Do you need to eat after exercise, and what?
After a session, some of us grab the first fritter in sight while others eat nothing until the next day. Here is what official guidance says, with plates you already know.
The essentials
- Yes, but there is no rush: if you exercise for fitness, your next meal does the job.
- Combine a starchy food, a protein food and vegetables: rice and fish, niébé and plantain.
- Drink water: it is the best way to replace what you lost in sweat.
Do I have to eat straight after the session?
No, unless another session is coming soon. The British Dietetic Association keeps its advice to refuel as soon as possible for people who train or compete again within a short time. With two or three sessions a week, your next meal, eaten at its usual hour, tops your stores back up. Two sessions close together, a match in the morning and training in the evening for instance? That is when eating soon after the first one matters.
The figure quoted most often is aimed at athletes: the US National Institutes of Health reports expert advice to have some protein within two hours of exercising. Treat it as a broad indication. You leave dance class at 7pm and dinner is ready at 8.30pm? You are on time, with nothing to change.
What does a good recovery plate look like?
Like a complete dish you already cook: a starchy food to restore energy stores, a protein food for the muscles, vegetables or fruit. The International Olympic Committee puts the useful amount of protein after a session at 15 to 25 grams. To give a sense of scale, UK dietitians say about 20 grams is found in three medium eggs, a medium fillet of grilled fish (100g) or 600ml of milk.
These are general guides, not portions to weigh. In practice:
- rice and fish with its vegetables;
- attiéké (cassava couscous), grilled fish, tomatoes and onions;
- niébé (black-eyed beans) and plantain;
- a vegetable omelette and bread.
What if I get home late and I am not hungry?
Have a simple snack and leave the proper meal for the morning. Nothing says you must sit down to a full dinner at 10pm when you have no appetite. The idea is to bring together, on a small scale, the same things as on the plate: some carbohydrate, some protein.
- a bowl of lait caillé (soured milk) with millet couscous;
- a banana and a handful of groundnuts;
- a boiled egg and a piece of bread;
- leftover rice and sauce, reheated.
Breakfast the next day completes it. If you train several evenings in a row, preparing that snack before you leave saves you from ending the night with biscuits and a fizzy drink from the corner shop.
What should I drink afterwards?
Water first. The NHS describes it as the best way to replace fluids lost through sweating. Drink at your own pace, a little at a time, until your urine is pale yellow again.
Sweat carries salt away too. The International Olympic Committee notes that recovery means replacing both the water and the salts lost. A dish salted as usual, a broth or a soup will provide some, with no special product needed.
Bissap (hibiscus drink), ginger juice, lemonade: they all count towards what you drink, as long as you go easy on the sugar. For fruit juice, UK health authorities advise keeping to one small glass a day, or 150ml.
After the session, in practice
Do
- Late-afternoon session: your usual dinner, with a starchy food, fish or niébé and vegetables.
- Late-night session: soured milk and millet, or a banana and groundnuts, then a proper breakfast.
- Water as soon as you finish, a little at a time.
- Two sessions close together in one day: eat soon after the first.
Avoid
- Going without food until the next lunchtime after an evening session.
- Replacing the meal with a fizzy or very sugary drink.
- Buying a powder for two fitness sessions a week.
When to seek advice
If tiredness lingers from one session to the next, if you lose your appetite for several days or if you feel dizzy after exercise, see your doctor. If you have diabetes, or are pregnant or breastfeeding, ask a dietitian to adapt these guides to you.
General guidance for healthy adults. It does not replace advice from a health professional who knows your situation.