3 Post Workout Smoothies That Will Rock Your Recovery

So you've just finished your workout and you are STARVING!! I know the feeling and the fact is your body needs some refueling after the gym to help you feed and recover those muscles for the best gains..

Generally speaking you have about a 30-45 minute window of time when your muscles are most susceptible to absorbing the maximum amount of nutrients after your workout. This is when you should find some fast acting proteins (i.e. whey protein isolate) and carbohydrates to spike the insulin and restore the glycogen, but we'll get down to the science of it all later. All of my recipes are very nutrient dense with no empty calories.

These are the ingredients used, but you may modify them to your liking! ( For example, I use dymatize protein, but another great tasting protein is optimum nutrition's whey protein)

Nutty Greens

8 oz water (or unsweetened almond milk)
2 tbs Peanut Butter (190 cal)
1 scoop (33g) Dymatize Blueberry Muffin Protein (125 cal)
1 Cup Frozen Spinach (not counted in calories)
1/4 Cup Oatmeal (75 cal)
3 Egg whites (40 cal)
2 Cups Ice
Place everything into the blender except for the spinach and ice . Give it a good 10 seconds to blend. Afterwards, throw in the spinach and wait until the spinach is completely blended. Now add in the ice and blend on low for 45-60 seconds, pour in your favorite shaker and enjoy! Don't be concerned about the calories in this smoothie. Assuming you hit it hard you're muscles will need the nutrients. I typically save this one for a heavy leg or chest day.

Lean and Green

8 oz water
6 large strawberries
1 scoop (33g) Life's Basics 100% plant based Chocolate Protein
1 Cup Spinach
2 Cups Ice
Place everything into the blender except for the spinach and ice . Give it a good 10 seconds to blend. Afterwards, throw in the spinach and wait until the spinach is completely blended. Now add in the ice and blend on low for 45-60 seconds! This one is usually incorporated for when I am trying to cut weight, or if I am on a cardio-only day. It's very tasty, and very lean and once again, very nutrient dense

 

 

 

 

 

Berries n' Cream

 

8oz water
1 Cup mixed frozen berries
1 scoop (33g) Dymatize Blueberry Muffin Protein
1/2 Cup Oatmeal
3 Egg whites
Place everything into the blender except for the ice . Give it a good 10 seconds to blend. Now add in the ice and blend on low for 45-60 seconds, pour in your favorite shaker and enjoy! I use this one on my higher carb days to help me load just a little more. This can also be taken an hour before a workout as a Pre-Workout meal.

Not Just Recovery?

Though I have recommended these as post workout recovery smoothies, you can also use these as an MRP or meal replacement shake. If you are eating 6 small meals a day, supplement 2nd and 4th meals for these smoothies. If you are dieting down, go with the Lean and Green smoothie for your 2nd and 4th!

Why Do I Need a Post-Workout shake?

Well, its simple.. kind of..  and I will try to explain it as simply as possible.
After you drop the iron your body is fatigued. You've burned up your glycogen, which is what your muscles look to as fuel, but also your body as well. Glycogen comes from carbohydrates which need to be refueled during this window of time. Now, our next topic is protein synthesis.This is the rate at which your muscles absorb protein. After a workout, protein synthesis is at its maximum, and as the clock ticks, the window of synthesizing the maximum amount of protein closes, and very quickly. Protein is what your muscles will use to rebuild the fibers in your muscle, resulting in recovery and growth. Therefore, it only makes sense to take complete advantage of this. Some people may ask "why not just eat chicken and vegetables after a workout"
Well the truth is, you can! Absolutely! but heres the problem..
Remember that window of time I talked about earlier? You have 45 minutes max to allow your body to digest your meal and absorb all of the nutrients. A liquid post workout meal, such as a smoothie containing fast digesting proteins (isolates, eggs) and fast digesting carbohydrates (oatmeal) will digest and absorb in roughly 30 minutes. You're chicken and veggies? that will take about 90 minutes to digest and absorb, kind of. So you can do the math! Go liquid! and also, make sure you are taking plenty of amino acids, which I will go over the importance of in the next blog. But for now, know that amino's are the basic building blocks of protein, and they will aid in the absorption of protein into the muscles.

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Learn to Order Behind the Menu

Out for a night on the town with the guys, but want to stay on the right track? You need to learn to order behind the menu! The secret to ordering
"behind the menu" is actually to pick something from the menu that looks appetizing to you, then tweak it. Here are a few things I have discovered "behind the menu"

 Any dedicated fitness enthusiast will have a nutrition program (if not, and you would like one, contact me). Some more strict than others, but lets remember, we're not making a temporary change, being healthy is a lifestyle, not an event.

We all know it takes roughly 3 weeks to form a habit, about 3-4 months to start seeing a noticeable change. This is where you're friends will be complimenting you about your appearance. "Say Jimbo, you're looking good! What are you doing differently?" and about a year to make a full lifestyle change.. That being said, it's important that you keep yourself on track. No, a candy bar or an ice cream cone isn't going to kill you, but it's all in moderation my friends, eat responsibly! Keep the cheats few and far between! but in the mean time, Try these foods and restaurants to help you stay on track and annihilate the fat! 

Cafe Ole` 

Everybody loves Mexican cuisine, but everyone also knows the amount of sodium and calories this savory cuisine offers, which can put a severe dent in your calorie reduction. So I scouted around and finally found myself looking over the menu at downtown Boise's Cafe Ole` restaurant and finally I discovered it, Chicken Fajitas! We have our vegetables, our proteins from the chicken and black beans and also a decent amount of carbohydrates from the beans as well. 
1) Black Beans, NO RICE
2) ask for the meal to be cooked with no oil, just pan seered
3) no marinade or seasoning on the chicken!

Three easy steps to ensure you fill yourself up while keeping the calories low, enjoy!

Ihop (Post bar-dom!)

So the guys want to go out for some post party comfort food? You know there are only so many places are open at that time! Here's what I found at Ihop..

1)1 whole egg, 2 whites over medium cooked plain, no butter (no scrambled, as it contains an unknown amount of pancake batter
2) an order of turkey bacon or turkey sausage
3) Whole Wheat or Rye Bread, NO BUTTER
Here you have your fat, protein, and carbohydrates all for around 300 calories. Feel free to grab some orange juice or coffee, but watch the creamer as the calories and fats will add up fast!

Steakhouse

Keepin' it classy eh? Well here's a good bit of advice..

A nice steak house will trim, season, and cook your steak to your personal preference. They also will offer several assortments of sides, which at most steak restaurants includes some steamed vegetables.
For example.. I would order..
1) 12oz sirloin, unseasoned, cooked rare and fat trimmed
2) Steamed vegetables and asparagus
3) toss some Parmesan on the veggies and you're good to go!

Drinks

As the more nutritionally minded of us know, "light" beer isn't exactly.. well.. light.
Most of our fellow party-goers will consume roughly 1100 calories in "light" beer in one night out.  Most of us modern warriors will skip the alcohol and go for water, but if you must drink try these..

Rum and Diet Coke

Keep in mind, the coke is diet, but the 1oz of rum will contain roughly 64 calories

 

 

 

 

 

Michelob Ultra Light Cider

 

 40 Calories p/12 oz

 

 

 

Miller Genuine Draft 64

 

64 cal p/12oz 

 

 

 Monster Absolute Zero and Jager (personal favorite) 

 

 

 Be careful with this guy, its really easy to have a lot, just because they taste like candy!

                          

 

 

103 cal p/1 oz  

No matter what you do, you can't avoid empty carbs or calories when it comes to alcohol, so drink accordingly to your nutrition and burn the excess. Enjoy in moderation and drink responsibly!

 

Fitness From The Beginning

It all began in 7th grade. I wanted to be the "hot dude" all of the girls were looking at, but in reality all I saw in the mirror was a pile. I was 5'8 (pretty tall for a 7th grader) and about the same width around. I weighed in at a heavy 293lbs and wore an uncomfortable 38 inch pant, 40 if I wanted to relax.  I had always been overweight, and I knew it too, but I was just a kid, I didn't know any better other than to eat less candy bars and drink diet soda.

As I got older, and hit the early stages of puberty I began to spout up;  while still maintaining a bowling ball like appearance. I was always too heavy to play any sports. The optimist football teams would take one look at me and pull the liability card, until finally I reached middle school and the only boundary for sports were lightweight and heavyweight.

So there I was standing in line for the 7th Grade with aspirations of becoming "that guy", the STRONG, the FAST, the ELITE, and there it began, the moment I walked out of that orientation I began my life long commitment to fitness and 6 years later here I am at 7% body fat, 205 lbs and a week out from my first men's physique bodybuilding competition.

Throughout this blog I am going to share with you my personal tips on fitness, nutrition and staying motivated. If I am not living proof that you are capable of anything you desire, best of luck to you.. I've told you my story, so let me help you begin yours!