Focus on physical recovery becomes increasingly important as your commitment to training and competitions increases, and post-training nutrition plays an essential role.

As you start to take your sport more seriously, focusing on physical recovery will become increasingly important and taking care of your nutrition after training is one of the smartest things you can do.

Good post-training nutrition that includes protein and carbs will aid recovery, helping you maximise the gains from each session by:

• Replenishing glycogen stores (thanks to carbs).

• Repairing muscle (thanks to protein).

• Building new muscle to help growth and improvement.

Another very important benefit is that it can help prevent you from becoming run down and, as a result, help maintain a healthy immune system.

Popular post-training snacks

• Chocolate milk.

• Peanut butter (perhaps also with honey and banana) sandwiches.

• Cheese sandwiches.

• pasta with chicken/tuna/ cheese/tofu.

• Granola bars.
  

Post-training nutrition is best provided as real nutritional food. You don’t need protein powders/other supplements... Read our Supplements: The Risks lesson for further reasons why.

Timing

Many experts are currently questioning the age-old advice to eat a snack containing protein 'within 30 minutes of exercise' to maximise muscle repair, growth, and recovery.

Until definitive advice is available, there is a lot to be said for continuing this habit. It will help replenish energy, and you'll probably be ravenous anyway—and being a ‘hangry athlete’ is never fun for anyone...

Significantly, eating a sufficient post-training snack will reduce the likelihood of you snacking on unhealthy foods that won’t aid recovery. It will also mean you won’t arrive home and consume all the contents of your fridge out of desperation before mealtime.

The Four 'R's

The four ‘R’s can help you grasp the basics:

• Replenish - replace the carb stores, i.e. glycogen, that the body used as energy. Eating a snack immediately after training, e.g. chocolate milk and a sandwich for the journey home, will ‘fill the gap’ before your next meal and will aid the recovery process. A meal with healthy carbs, protein, fats, and colourful vegetables and fruits will help replenish energy reserves.
  
  

• Repair - protein helps to repair the micro-tears that occur in muscles during training, making them stronger. Post-training snacks and meals that contain protein will help recovery and muscle repair.
  
  

• Rehydrate - replace the fluid that has been lost. This can be often overlooked but is essential. Keep sipping.
  
  

• Rest - allow the body to recover from the exertion.

Rehydration

Rehydration after training is essential for a good recovery, so it's important you drink plenty of water to replace what was lost during exercise.

Feeling thirsty is thought to be a sign that the body is already feeling dehydrated. Taking regular sips of water before, during, and after a training session will keep your fluid levels topped up. This is a very good habit to adopt. Post-training headaches and fatigue can be signs you've not drunk enough.

The colour of your urine is a good way to check whether you're drinking enough—the darker the colour, the more dehydrated you are. The optimal colour is pale yellow. See our hydration lesson for more detailed information.

This is the exact graphic that Loughborough Sport uses for its elite athletes

Take Home Points

• Top athletes prioritise post-training nutrition.
  
  
• Get organised. Take protein and carb snacks to eat straight after training.
  
  
  
• Cereal before bedtime is a helpful way to pack in a few more carbs and protein to regain your energy reserves. 

  
  

• Prioritise rehydration. Water should be your go-to drink.
  
  
  

*DISCLAIMER: This content is for guidance only. If you require more in-depth nutritional support, we recommend you seek help from a registered dietitian specialising in sports nutrition.

Evidence-Based Research

Our content is supported by:

• Atan, S.A. and Kassim, M., 2019. Young football players are not miniature adults; Do young athletes need sports drinks?: A review of literature. ASM Science Journal, 12, pp.1-12. (View Paper)
  
  

• Casa, D.J., Cheuvront, S.N., Galloway, S.D. and Shirreffs, S.M., 2019. Fluid needs for training, competition, and recovery in track-and-field athletes. International journal of sport nutrition and exercise metabolism, 29(2), pp.175-180.

  (View Paper)

  
  
  

• Kavouras, S.A., Johnson, E.C., Bougatsas, D., Arnaoutis, G., Panagiotakos, D.B., Perrier, E. and Klein, A., 2016. Validation of a urine color scale for assessment of urine osmolality in healthy children. European journal of nutrition, 55, pp.907-915. (View Paper)
  
  

• Schneider, M.B., Benjamin, H.J. and Committee on Nutrition and the Council on Sports Medicine and Fitness, 2011. Sports drinks and energy drinks for children and adolescents: are they appropriate?. Pediatrics, 127(6), pp.1182-1189. (View Paper)