4 Foods You Should Eat After You Exercise
Try eating these healthy snacks after your workout routine.
— -- intro:If you're anything like me, you love having some sort of snack after a workout. Post workout is an ideal time to eat a small meal with both protein and carbohydrates to help repair and build muscles and replenish your energy stores, respectively. It's best to eat within 60 minutes of finishing a workout because that's when your muscles are most receptive.
Here are some of my favorites:
quicklist: 1category: Foods to Eat After You Exercisetitle: Chocolate Milkurl:text: Chocolate milk is an awesome post-workout snack and it's delicious, too. I like Organic Valley chocolate milk served ice cold after I go for a long run or do a power Vinyasa class. I pour it over a large glass of ice and savor it as I cool off. Research also shows that drinking chocolate milk after a strenuous workout may help lessen muscle damage and aid in recovery.
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quicklist: 2category: Foods to Eat After You Exercisetitle: Strawberries and Creamurl:text:The cream is healthy Greek yogurt sweetened with stevia. I love Fage 2% Greek yogurt mixed with a small dash of stevia (or sweetener of your choice) topped with sliced strawberries. Or you can make a dip and swirl each strawberry in it. Greek yogurt is loaded with protein—between 15 and 20 grams per container depending on the brand and size—and strawberries have antioxidants that can also protect your cells against damage.
quicklist: 3category: Foods to Eat After You Exercisetitle: Banana Smoothieurl:text:Bananas are chock full of potassium which helps keep your muscles from cramping. Potassium is the main electrolyte that powers muscles and adding it to a whey protein shake makes for an amazing recovery drink. Whey's amino acids are quickly absorbed by muscles boosting recovery and growth. I make mine with 1 scoop of whey protein powder, 1 frozen banana, ice, and unsweetened vanilla almond milk.
quicklist: 4category: Foods to Eat After You Exercisetitle: Roasted Jalapeno Barurl:text:This new bar from Kind has 10 grams of protein and it's made with 100% whole ingredients: almonds, pumpkin seeds, hemp seeds, pea crisps (made with pea protein isolate), and spices. The jalapeno flavor has a great kick to it and there's no weird, chalky artificial taste like some protein bars have. Almonds are a good source of vitamin E and antioxidants which can help fight damage caused by inflammation. I find this bar is perfect after a strength-training workout as I always crave something savory after a good sweat. Great for when you're on the road and need to pack something with you easily.
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This article originally appeared on Health.com.
