We know exercise is crucial
when it comes to living a healthy life
but we also know we need to fuel our bodies to keep up
that active routine.
So today's healthy eats,
we're learning how to maximize nutrition for those pre
and post workout meals.
Giving us the why when it comes to what we eat
is registered Dietician Nutritionist
Dawn Jackson Blatner.
Dawn it's time to get smart about what we're putting
in our mouths before and after a workout.
But why should we even think about it?
- If you're gonna put in all
of the effort doing your workout,
it is best to think about how you're fueling before
and how you're fueling after to get the most out
of all that work.
So what you eat before what you eat after,
really can impact how much that you get out
of that exercise.
- Okay. The biggest question that everybody has
is should we eat before we work out
or should we eat after we work out?
- A little something before a workout actually can fuel you
and feel very good.
An after workout is a must your body needs repair
and recovery.
So really it could be before
and after a workout.
So the goal before a workout
is to give you just a little bump of fuel
and a little bit of protection for your muscle.
So the beautiful combination that is very simple before
a workout is produce like a piece of fruit
that will give you those carbs
which are fuel to get you going
and then protein to help keep those muscles protected.
And protein examples would be nuts, nut butter,
a cheese stick, hemp seeds and not too much
you just want it to be a snack size.
- Let's talk about post-workout.
Is that still a snack something quick and easy?
- After a workout,
and if you've done a good, hard, strong workout
your body is like, "Please feed me."
And you really need a balanced meal.
You need to replenish what you just used.
So something like carbohydrates like quinoa
will help replenish what you just used.
You need protein to rebuild the muscles
that you just ripped up and used like a chicken breast
and you need vegetable lots of colorful vegetables
and a healthy fat in order to repair everything you've done.
- So Dawn give us the timeline.
How soon before and how long after should
we be eating these snacks and meals?
- Before workout is about 30 to 60 minutes
that you would have one of these produce and protein snacks.
When it comes to after workout, you can eat right away
if you're hungry and then up to about two hours.
You don't wanna wait too long 'cause your body really
is excited to get those nutrients in and start recovery.
- And speaking of fueling of a workout,
today you're gonna show us how to make
our own electrolytes sports drink.
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- It's very easy to make just three ingredients.
So the first thing you're gonna need is coconut water.
It's actually nature's sports drink.
And I put about eight ounces in there.
And then you need about a sixteenth,
very tiny amount of sea salt.
And so that sixteenth of a teaspoon of sea salt
is what we're losing in sweat.
So now we are creating all those electrolytes
to replenish what we're sweating out.
Per flavor my third ingredient is a little lemon.
I love lemon and I feel like it really makes
it taste sort of like lemonade.
If you wanna bring it to the next level,
you can actually add matcha green tea powder
or even beet root powder for a little natural energy kit.
- So I think wrapping it all up as we're considering
what we're eating pre and post workouts,
if we're mindful about what we're putting in our mouths
we're gonna reap the rewards in our exercise routines
and live a healthy life.
- If you pay attention to what you're eating before
and after workout and you're staying well hydrated
you will have the best workout of your life.
- Great information, Dawn.
Thank you so much.
- Thanks Jane.
I gotta go work out now.
- If you want even more healthy eating advice,
we're sharing lots of information from our experts.
Just search for us on Facebook at livinghealthychicago.