Thank you to Naked Nutrition for sponsoring this post: What To Eat After A Run. Although I may receive compensation for my review, all opinions shared are my own.
So you finished your run. Congratulations! The hard part is over, and now you’re done, right?
Not so fast…There are still a few very important things to do to help aid your recovery after your run is finished!
After you finish a run, your body is in a state where it’s glycogen stores have been depleted and there are small tears in your muscles that will need to repair to help you to become stronger.
You need to take steps shortly after a run to ensure that your body has what it needs to repair properly and get stronger for your next run!
So what do you do? The first step is to stretch your tired muscles after a run. Why? Stretching improves you circulation and flexibility. It helps to eliminate lactic acid and it helps to decrease your risk of injury. So make sure you do that! But what else?
The next step is fuel! It is critical that you nourish your body with the right post-run fuels to enable proper recovery and workout gains.
In this article I’m going to talk about what to eat after a run: why it’s important, how much time after a run you should be refueling, and what you should be eating.
Why Should You Refuel After A Run?
Refueling after a run is essential to helping your body recover properly! It helps your body to replenish the depleted nutrients that you lost during your workout.
Making sure to refuel properly after a run is the best way to ensure that you set your body up to come back stronger and prevent injury.
When Should You Refuel After A Run?
You should plan to refuel within 30 minutes after you finish a run. The sooner you refuel, the better, as your body is primed and ready to receive some recovery nutrition!
What To Eat After A Run
There are a few essentials that you should be making sure to include in your post-run recovery fuel. I’ll go over each of them and a few examples/ideas of each!
Hydration
Rehydration is super critical after finishing a run. Your body works more efficiently when you are fully hydrated.
Be sure to drink lots of water after your runs to replace the water that you lost through sweat. Staying hydrated improves recovery time and just helps all of the systems in your body to work better.
Electrolytes
Electrolytes help to aid in the rehydration process. Particularly if you did a long, grueling run…it’s a good idea to add some electrolytes to your post-run recovery routine.
Your body loses electrolytes during your runs, and they are critical to help your body to function properly and effieciently.
A few examples of electrolytes that you consume after a workout are foods that contain salt. You could also enjoy a sports drink such as Gateraid or Nuun Hydration.
Protein
It is essential to have a source of protein within 30 minutes after finishing your runs. When you run, your body breaks down protein. This is why it’s so important to replenish protein after your runs.
Refueling with protein helps to repair your muscles and helps them to grow back bigger and stronger.
What are some examples of healthy protein you can eat after a run? One of the easiest (and tastiest!) options in my opinion is to have a protein shake!
I recently tried a new type of protein powder to make my protein shakes called Naked Nutrition.
The type of protein powder I used is called Naked Pea. Naked Pea is a vegan protein powder that is extracted from yellow split peas grown on US and Canadian farms.
Pea protein is easily absorbed by the body, making it an excellent plant-based alternative to whey protein.
I made a delicious vegan almond chia protein smoothie using the following ingredients:
- 1 banana
- 1 TBSP almond butter
- 1 TBSP chia seeds
- 3/4 cup almond milk
- 1 scoop pea protein
- Crushed ice
I blended all of these ingredients together in a blender to make a delicious and healthy protein shake to have after my run!
Other examples of healthy proteins that you could try after a run include a glass of milk, eggs, yogurt, or protein bars.
Carbohydrates
When you run, you deplete your glycogen stores. Glycogen is like the gas that a car uses to power it. It’s the fuel that your body uses to fuel your runs.
In order to replenish these lost glycogen stores after your workout, you need to refuel with a source of carbohydrates.
A few examples of some healthy carbs to eat after your run include a banana, an energy bar, oatmeal, an apple, or peanut butter toast.
What is your favorite way to refuel after your runs?
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