What to Never Ever Eat After Exercise

We’ve all been there, feeling a bit worn down, low energy and tired after a work-out. If we’ve been doing weight resisting exercise such as yoga, our arms and legs can sometimes tremble and feel weak as well. At these times, we tend to think that eating will help to replenish our energy levels. A quick search on the internet shows that nutritional advice almost unanimously favors "carb-loading" after a workout to help to refuel the muscles. The period immediately after exercise is considered to be the best time for muscles to replenish glycogen stores. Glycogen is the first fuel to be burned during exercise.

But recent research shows that if you are exercising for weight loss (rather than as a high performance athlete), then eating high-carbohydrate energy snacks after a workout may be 100% the wrong thing to do.

A recent study by the Energy Metabolism Lab at the University of Massachusetts published in the Journal of Applied Physiology, Nutrition and Metabolism and the Journal of Applied Physiology found that exercising for 1 hour on a treadmill increased insulin efficiency (the ability to clear excess sugar from the blood) by 40% in people that did not eat after the exercise. However, taking a high-carb drink after exercising completely eliminated these benefits.

The research paper also found through a separate study comparing the effects of low-carb and high-carb snacks, the low-carb option was found to be least damaging. However, for the best weigh loss results, Barry Braun, PhD, the study’s co-author, notes "If people are going to exercise to benefit their health, they should not be eating back the calories immediately or within a couple of hours of finishing".

So for more effective weight-loss, this research paper shows it pays to not eat back the carbs directly after exercise. If you are really suffering with hunger after a workout, then you can try to prevent it by eating a light snack several hours before exercising. A low carbohydrate, high-protein snack will help fill you up for longer, but take care not to over eat as this may cause discomfort from bloating during the exercise.