Nutrient Timing Around Exercise For Fat Loss in Non-Athletes
There is a difference between the every day training most of us fit in around work, and the training of top athletes who train for a living, so what we need to eat and when, is different. To enhance fat loss from your training please read on!
For the average person who trains around work, you don’t need to eat like an athlete. It is all about timing your nutrients to optimise fat loss.
Eating your carb within two hours after training is the optimum time because your body’s metabolism is working at a rate 66% quicker than if you just eat carb at any other time of the day.
To build lean muscle, you also need protein after training to rebuild muscle tissue damaged through training, but you also have to eat carbohydrates within the same meal because to perform at your best requires you to fill your muscles with glycogen (also eating carb along with protein helps your body to better utilise the protein when repairing muscle). Glycogen is the collection of carbohydrates stored in muscles that powers your training and affects anabolism (repairing muscle tissue broken down during training).
Take a look at this sample day meal plan based around an evening training session to get a rough idea (please note that this is a sample and amounts of macronutrients and the type of training you do will affect this):
Breakfast
- 1 glass of water on waking
- Porridge/Oats
Snack
- 25g mixed nuts and piece of fruit
- Water
Lunch
- Water
- Quinoa Tabouleh/Feta and chickpea salad
- Green tea
Snack
- Approx. 45-30 mins before training – 1 banana and 125ml pot fruit yoghurt
- Immediately after training- Whey Protein Isolate
Dinner
- Water
- Within 2 hours of training- Chicken and sweet potato bake with vegetables
