that the interval between sports training and sleep was at least two hours.
Appropriate Actions
In order not to disrupt your body’s functioning and maintain the quality of your sleep, use a few tricks:
- start training as early as possible;
- give preference to endurance exercises;
- try to avoid competitions as much as possible;
- drink water regularly;
- insist on stretching at the end of your workout and remember to relax;
- at the end of the workout, take a few minutes to relax;
- take a warm bath.
To determine the most favorable period for playing sports, listen to your internal clock, and not to other people's opinions. Experiment to find the mode that suits you best. And, of course, think about your health first. Remember that the greatest benefits come from regular classes: 30 minutes any physical exercise every day.