MUST READ: What To Eat After You Workout

In addition to breakfast, your post workout meal is one of the most important meals of the day.  
 Why? The results you gain from the gym are largely dependent upon how you recover from your workouts, so if you are not getting enough sleep and do not focus on getting a quality post workout meal, you are throwing your hard work down the drain.

This happens because during exercise you are actually breaking down your muscle in hopes that it will rebuild in greater quantity and strength. But, if you do not properly recover with nutrition and rest, your muscle will not be repaired and rebuilt properly. In extreme cases of extended overtraining and poor recovery practices, you can actually throw your body into a constant state of disrepair and
breakdown.
So, if you want to amplify all the work you are putting in at the gym, use these post workout recovery rules to get the most out of your efforts.

HERE ARE YOUR TIPS:

1. Eat within 30 minutes of exercising The timing of your post workout meal is equally as crucial as the content. If you have had a particularly strenuous workout, it is best to eat immediately after you finish. Exercise requires nutrients to fuel your workouts and puts a lot of stress on your body so the point of the post workout meal is to replace those nutrients to allow for repair and ultimately build strength, endurance, and lean muscles.
2. Refuel with carbs and protein
Right after a workout is the perfect time to load up on some carbs. Your body stores some of its glycogen in your muscles. These stores get used up during exercise and need to be replenished with
carbohydrates in order to recover. The intensity of your workout will determine how much you actually need so make sure to keep that in mind.
On the other hand, protein is your body’s building blocks for everything including your muscles. Getting protein directly after your workout will ensure your body has all the building blocks it needs in order to rebuild the muscle you have broken down during your workout.

3. Rehydrate
Depending on your size and the content of your workout, primarily cardio or primarily weight training, will play a roll in how much water you need to replenish what you have lost. The rule of thumb when
it comes to post exercise rehydration is to consume 16oz of water for every pound of bodyweight you lose during exercise however hydration needs tend to vary by the individual. The best way to monitor your hydration levels is to monitor your urine color and frequency. It should be pale and you should frequent the restroom several times a day.
4. Avoid Alcohol
Skip the after work happy hour or having a few drinks with dinner after working out. Not only will alcohol make you dehydrated, it will promote muscle loss and the loss of muscle strength. Additionally, it can interfere with the process of replenishing muscle glycogen store, which are needed to provide power and strength to your next workout.