Does eating right after exercising makes you gain weight?

fangmouse
fangmouse Posts: 119
in Food and Nutrition
I've been exercising a lot now and I find that every time after I exercise, I feel really bloated and I don't have an appetite which is a good thing. However, my mum kept planting skeptical thoughts into my head by saying, "you're going to gain so much weight if you eat right after exercising".

I usually exercise right before dinner because I spend the rest of the day in school and I have absolutely no time for exercise until the evening time. I do eat less after I exercise.

I feel like I should skip dinner now that she mentions this. What should I do? :( I don't even eat my exercise calories back.

Replies

  • lebaker310
    lebaker310 Posts: 164 Member
    Not an expert, but I really don't think it matters when you eat. I just can't think of a valid explanation as to why you would gain weight from eating after. You need to fuel your body.
  • beachlover317
    beachlover317 Posts: 2,848 Member
    Always eat the calories your body needs. Meal timing is irrelevant. Eating after exercise is not going to cause you to gain weight. Eating too many calories a day will.

    Also, if you are following MFP plan, it is designed for you to eat your exercise calories back (or at least most of them). If you don't, then you are creating too big a deficit for your body.
  • mitchyinge
    mitchyinge Posts: 196
    I eat almost immediately after a run. Everyone says it is very important, it definitely hasn't made me fat!
  • zipnguyen
    zipnguyen Posts: 990 Member
    in short no.
  • julie_emma1
    julie_emma1 Posts: 146
    I strongly believe that eating after you work out is actually good. This is because the calories and protein in the food you eat should help your body repair the muscle you've torn from working out and replenish your glycogen stores, and therefore will help your exercise gains in the long run. Also, your metabolism is probably revved up after you've worked out, so if anything, I would expect (though don't know this as a fact) that you'd be more likely to use those calories, rather than store them as fat.

    I've read in various sources that it is recommended to eat after a workout, something high in protein. If you're looking to lose weight, high-protein, low-calorie options for recovery post-workout could be a protein shake with skim or almond milk, hummus and veggies, tuna on whole-wheat toast (or a cup of cooked whole wheat noodles)...

    Hope that helps!
  • alisonlynn1976
    alisonlynn1976 Posts: 929 Member
    It doesn't matter when you eat, only the number of calories matters. Some people might say not to eat after exercising because I think a common pitfall of weight loss is that people overestimate the number of calories they've burned from exercising and think they can reward themselves by eating a huge meal, creating a calorie surplus. Then they post on here whining that they don't understand why they aren't losing any weight...
  • Jewlz280
    Jewlz280 Posts: 547 Member
    Time of day makes no difference what-so-ever from everything that I've been able to find. I'm sure some folks will be able to jump on here with research links at some point. What matters is deficit for weight loss. If you are working out and then eating dinner and that dinner is within your daily or weekly goals, then you're good. Next time she says something, say something similar to what one of the previous posters said about repairing muscle and what not and that not only that but you are in a deficit and hopefully they will drop it.
  • IwearBatmanUndies
    IwearBatmanUndies Posts: 324
    in short no.
    \
    Strong this ^^
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
    you're going to gain so much weight if you eat right after exercising

    Utter nonsense.

    Of course it depends what training you're doing but it is beneficial to refuel immediately after the session.

    If you're doing resistance training or steady state CV; running, rowing cycling, then some form of increased protein intake will be good for you. I usually take a 50g SIS Rego bottle.

    I recall reading some work done around increased uptake in the period immediately after training, for both improving your energy replenishment and absorbing the other nutrients.
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,336 Member
    You would only gain weight eating after exercising if you eat more calories total for the day than your maintenance calories. Meal timing is irrelevant in terms of weight loss, it is total calories that matter.
  • TigerBite
    TigerBite Posts: 611 Member
    Please tell your mom to stop getting nutrition and weight loss advice from tabloids and "rag" mags ...
  • DanIsACyclingFool
    DanIsACyclingFool Posts: 417 Member
    I think it bears mentioning here a slight clarification:

    In a CALORIC DEFICIT, as far as FAT LOSS is concerned, meal timing has no appreciable role. It's really only the relative number of calories you eat each day that matters, not when you eat them. For this reason eating after an exercise session poses no danger of making you fat, as many above have said.

    However right after an exercise session, particularly a resistance session the body is primed to take in nutrients, repair all the micro damage inflicted during the workout, and restore glycogen stores. The hour following a workout is the optimum time to eat, if you only ate a single meal a day it should be then for best results.

    Strategic nutrient timing is the basis for intermittent fasting protocols such as Leangains which can actually achieve the holy grail of apparently simultaneous fat loss and muscle growth. (You time your intake such that you are microcycling between fat loss and muscle growth, which, in traditional dieting, may represent months between "cut" and "bulk" cycles.)

    Muscle is your friend, male or female. This is true regardless of whether you wish to be slim and sexy, athletic, or super musclur. Don't scorn it - you won't accidently get bulky, and it's a tremendous asset to you especially for fat loss.

    In any event, your mom is misinformed. Eating after a workout can only help, and will never hurt.
  • zipnguyen
    zipnguyen Posts: 990 Member
    :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
    in short no.
    \
    Strong this ^^
  • bumblebreezy91
    bumblebreezy91 Posts: 520 Member
    Only if you eat more than you burned and then put your daily caloric intake at 3500 or higher. If you want a sandwich or a banana or whatever after your gym session, go ahead. Waiting a magical amount of time post-workout is only making you suffer. Listen to your body.

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