Gabriella Rao, RD

On the heels of my last post about pre-workout nutrition, this week I wanted to talk a bit about post-workout nutrition and why it should be a regular part of your fueling practice. 

Just like many other activities we partake in in life, endurance exercise is a form of stress on the body. When we expose ourselves to stressors, a hormone called cortisol (commonly known as “the stress hormone”) is released. Cortisol normally follows a natural circadian rhythm, where it peaks in the morning when you wake up, and slowly trends down throughout the day. 

Exposure to stressors can cause release of cortisol, which is a natural response from our sympathetic nervous system (the “fight or flight” system). However, exposure to high amounts of stress for a long period of time, whether that be from exercise or other stimuli, can result in chronically elevated cortisol, which wreaks havoc on many systems of the body. Chronically elevated cortisol can cause poorer mental health, decreased recovery and performance, reproductive system dysfunction, reduced muscle protein synthesis, increased fat storage, and a plethora of other negative outcomes — so lets avoid all of this and follow the below advice!

How to avoid chronically elevated cortisol:

There are strategies we can implement as endurance athletes to help “shut off” the cortisol that is released from exercise stress, and fueling plays a BIG role in this. Last week we talked about avoiding fasted exercise, and this week we’d like to focus on post-workout fueling to help shut off the cortisol response. By giving your body some carbohydrate and protein after workout, you are telling it that it’s not in danger any longer, and that it can activate the parasympathetic nervous system (the “rest and digest” system) and begin to relax.

You might be wondering,what should I eat after a workout?

A helpful guideline is to enjoy a 2- or 3-to-1 ratio of carbohydrates to protein within 30 minutes of working out. Because chocolate milk meets this ratio of carbs to protein, it’s often considered “the perfect” post-workout fuel, but of course there are MANY other options to choose from! Some solid post-workout snacks and meals could look like:

• Sandwich with tuna or chickpea salad 
• Greek yogurt + granola
• Kodiak pancakes 
• Some of my favorites include pizza, hamburgers, or smoothies with fruit, peanut butter, and protein powder 

Even if you’re on the go and only have time for a granola bar (make it a high calorie bar with both carbs and protein!), this is better than skipping your post-workout fuel. If you have any questions about fueling that come up, don’t hesitate to reach out!