Food/Shakes after workouts

Kohanai

Hello! Thank you in advance for any suggestions.

Tl;Dr: I am active now, watch what I eat, and exercise regularly. A problem that has developed is my lack of wanting to eat food after working out because I drink a protein shake, and it fills me up. Should I keep trying to force myself to eat a real meal a while after the shake? Should I cut the shake completely and plan to eat food? Should I go halvsies?

Full story/question (if knowing more about my activity and stuff is needed for a more informed answer): This question is about food/shakes. I’m on a workout schedule that I’m actually sticking with. I crossfit 3 days a week and walk dogs an hour a day each day. I record on here consistently, and have a very good handle on eating good foods (yes I cheat, bc I love pizza), and have cut my soda intake to almost nothing (I’m past the cravings!). I’m am still very overweight, so this food/exercise schedule has helped me loose lbs since October, which is cool. But, I’m a little worried about my lack of eating now that I’m much more active.
I’ve gravitated to eating 2 solid meals on workout days. I may eat snacks, may not. I try to make myself eat a little something an hour or two before I work out at night, but I’m not consistent with that. And, I was instructed to drink a protein shake after working out. This has kind of followed over into some of the non-workout days (the 2 meals thing, not the shake).

Now, I’m almost never hungry after a workout and the shake. I have had to force myself to eat later in the evening, and it’s just really uncomfortable. Should I cut the shake completely and have a meal? Cut the shake in half and continue to force myself to eat? I’m always under my calorie goal on workout days. Well, under in everything on workout days.

Help? Advice? I know I need to eat. But part of me is saying to keep the deficit, part of me is saying that I need to replenish stuff (or whatever), I’m not sure which part is correct, and you guys are super knowledgeable.

cwolfman13

You should be at or near your calorie target...fitness needs to be fueled...recovery needs to be fueled. You don't make fitness strides when you underfeed your fitness.

You don't need supplements like shakes...they're just there to help you hit your protein targets. If they are inhibiting you from getting in your requisite calories then you stop having it. Also, you don't have to wait until evening to eat...plan to eat more throughout the day rather than waiting until after you've done your workout.

jjpptt2

It's all personal preference. Manage your calories and macros over the course of a day/week. What you choose to eat and when doesn't matter all that much. Consistent adherence is far more important than nutrient timing... so time your nutrients in a way that works for you.

janejellyroll

Why is it a problem that you don't want to eat after working out? Are you consuming too little overall?

If the shake is making you too full to eat what you need, why not eliminate it? There's nothing magic about a protein shake, it's just a type of food.

A deficit is good for weight loss. A deficit that is so large that you losing at a too-fast pace or that leaves you unable to meet your nutritional needs isn't good.

Kohanai

Thanks for the input folks. I'll take this into consideration and make some changes. See how it works out for a few weeks.

I don't *need* the shake, it was just suggested by my trainer (and everyone else in each class), so I started taking it. I also never hit my protein mark unless I have one, so I continued.

The reason it feels like a problem is because I am consuming too little over all, I think. I don't know what is too little or too much of a deficit. However, I am falling about the same percent short on everything I track (thanks for mentioning that I should look at that specifically), so I think I need to make myself eat more in general.

I tend to eat at specific times because that's when I get hungry. My body has been on a schedule like this for a long time, so I didn't really change that except to make the meals better than they were.

Orphia

If you eat an hour or two before your workout, you don't need to eat after your workout if you're not hungry.

The replies you've received here are good. A lot of the advice you hear in the gym is pseudoscience.

Oh, and pizza occasionally is not cheating.

Maxxitt

Getting adequate protein is important and if your shake is helping you do that, awesome. If you find you are less hungry later, I would not worry about it unless you are hundreds of calories under your goal (which includes eating back at least some of your activity calories). My workout time is usually a couple of hours in the early afternoon. I don't usually have lunch before hand although I will have eaten a late breakfast. My supper is fairly modest. The NEXT day, however, I am famished and so I tend to make up for perhaps under-eating on a workout day. It all averages out over a week~

Kohanai

Again, thanks for the comments. I do eat a later breakfast and lunch, so, maybe that's why I'm not so hungry after (bc lunch is within 2-3 hrs of workout). I'm definitely not hundreds of cals under, more like between 100-200ish. It seems it's all hit or miss, rather than having a set program or schedule. I like having a set plan, lol, so the figueing it out parts are a little annoying!

I've been a member of MFP community for years, and havent really posted that often. I'm glad I've started.

kimny72

Kohanai wrote: »

Again, thanks for the comments. I do eat a later breakfast and lunch, so, maybe that's why I'm not so hungry after (bc lunch is within 2-3 hrs of workout). I'm definitely not hundreds of cals under, more like between 100-200ish. It seems it's all hit or miss, rather than having a set program or schedule. I like having a set plan, lol, so the figueing it out parts are a little annoying!

I've been a member of MFP community for years, and havent really posted that often. I'm glad I've started.

If you want, you can save up some of those calories and treat yourself to a more calorie dense meal once a week. You could also add a few extra calories to your earlier meals to even things out a little if it happens all the time.

How accurately do you log? If you eyeball portions a lot, or are overestimating the calorie burns of your workouts, you might not even be short the calories you think you are. If you are progressing well in your workouts and feeling good, this might be the case. Are you losing weight too fast? If not, don't worry about it. And you don't HAVE to drink a protein shake after your workout, but if you aren't hitting your protein goal a shake's fine. :drinker:

Kohanai

kimny72 wrote: »

How accurately do you log? If you eyeball portions a lot, or are overestimating the calorie burns of your workouts, you might not even be short the calories you think you are. If you are progressing well in your workouts and feeling good, this might be the case. Are you losing weight too fast? If not, don't worry about it. And you don't HAVE to drink a protein shake after your workout, but if you aren't hitting your protein goal a shake's fine. :drinker:

I've made it a point the past year to log by weight instead of eyeballing. I can use the fist method for portioning when out, but I don't eat many meals in a place where I haven't prepared it myself (and I tend to be generous when logging those meals, just bc I guess). And, I have no clue how to log my workouts. I can guess at it, but I'd rather let MFP do it based on steps. I dunno, I try to be as accurate as possible.