Question about food...

Lavenda93
Lavenda93 Posts: 23 Member
edited November 2024 in Fitness and Exercise
So I read somewhere that if you don't eat within 30mins after your workout, you end up losing about 50% of the total benefit of the workout. Is this true, because I find out that I can't eat anything within the hour following my run? If I do, I get stomach upsets. I'm currently running for about 25mins but I'm still very slow. I'll appreciate any answers or insights to the topic. Thanks.

Replies

  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,950 Member
    edited December 2014
    naw, it's not true, don't sweat it. Current research has shown that meal timing is wholly irrelevant for all but elites, and that's only related to weight training.
  • blueakama
    blueakama Posts: 399 Member
    Never heard that one before. Forget it.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    No - it's complete twaddle.
    Enjoy your run and then enjoy your food whenever it suits you.
  • zipa78
    zipa78 Posts: 354 Member
    No. If you want to maximise recovery, then you should try to get some carbs in you as quickly as possible, but unless you plan on working out again within 12 hours or so, even that does not matter.
  • Lavenda93
    Lavenda93 Posts: 23 Member
    Okay, thanks everyone! Now I can just eat whenever I want to without feeling like part of my effort has gone to waste!
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    The only time I've ever found this to be remotely relevant was after about 50 miles on a bike and in RE to recovery.
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
    Lavenda93 wrote: »
    So I read somewhere that if you don't eat within 30mins after your workout, you end up losing about 50% of the total benefit of the workout.

    In a trained individual, after a decent quality session, the ability to process the fuel ingested is slightly improved. So there is value for serious trainers in consuming some form of carb/ protein mix in the period immediately after training.

    That can be from a sports drink of some kind, or a meal.

    For cyclists, runners etc it's an opportunity to take on board proteins to help recover from the session, and carbs to replace the fuel expended.

    For the vast majority of us, the difference is negligible, although from a personal perspective if I throw a bottle of recovery drink down my neck as soon as I finish a long (90 minutes) session then I'm less inclined to snack and graze later on.
  • alan_huynh2000
    alan_huynh2000 Posts: 43 Member
    There was some research done that showed benefits to consuming protein within 30 minutes after exercise. There has been newer researching since, saying that other research was trash... However...

    Consuming protein quickly after, does seem to help with muscle recovery. Which just means how sore you feel, and how quickly you can jump back into another intense workout session.

    There are blood spikes after working out, some research shows that consuming some type of post workout shakes helps reduce that blood glucose and refills the muscle glycogen.

    Things like that. If you don't enjoy consuming right after, there are BCAA/Amino Acid/Glucose drink you can add to water. (NOT GATORADE) but just something to help you re-hydrate.
  • Chief_Rocka
    Chief_Rocka Posts: 4,710 Member
    sijomial wrote: »
    No - it's complete twaddle.

    I just found my new favorite word

  • JoRocka
    JoRocka Posts: 17,525 Member
    sijomial wrote: »
    No - it's complete twaddle.
    Enjoy your run and then enjoy your food whenever it suits you.

    best answer here.
  • Sam_I_Am77
    Sam_I_Am77 Posts: 2,093 Member
    There no conclusive proof but most academics believe it's closer to 24 hours, so unless you don't plan on eating within 24-hours of training you'll be fine. Some people feel that they need that post work-out shake and if it helps you mentally then do it; it won't hurt you of course, but it's not something to stress about.
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