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alexseanchai posting in

exercise_every_day

Okay, officially hit the point where the temperature difference between exercising and not exercising is irrelevant, and also too much ow from not exercising.

*twenty minutes of yoga*

Well that was fun. Owww. *dumps bucket of water over head*

I've heard that it's best to eat protein right after exercising, to help build up muscle mass. I've also heard that the study that found that was unduly focused on men, and a similar study with women says take or leave protein but definitely eat carbs. What have y'all heard and what's your personal experience?

(PIZZA. Garlic-oregano-basil crust. This place smells fantastic.)

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rydra_wong

AFAIK from my reading, and I hope people will correct the stuff I've got wrong:

You definitely need to make sure that you get enough protein in your diet in order to gain muscle mass. I don't know whether it's been proved conclusively that it's more effective if you get some of it in the "magic hour" after strength training, but it makes sense and can't hurt.

Re: carbs, eating them afterwards is mainly about ensuring that your muscles have enough glycogen to go on to do other stuff, if your reserves have been exhausted, and making sure that your body doesn't start to consider breaking down protein for fuel (unless you get into the intricacies of possibly wanting an insulin boost to improve muscle absorption of nutrients). So carb refueling becomes important if you've been exercising for long enough (at a significant level of intensity) that you've actually drained those reserves.

Personally: I don't feel like I need to refuel after exercise which is low-intensity or brief, though I'll usually grab a snack after a long yoga class.

But I tend not to get enough protein in my diet for muscle gain even when I work at it, so I do drink a whey protein shake when I climb or do heavy weight-lifting.

And I try to get a solid meal (protein and carbs) a.s.a.p. after climbing, which tends to leave me feeling wiped and ravenous; I figure my body is pretty unambiguous about what it needs then!