Why The Post Workout Period Is Important For Nutrition

By Russ Howe


In the topic of how to build muscle people often look for unnecessarily complicated answers when the basic principles still work just fine. Today we shall examine one of those proven principles, the post-workout nutrition window. We are going to explain it for you step-by-step and get rid of some of the general myths surrounding it for you.

Despite the often over complicated world of health and fitness this is very easy to do once you have learnt the basic principles, much like the rules to building a leaner physique in general.

If you are a regular exercise enthusiast or trainer you may or may not have already heard people at your local fitness center or health spa talking about this. For a while it was simply a rumor, an almost mythical 'golden period' after a training session where your body would be able to make fantastic strides forward if you used the time wisely. It has since been proven to be a fact, of course, and today we're going to answer the most commonly asked questions. These include:

* What length of time does the window stay open for?

* Are some foods superior to others after a workout?

* How does this situation exist in the first place?

* What happens if you don't make use of the golden nutrition window?

Don't worry, folks. In today's post we will be answering all of the questions above. First of all let's take a look at the golden window itself and explain what it actually exists for. When you have exercised at a high intensity, i.e. you've just completed a workout in the gym, your body is literally starving to replace the nutrients it lost during the exercise session.

To put it simply, it wants food and it wants it immediately. To a large extent it doesn't even care what you eat, it's going to try to use as much energy from the food provided. If you provide it with an already nutritious food you really experience the benefits here.

The window itself is believed to last approximately 45 minutes after you finish a workout, meaning you have three quarters of an hour to get some food into your muscles.

That generally removes the confusion from the second question above, which is asking what type of foods you eat. You want to hit your body with nutrients during the 45 minute post-workout period therefore should avoid foods which are going to take a long time to be broken down and used up. So ignore the complex carbohydrates...

Try combining some whey protein with a bowl of cereal or some fruits in your post-workout meal. Despite being a very light meal, it's packed full of the nutrients your body is calling our for after a gym session and, most importantly, we are able to break down these meals and process them well before the window closes.

These provide your body with instant energy, which it's craving after you put it through the mill at the gym. It will do it's best to use absolutely everything you provide it with during this time, hence the term 'golden window', but the possibilities are magnificent if you focus on only providing it with healthy, nutritious food in the first place.

If you miss the window you probably won't realize it. It doesn't mean your workout was for nothing, it just means it could have been slightly better overall. People have been training for years now and still have no idea this even exists, so it's not going to be the end of the world by any means.

For those who wish to know how to build muscle or even how to lose weight the post-workout window will become their best friend. It's an integral part of a good training routine and over time you will notice huge results from this proven method.




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