After coming back from the gym and doing different workouts for a long time, you might worry a lot about what to eat to satisfy your hunger. Sometimes what you eat might not fit your body's needs or might have too many calories, fats, or carbs. This can mess up your diet and all the physical effort you're putting in at the gym or at home. To make it easier for you and help you out, here is a guide of the foods you should stop eating after exercising.
First: Smoothies
If you made your smoothie from fruits full o f sugars, know that it will slow down your body's continued fat burning process after workouts. This process burns fats and complex carbs, so adding extra sugars slows it down a lot. So just pick a smoothie rich in protein and low in sugar, enough to bring your blood sugar back to normal. Eat it slowly and in moderation, especially if you like drinking smoothies regularly.
Second: Spicy foods
Spicy foods like chili, sauce, and hot dips are hard to digest. So it's better not to eat them right after exercising. It's recommended to replace them with protein foods and small amounts of sugar to bring your blood sugar back to normal, along with some carbs to give your body the energy it needs to function well throughout the day.
Third: Soft Drinks
Never drink soft drinks right after exercising. Whether you want soda, caffeine, or to quench your thirst and add water to your body, they won't meet your needs. They only harm you with their high sugar content, causing stomach bloating, long-term weight gain, and also negative effects on your bones and joints.
Fourth: Meat
Meats are known to be heavy proteins and hard to digest. Eating them in large amounts leads to weight gain. So they're definitely not the best food to eat right after tough physical and muscle exercise. But you can have protein powder to maintain your muscle mass.
Fifth: Oily Foods
If you want to get the most out of your workout, you should avoid oily foods right after. They slow digestion and delay the nutrients reaching your muscles where they're needed. These oily foods include fried items, seeds, and nuts.
Sixth: Chocolate
You might feel disappointed when you see that your favorite food, chocolate, shows up on most lists of unhealthy foods. That’s because chocolate has a lot of sugars that slow digestion and can lead to weight gain over time. So, it’s not normal to eat it right after your workout if you're trying to lose extra weight. But if you really want chocolate, you can heat two teaspoons of coconut oil after a few hours of exercise. Add a teaspoon of raw cocoa powder, a pinch of cinnamon, and a bit of healthy stevia sugar to make a chocolate sauce. You can put this sauce on a small bowl of fresh berries or any healthy fruit you like.
Seventh: Fast food
Maybe you pass by a fancy burger place on your way to the gym and really want to eat a tasty meal from there. But don’t give in, whether before or right after your workout. Fast food like burgers and fries are full of trans fats that stand between you and having a healthy body and ideal weight. So avoid eating them so you don’t gain noticeable extra weight over time.
Eighth: Simple carbs
This type of carbs affects your body like sugar does, in a negative way. So it’s not recommended to eat them right after your workout because they slow down digestion and reduce your body’s burning and metabolism rates. They don’t help your body work well after the hard physical and muscle effort you just did at the gym.
Ninth: Protein bars
You might be surprised to see protein bars listed among foods not recommended right after the gym. These bars are rich in protein, which your body needs to build muscle and stay strong. But honestly, most protein bars on the market hide a lot of sugar inside. That sugar cancels out their benefits and causes harm instead. So if you're not sure if a product is sugar-free, get your protein from natural foods rich in it, like eggs, for example.
Tenth: Sports drinks
A lot of people have to drink sports drinks right after exercising because they need to replace lots of lost water. But usually, packaged sports drinks are a bad choice. They have lots of sugar, and like we said before, sugar slows digestion and lowers your body's metabolism. So if you like drinking them, try swapping for healthy drinks that are high in protein and low in sugar and carbs.
Eleventh: Vegetables
You might feel suspicious or unsure hearing this since you always hear you need to eat vegetables because they're healthy and full of good nutrients. So what's the deal now? Why shouldn't you eat them right after your workout?
The simple reason is vegetables aren't the best choice to eat exactly then. You need foods rich in protein and with only some carbs to fill your hunger after working out hard at the gym. Vegetables alone don't do enough to stop hunger. So you should mix them with other healthy foods that build muscle and give your body the energy it needs.
Twelfth: Foods rich in fiber
If you want to avoid bloating and constipation, don't eat fiber-rich foods right after your workout. Instead, look for other healthy, helpful foods that don't cause upset stomach or annoying and sometimes painful digestion troubles like bloating and constipation.
Thirteenth: Prune juice
Even though prune juice is healthy and you might recommend it at other times, avoid drinking it right after exercising. It acts as a laxative on your digestive system, and so do some exercises like running. This can end with you getting diarrhea, which nobody wants at all.
Fourteenth: Sweets
Don't eat sweets full of harmful refined sugar right after you work out thinking they'll help you regain energy. That's completely wrong. Those sugars only stop good nutrients from reaching your body. So you should find a healthier food option that helps build your muscles, gives you energy, and shortens your recovery time.
Fifteenth: Black beans
Avoid eating black beans no matter how they're served. They have a lot of natural fiber, up to 15 grams, and eating them right after the gym will mess up your digestion and slow it down. You'll also feel uncomfortable with bloating and gas.
Sixteenth: Packaged juices
This kind of juice is not recommended at all after working out. It has a lot of fructose sugar that slows digestion and delays fat burning. Also, it causes your body to store more fat over time. So it's best not to drink it at all, anytime.
Seventeenth: Fried eggs
Eggs are some of the best healthy protein foods, recommended right after exercise to give your body what it needs to recover, rebuild muscle, aid digestion, fat burning, and complex carbs. You can eat eggs any way you like except fried, because frying makes your body store fat and slows digestion and burning.
Eighteenth: Protein powder
If you're not sure how good protein powder is, how healthy it is, or if you can drink it right after working out, just avoid it. Instead, choose another natural source that's rich in protein. You can learn more about protein powder here.
Nineteenth: Water
Of course, we don't mean skipping water right after workouts. What we mean is avoiding drinking water only without having a light meal that's rich in protein and has some sugars and carbs. If you don't give your body that, it will use your muscles for energy, which over time lowers your muscle build.
