I feel silly asking this, but I'm going to tell you what I heard a trainer tell someone today at the gym. My old trainer told me that after weight training you do a PWO protein shake and a carb source, but I heard a trainer this am say that you only do a PWO protein shake NO carbs, as they would "shut off" the fat burning process that the protein is suppose to do. What is that all about
I'm drinking my shake right now, 8 oz 2% milk, 30 g protein powder, frozen strawberries, and 2 T ground flaxseed....oh and 1/4 t. of glucomannan (I'm trying that again.)
My understanding is that you want BOTH protein and carb after workout because the carbs help your muscles heal AND help shuttle the protein to the muscles. I know that John Berardi and Mike Roussel both encourage PWO carbs and I take their info to be very reliable.
That is my understanding also, but he was saying that if your goal is fatloss, you should only have protein after lifting weights and carbs are for people who want to gain muscle. Isn't fat loss (replacing fat with muscle) our goal I just need to close my ears when I'm at the gym, all it does is confuse me!!
there are many discussions on the ins and outs of PWO nutrition opinions on the site - try a search in the Nutrition section and you'll see what I mean.
It probably depends on what nutritional guide you are following. For instance, I am doing TNT Plan A. I have a PWO before AND after my workouts -- protein only. Once I switch to Plan B next month, I have PWO before AND after, BUT it changes to protein AND carbs -- no fat.
My understanding is that you want BOTH protein and carb after workout because the carbs help your muscles heal AND help shuttle the protein to the muscles. I know that John Berardi and Mike Roussel both encourage PWO carbs and I take their info to be very reliable.
This is what I have read also and I would believe Berardi and Roussel over any trainer at a gym.
I do a PWO shake of 6 oz skim milk + 1 scoop PP. Some days with half a banana or 3 cherries blended in (when I feel like using the blender).
Bear in mind though that Berardi's whole concept is you get starchy carbs ONLY after you workout. The rest of our daily meals only have vegetables. And protein of course, protein is in every meal. It's a big difference between the nutrition plan in the book and PN.
If you are eating starchy carbs with every meal then I suspect the rules change slightly. Then again PW is still the best time for your body to use those carbs.
I'm not an expert by any means, but I did stay at a holiday inn express last night!
Lifting weights tears the muscle fibers apart, forcing the body to rebuild them stronger than they were before. The more efficently the body does this the more gains you should see. To repair the fibers, the body needs protien and carbs. The most efficient source of protien and carbs is from easy to digest foods (like shakes.)
Now the way I understand this is that if you only use protien, the body can use carbs that are already in the system, this might promote some added WEIGHT/fat loss but it takes longer, therfore loosing some of the window you have to rebuild muscle.
However! (isn't there always a however?) Programs like NROL and others don't really promote excercise as a direct means of fat loss. Muscle mass is a far more efficent way to burn calories in the long run(it burns energy all the time, not just when excercising.) So the goal is to build the muscle, and let the muscle burn off the fat.
In short, Drink your protien and Carbs and don't waste the muscle building oportunity that a lifting session provides. Worry about cutting the fat during your daily eating.
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Txgirl - I would also say that there is probably no one "right" answer for everyone. Just as some respond fine to starchy carbs, others don't. You can try experimenting one way for a month to see if you notice a difference, and then try the other way for another month. Or just go with what you prefer?
What I've read is that the PWO shake should consist of protein and a simple carb such as fruit or gatorade. The theory being that the simple carb supplies immediate glycogen to the muscles for recovery and the protein helps repair torn fibers.
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Txgirl, fructose and non-fructose is all good PWO. Fructose you'll get from fruit and high fructose corn syrup. Non-fructose would be glucose, dextrose, maltodextrin, also complex carbs from grains (maltodextrin is a complex carb that behaves like a simple carb).
Muscle cannot use fructose. The liver needs to convert it to glucose, but this is a slow process. The muscle can use glucose, destrose and maltodextrin quite easily, but the liver can't.
The body can also breakdown muscle protein and convert it to glucose, but this is undesirable.
After an intense exercise session, the muscle is depleted of glycogen, so it goes to the blood. As blood glycogen starts to diminish, the liver starts to release it's stores. So, you want both fructose to replenish the liver and non-fructose for the muscle. This will help to prevent the body from breaking down the muscle to use as a energy source. Thus, carbs are muscle sparing, protein is muscle building.
In general, Aragon's advice is to get 1/3 of your carbs from fruit.
I found a pretty good article on PWO nutrition. It does read like a college biology textbook though. Anyway, they recommend protein, maltodextrin, and dextrose. They also say to stay away from frustose because "Fructose will not replenish muscle glycogen but rather will replenish liver glycogen." For whatever that's worth.
They also say to stay away from frustose because "Fructose will not replenish muscle glycogen but rather will replenish liver glycogen." For whatever that's worth.
And you want to replenish the liver as well as the muscle. You don't want the majority of your carbs coming from fructose though.
Some women crash badly if they have too many simple carbs post-workout. Therefore, protein only or protein plus fat (such as a Tbsp of natural nut butter) are preferable to keep better control of blood sugar levels.
Yes, women's bodies use fat better as a fuel source during a workout session than men's do. They use the intra-musclular triglycerides(IMTG, fat in the muscle near the mitochondria), to create ATP energy and support muscle contractions. Therefore, adding fat post-workout for women replenishes the stores of energy that they deplete unlike men who use more carbs.
Some women crash badly if they have too many simple carbs post-workout. Therefore, protein only or protein plus fat (such as a Tbsp of natural nut butter) are preferable to keep better control of blood sugar levels.
Yes, women's bodies use fat better as a fuel source during a workout session than men's do. They use the intra-musclular triglycerides(IMTG, fat in the muscle near the mitochondria), to create ATP energy and support muscle contractions. Therefore, adding fat post-workout for women replenishes the stores of energy that they deplete unlike men who use more carbs.
Cassandra, is there a particular chain length that is ideal for women? MCT? Long chains, etc?
Would peanut butter be a good source?
Will this be a case where Muscle Milk comes into its own?
Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 2002 Mar;282(3):E634-42 Myocellular triacylglycerol breakdown in females but not in males during exercise.
Steffensen CH, Roepstorff C, Madsen M, Kiens B.
Department of Human Physiology, Copenhagen Muscle Research Centre, University of Copenhagen, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark.
The resting content and use of myocellular triacylglycerol (MCTG) during 90 min of submaximal exercise [60% of peak oxygen uptake (VO(2 peak))] were studied in 21 eumenorrheic female and 21 male subjects at different training levels [untrained (UT), moderately trained (MT), and endurance trained (END)]. Males and females were matched according to their VO(2 peak) expressed relative to lean body mass, physical activity level, and training history. All subjects ingested the same controlled diet for 8 days, and all females were tested in the midfollicular phase of the menstrual cycle. Resting MCTG, measured with the muscle biopsy technique, averaged 48.4 +/- 4.2, 48.5 +/- 8.4, and 52.2 +/- 5.8 mmol/kg dry wt in UT, MT, and END females, respectively, and 34.1 +/- 4.9, 31.6 +/- 3.3, and 38.4 +/- 3.0 mmol/kg dry wt in UT, MT, and END males, respectively (P < 0.001, females vs. males in all groups). Exercise decreased MCTG content in the female subjects by an average of 25%, regardless of training status, whereas in the male groups MCTG content was unaffected by exercise. The arterial plasma insulin concentration was higher (P < 0.05) and the arterial plasma epinephrine concentration was lower (P < 0.05) in the females than in the males at rest and during exercise. MCTG use was correlated to the resting concentration of MCTG (P < 0.001). We conclude that resting content and use of MCTG during exercise are related to gender and furthermore are independent of training status.
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