The other day I took my girls to the gym with me. They saw how hard I worked and afterwards all I could talk about was how hungry I was. Walking back home my 7 year old said, ‘Now that you are done, you can eat whatever you want.’ I had to stop in my tracks and put an end to that thinking right there. I will say that for a 7 year old that reasoning seems perfectly logical. The problem is we continue to think that way well into our 20s and beyond. I wrote this blog to emphasize that you can’t out train a bad diet. This means you can’t work out for the purpose of negating the fact that you eat poorly. I would even argue that when you work out regularly, your eating habits become even more important. I have been a runner for years and unfortunately I was a fat runner. That is because I did not use food creatively and eat with a purpose. After years of running and eating haphazardly I finally experienced a breakthrough in my weight loss when I learnt to eat with a purpose.
1. Replenishing
After putting out a huge effort in the gym, your glycogen stores are depleted, muscle tissue is injured and electrolytes are low. Your body has worked very hard and responded to all of your demands. Now more than ever it is important to eat food that facilitates its repair for optimal performance in the future. Some people will go for hours without eating after a workout, that’s like punishing your body after it has served you so well. Do something good for your body and eat the right proportions of carbohydrates and proteins after every workout.
2. Maximizing
I look at the time after your workout as the best time to maximize your efforts in the gym. After lifting weights, running or doing a group exercise why would you give your body something it can’t make use of? I remember last summer taking kickboxing classes next to a pizza restaurant. I can’t tell you the number of times I saw my fellow kick boxers grabbing a pizza after their workout. Now more than ever you need to eat the right amount of carbohydrates and proteins so your workout is not in vain and you maximize the results of your workout.
3. Maintaining
Even if you have reached your goal weight and have no weight to lose or you have no desire to gain any muscle, you want to do your best to maintain the body that you have. What you eat after your workouts is just as important as it gives you energy to function the rest of the day and energy for your next day’s workouts. It is equally important to eat enough food when you are in maintenance mode otherwise you’ll keep losing weight!
4. 23 hours compared to 1 hour
There are 24 hours in a day. You work out for an hour, maybe 2. While working out for 1 hour is important, what you do for the rest of the day is just as important if not more important. It is easy to undo an hour’s worth of work in one meal. It is important to be mindful what you eat throughout the day so that you do not negate your efforts in the gym.
An important point to consider is that it is easy to over emphasize the exercise and calorie intake balance. I used to say I worked out therefore I deserve to eat a certain item or I ate something bad, I better work this off in the gym. When you make a conscious effort to eat clean, healthy, balanced meals 90% of the time, having something outside of your plan is not terribly detrimental. But the key is to eat well more often, making it a habit is what brings about positive changes.
Remember you can’t out train a bad diet. In order for your workouts to count you have to be eating the right food.
1. Replenishing
After putting out a huge effort in the gym, your glycogen stores are depleted, muscle tissue is injured and electrolytes are low. Your body has worked very hard and responded to all of your demands. Now more than ever it is important to eat food that facilitates its repair for optimal performance in the future. Some people will go for hours without eating after a workout, that’s like punishing your body after it has served you so well. Do something good for your body and eat the right proportions of carbohydrates and proteins after every workout.
2. Maximizing
I look at the time after your workout as the best time to maximize your efforts in the gym. After lifting weights, running or doing a group exercise why would you give your body something it can’t make use of? I remember last summer taking kickboxing classes next to a pizza restaurant. I can’t tell you the number of times I saw my fellow kick boxers grabbing a pizza after their workout. Now more than ever you need to eat the right amount of carbohydrates and proteins so your workout is not in vain and you maximize the results of your workout.
3. Maintaining
Even if you have reached your goal weight and have no weight to lose or you have no desire to gain any muscle, you want to do your best to maintain the body that you have. What you eat after your workouts is just as important as it gives you energy to function the rest of the day and energy for your next day’s workouts. It is equally important to eat enough food when you are in maintenance mode otherwise you’ll keep losing weight!
4. 23 hours compared to 1 hour
There are 24 hours in a day. You work out for an hour, maybe 2. While working out for 1 hour is important, what you do for the rest of the day is just as important if not more important. It is easy to undo an hour’s worth of work in one meal. It is important to be mindful what you eat throughout the day so that you do not negate your efforts in the gym.
An important point to consider is that it is easy to over emphasize the exercise and calorie intake balance. I used to say I worked out therefore I deserve to eat a certain item or I ate something bad, I better work this off in the gym. When you make a conscious effort to eat clean, healthy, balanced meals 90% of the time, having something outside of your plan is not terribly detrimental. But the key is to eat well more often, making it a habit is what brings about positive changes.
Remember you can’t out train a bad diet. In order for your workouts to count you have to be eating the right food.
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