The Post Workout Meal Pt. 4

2 - How many carbs should I eat? 
Post Workout Carbs

First of all, carbs are not all bad. Secondly, after your workout they are actually an extremely important part of your post workout nutrition. Carbs will be used by your body to restore muscle glycogen. If your post workout meal doesn't contain carbs, your body may actually break down muscle tissue for this same purpose. That would be a bad thing. Carbs also create an insulin spike which helps to move nutrients into your muscle tissue quicker.

So, what kind do you need? Well, you know all about good carbs and bad carbs by now, right? Funny enough, this is actually the only time when "good carbs" and "bad carbs" switch roles. This doesn't mean start eating cookies, this just means that typical good carbs (whole wheat bread, brown rice, etc) contain fiber, and fiber slows down their digestion. This is actually what makes them "good" any other time of the day. But by now you know the post workout meal is all about speed. And when it comes to speed, simple carbs beat complex carbs.

A food like a baked potato is an okay choice for a carb source after a workout. However, just like protein, whole foods in general aren't really the most ideal choice at this time. This is where a little something called dextrose comes in. Dextrose is not a supplement... it's actually just a type of sugar.

Along with whey protein, dextrose has also become almost an official choice for a post workout carb. You should shoot for 50- 60 grams of carbs at this time from dextrose.