When doing physical activity regularly, it is important to have a balanced diet on a daily basis.
In the case of post-exercise nutrition, and thus obtain a better recovery, certain foods are to be favoured.
Favouring these foods helps to avoid cramps after exercise, to reduce muscle soreness and pain, also to reduce the risk of muscular injuries or tendonitis and thus to have better performances.
FOODS TO EAT AFTER EXERCISE
Glucids
During physical activity, muscle and liver carbohydrate reserves are depleted and their storage is limited. Glucose is a muscle food, and in the case of a low-intensity effort, it is mainly lipids that will serve as fuel.
Consume slow and fast assimilating carbohydrates within 4 hours of exercise and then slow assimilation.
Favourable: carbohydrates
- Rather fast assimilation such as glucose, fructose or sucrose contained in dried and fresh fruit, honey, sugar, . . .
- Rather slow assimilation like starch or cellulose contained in starchy cereals, legumes, vegetables, pasta, rice, etc . . .
Proteines
When the effort is intense and the muscular masses have been solicited a lot, we lose amino acids.
Amino acids are the constituents of proteins, more simply the food of our muscles, without protein, there is no muscle and no life.
The amino acids that we need the most after effort are leucine, isoleucine, valine. They are part of the family of essential amino acids and therefore cannot be manufactured by the body.
Preferred - proteins
-Leucine: whole grains, soy flour, beans, nuts, brown rice and meats, cheese, especially whey.
- Isoleucine: almond, seeds, lentils, nuts, soya, rye, eggs, fish, chickpeas, meat, chicken
- Valine: arachid, mushroom, seeds, dairy, soy and meat, And no more than 30g protein per intake
Water
Also during a physical activity, we will sweat and in this sweat, we lose minerals including salt (sodium), and the more salt we lose during the effort, the more Potassium we will urinate after the effort, the sweat also contains Iron, Magnesium, Zinc, Copper.
Preferable: mineral water
- Drink at least 1. 5l /day
