Type of carbs in post lifting shake

Does it really matter what type of carbohydrates you put in your post-workout shake to maximize the potential for recovery and muscle growth? I like to use bananas, oats and blueberries.

Replies

  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    edited August 2019
    Put it in context of how little you will have burned during your workout period (which isn't all carbs anyway..) and how much glycogen you have stored (c. 2,000 cals for an average sized man) and the benefit of fussing over the types of carbs in a post workout shake really isn't going to make a heap of difference.

    Everything you eat/drink gets broken down to its constituent parts so whether you get your glucose/sucrose/fructose from fruit or candy it's still going to get used. If you like fruit then enjoy your fruit.

    If you are an endurance athlete burning a huge number of cals and planning a second training session that day it then becomes significant how you refuel and how much you refuel.
  • jdog022
    jdog022 Posts: 693 Member
    A shake after a workout really isn’t optimal. Eating good food is optimal. I do flank steak, whole sweet potato and 1 cup of avocado slices puréed on top of my steak.

    In the grand scheme of things it’s really more about keeping up your blood amino levels up. I eat every 3 hours and the above mentione meal after a workout a couple hours before bed. The fat in the steak and avocados slows digestion keeping my blood amino levels up while I sleep. Protein synthesis in the body isn’t something that occurs 24/7. It’s a process the body uses when it decides its time/ready.

    Protein powders, shakes, etc really are not a substitute for food. They don’t last in the body more then around 1.5 hours. If you’re having trouble eating food you can get ground meats. A lot of IFBB pros and the like eat a lot of ground meat as it’s easier to shovel in them chew.

    What??? No
  • concordancia
    concordancia Posts: 5,320 Member
    I read a study years ago that recommended chocolate milk as the best recovery drink.
  • mmapags
    mmapags Posts: 8,934 Member
    No. It doesn't really matter if you have a post-lifting shake at all. Eat when you're hungry.

    k2751q2c996i.jpg

    This for the win! ^^

    Why is it necessary to so overcomplicate things??
  • MikePTY
    MikePTY Posts: 3,814 Member
    Well simple carbs like fruits and sugars will probably taste better in your shake than say putting a potato in it... but that's just my guess. As others have said, you don't need to have a specific type of carbohydrate in your workout shake. You don't even need to have a workout shake if you get your calories from elsewhere (although you certainly can have one if you choose).
  • thanos5
    thanos5 Posts: 513 Member
    I read a study years ago that recommended chocolate milk as the best recovery drink.

    i just read that recently but damned if i can remember where. much cheaper than my chocolate protein shake!
  • Cahgetsfit
    Cahgetsfit Posts: 1,912 Member
    I eat food after my workout. Usually rice, beans, meat and vegetables. But it varies. But always has rice or pasta or (gasp!) bread or potato + meat + some sort of greenery. Then i have fruit for dessert.

    Shakes, for me, leave me feeling hungry 30 minutes after I drink it so I don't see the point of wasting the calories in liquid form when I can just eat food instead.
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  • ExistingFish
    ExistingFish Posts: 1,259 Member
    I like something after a workout. I use premade shakes often for the convenience factor. If not available I will even eat a small candy for the carbs. I am often shakey after a long workout and the small amount of quick fuel will make me feel better, which is advised if you have to drive after.
  • J72FIT
    J72FIT Posts: 6,002 Member
    MDC2957 wrote: »
    Does it really matter what type of carbohydrates you put in your post-workout shake to maximize the potential for recovery and muscle growth? I like to use bananas, oats and blueberries.

    It only matters to the elite of the elite who have already maximized their potential and are looking for the 1/2% edge...
  • watts6151
    watts6151 Posts: 905 Member
    Dr Mike and RP’s take

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  • J72FIT
    J72FIT Posts: 6,002 Member
    As to the comment about context. We’re all here to be a better version of ourselves. Why would I want to do something if I’m going to half try it? People don’t lift weights just for health they do it for some benefit to the body wether it be bone density, strength, muscle growth, weight loss, etc. I don’t see people on here saying I’m happy only benching the bar 1x. We’re all people who want to grow and be better. That’s why we’re here. So again why do something half way.

    Rock on...
  • J72FIT
    J72FIT Posts: 6,002 Member
    jdog022 wrote: »
    I’ll stick to science, my experience as well as others and the likes of Justin Morris and others who actually train regular people and the elite level athletes.

    You just say what and no without providing any factual data to back up that my statements are incorrect. Carbs are a piece of the puzzle and as such for optimal recovery the body needs to be in a stasis to enable the body to use carbs and amino acids to repair the stressors on the body created by physical activity. Why do I want to mix a bunch of stuff together and carry a blender when I can just keep a cooler with me of food and eat it to keep my body in a primed state for growth?

    I’ll leave this here for you to learn more on. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6019055/#!po=0.335570




    jdog022 wrote: »
    A shake after a workout really isn’t optimal. Eating good food is optimal. I do flank steak, whole sweet potato and 1 cup of avocado slices puréed on top of my steak.

    In the grand scheme of things it’s really more about keeping up your blood amino levels up. I eat every 3 hours and the above mentione meal after a workout a couple hours before bed. The fat in the steak and avocados slows digestion keeping my blood amino levels up while I sleep. Protein synthesis in the body isn’t something that occurs 24/7. It’s a process the body uses when it decides its time/ready.

    Protein powders, shakes, etc really are not a substitute for food. They don’t last in the body more then around 1.5 hours. If you’re having trouble eating food you can get ground meats. A lot of IFBB pros and the like eat a lot of ground meat as it’s easier to shovel in them chew.

    What??? No

    IFBB pros are on juice. What they require isn’t natural and doesn’t apply except to others also on juice. I take my advice from the leaders of the natural industry like Dr Eric Helms, Shoenfield , Contraras. MPS is a 24/7 process. Spiked by eating and training. Thier are jacked folks who eat one time a day. I guess they’re magical .

    Nice to have time to make those meals but with two kids under 4 I sure as hell don’t. Shakes save me and my body uses them just as fine as chewed steak.

    Amen Brother!
  • jdog022
    jdog022 Posts: 693 Member
    edited August 2019
    I’ll stick to science, my experience as well as others and the likes of Justin Morris and others who actually train regular people and the elite level athletes.

    You just say what and no without providing any factual data to back up that my statements are incorrect. Carbs are a piece of the puzzle and as such for optimal recovery the body needs to be in a stasis to enable the body to use carbs and amino acids to repair the stressors on the body created by physical activity. Why do I want to mix a bunch of stuff together and carry a blender when I can just keep a cooler with me of food and eat it to keep my body in a primed state for growth?

    I’ll leave this here for you to learn more on. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6019055/#!po=0.335570




    jdog022 wrote: »
    A shake after a workout really isn’t optimal. Eating good food is optimal. I do flank steak, whole sweet potato and 1 cup of avocado slices puréed on top of my steak.

    In the grand scheme of things it’s really more about keeping up your blood amino levels up. I eat every 3 hours and the above mentione meal after a workout a couple hours before bed. The fat in the steak and avocados slows digestion keeping my blood amino levels up while I sleep. Protein synthesis in the body isn’t something that occurs 24/7. It’s a process the body uses when it decides its time/ready.

    Protein powders, shakes, etc really are not a substitute for food. They don’t last in the body more then around 1.5 hours. If you’re having trouble eating food you can get ground meats. A lot of IFBB pros and the like eat a lot of ground meat as it’s easier to shovel in them chew.

    What??? No

    I read that entire study. I did not see any part that said shakes are not a substitute for food. Nothing about food digesting so fast that it cannot be used for recovery. I feel you may confusing feeling full, digestion speed and the availability of nutrients that the body can use. Last in the body for only 1.5 hours? Where does it go??

    He can put straight dextrose in his shake, or oatmeal or a banana or eat solid food. The end result will be the same in terms of growth and recovery . I agree with the important of carbs in the the study but I didn’t have the same interpretation I guess. All the GI stuff I find irrelevant since no one eats or digests one food at a time
  • tlpina82
    tlpina82 Posts: 229 Member
    wmd1979 wrote: »
    sardelsa wrote: »
    You do what works for you, the rest will do what works for them. If I want to puree my food I don't see how that makes any difference. I personally find eating annoying sometimes. I also have TMJ issues. Liquid calories are fantastic and very optimal for me. Again you don't have to have shakes and smoothies, but I don't see why you have to knock others who do.

    Exactly this^

    I don't understand why some people on here feel the need to food shame others. Personally, I like a protein shake when I am looking for extra calories and don't want to feel too full. The idea of shoveling in ground beef instead is not at all appealing to me.

    The reason for that is because people read some passage of a study in a fitness blog, don't understand what's written and even if they did, it was taken out of context to begin with and then regurgitate it to everyone as the new science.

    Remember the "study" that said smelling farts makes you live longer? It was on tv and it was NOT at all what the study said.

    There are several ways to skin a cat... That's what I have to keep reminding everyone, even myself sometimes.