University recoery KwaZulu-Natal, Biokinetics, Exercise Nutrient timing for recovery Leisure Studies, Durban, foe, South Africa. Substrate Utilization During Endurance Soccer nutrition for injury prevention In Tining And Women After Endurance Training. To date, one study has indicated that carbohydrate administration before and during bouts of resistance exercise can improve performance, but these ergogenic outcomes were only seen in the second session of resistance exercise performed on the same day [ 71 ]. FASEB J.

Nutrient timing for recovery -

It ignites muscle glycogen recovery and helps repair and protect muscle. Muscle glycogen is important for endurance training as well as strength training. Therefore, exercise adaptation may be easier with adequate glycogen stores, which may allow clients to make consistent progress in their training.

The effectiveness of glycogen storage replenishment after a workout relies on the timing of the postexercise meal. Body composition improves—lean mass increases and fat mass decreases—when the correct blend of calories is ingested immediately after exercise Ferguson-Stegall et al.

Thus, if a client believes that taking in calories immediately after burning calories is negative, this thinking may need to be modified.

The concept of nutrient timing has been investigated for 30 years Fell et al. However, recent clinical trials have provided fine-tuning on what to eat and when to eat it. This time period—when the body is most ready for recovery—is called the metabolic window.

Beyond 45 minutes postexercise, the potential anabolic effect of the postexercise meal steadily declines until, at 2 hours, there is much less of an effect recovery of 24—36 hours. For someone who exercises once a week, these variations in anabolic effect may have limited importance. However, for fitness advocates and individuals who exercise several times a week or even several times a day, optimizing the effect is crucial for ensuring appropriate recovery in the shortest time possible.

Also, some people who exercise heavily experience appetite suppression, and with them it may be particularly important to discuss the value of the postexercise meal and its timing. For these clients, it may be appropriate to suggest liquid nutrition or food supplements protein shakes, carbohydrate beverages, etc.

as a viable alternative. Historically, research on postexercise meal optimization for endurance exercise has focused on carbohydrates for energy replenishment.

When it came to strength training, research focused on protein. For such people—who likely make up a large part of the personal training clientele—both carbohydrates and protein are required in an optimal postexercise meal.

A study led by John Ivy, PhD, professor emeritus in the department of kinesiology and health education at the University of Texas at Austin, showed that carbohydrate ingestion immediately following exercise increased glycogen storage almost twofold compared with carbohydrate ingestion 2 hours following exercise Ivy et al.

Subsequent research found that during the first 4 hours after exercise, the rate of glycogen synthesis increased with the quantity of carbohydrate intake up to a plateau level of 1. This target intake, however, results in a high caloric density. A more realistic carbohydrate intake is 0.

To calculate the grams of carbohydrate required, divide body weight in pounds by 2. Researchers have also investigated the types of carbohydrate required for the optimal postexercise meal. Clinical studies have demonstrated that for best recovery, both rapidly and slowly digested carbohydrates should be used after exercise Achten et al.

Rapidly digested carbohydrates, such as simple sugars glucose and sucrose , provide an almost immediate large increase in blood glucose levels, which prompts insulin secretion and raises blood insulin levels.

As mentioned previously, higher insulin levels help promote the anabolic state. Slowly digested carbohydrates, such as isomaltulose and waxy maize starch, provide a lower but more prolonged increase in blood glucose levels, for a full recovery.

Food sources that contain slowly digested or low—glycemic index carbohydrates are fresh fruit, carrots and steel-cut oats. The effect of simple sugars declines within 1 hour after exercise, but the effect of slowly digested carbohydrates can last up to 2—3 hours Achten et al.

The combination of protein and carbohydrate in the postexercise meal boosts glycogen synthesis more than carbohydrate does alone.

And with the addition of protein, blood insulin levels may rise more as well. Furthermore, because the presence of protein helps maximize muscle glycogen stores, protein consumption during the metabolic window allows individuals to consume fewer carbohydrate calories.

However, as noted earlier, this results in a high caloric density. I therefore typically recommend a ratio as an acceptable balance between calories and glycogen replenishment.

Protein intake may also reduce postexercise muscle damage by inducing repair. In one study using serum myoglobin an oxygen-transporting protein found in muscle as an indicator of muscle damage, the placebo group who consumed artificially flavored, sweetened water had the highest levels of blood myoglobin Valentine et al.

This indicated more muscle damage 6—9 hours after an extensive exercise period. The other groups—who consumed carbohydrate alone, high-carbohydrate alone or carbohydrate plus protein—all had significantly lower blood myoglobin levels indicating less muscle damage postexercise compared with the placebo group.

The carbohydrate-plus-protein group had the lowest myoglobin levels—nearly at preexercise levels—indicating that they had the least amount of muscle damage. This meant that the damage had been minimized and the muscle could repair and recover quickly.

Similar results were found for other markers of muscle damage, such as creatine kinase another protein found in muscle , when carbohydrates and protein were combined and consumed in the postexercise meal Valentine et al.

Studies in both resistance and endurance exercise have shown that a carbohydrate-plus-protein postexercise meal benefits muscle repair. One study also demonstrated that subsequent exercise performance after a 4-hour recovery period from the original exercise improved in the carbohydrate-plus-protein group, compared with the carbohydrate and placebo groups Ferguson-Stegall et al.

Protein can be an expensive addition to the postexercise meal; therefore, the amount of protein necessary for optimal exercise recovery is a consideration. Moore et al. These researchers found that optimal muscle protein synthesis occurred with 20 g of postexercise protein in men of average weight However, is this protein intake level optimal for all active individuals?

Women have also been tested—with similar results—in other supporting studies. However, individuals with significantly higher-than-average muscle mass or those who want to build muscle and have lower body fat may need additional protein.

Older or aging individuals may also need extra protein. As we age, muscle mass is naturally lost in a process known as sarcopenia. Regular exercise and high protein intake can slow the rate of muscle loss as we age. The quality of protein we ingest is another factor affecting exercise recovery.

Grains tend to be lower-quality proteins, but milk, chicken, fish, soy and vegetable proteins are higher quality Institute of Medicine Commonly ingested proteins are whey, casein and soy.

Top of Page Research Interests Vita Articles New Projects Miscellaneous UNM Home. Article Pag e. Nutrient Timing: The New Frontier in Fitness Performance Ashley Chambers, M. and Len Kravitz, Ph.

Introduction Exercise enthusiasts in aquatic exercise and other modes of exercise regularly seek to improve their strength, stamina, muscle power and body composition through consistent exercise and proper nutrition. It has shown that proper nutritional intake and a regular exercise regimen will bolster the body in achieving optimal physiological function Volek et al.

The science behind nutrient timing suggests that knowing what to eat and when to eat is a critical key to successfully achieving these health, fitness and performance goals. This article will synthesize the current understanding of how nutrient timing helps to repair tissue damage, restore physiological function, replenish glycogen stores, and promote muscle growth.

What Is Nutrient Timing? Nutrient timing is the application of knowing when to eat and what to eat before, during and after exercise. It is designed to help athletes, recreational competitors, and exercise enthusiasts achieve their most advantageous exercise performance and recovery.

There are three distinct phases in the nutrient timing system that are based on muscle, its nutritional requirements, and its recovery demands for best strength and endurance results.

But first, a basic review of the hormones of exercise is warranted. The Hormonal Responses To Exercise Within the body are numerous catabolic breaking down and anabolic building up hormones that are stimulated by exercise. Catabolic hormones aid in the disassembly of nutrients for energy production or cells needs.

The main catabolic hormones of exercise are epinephrine, norepinephrine, cortisol and glucagon. Anabolic hormones support muscle hypertrophy growth , tissue repair, inflammation control, and facilitate the regulation of carbohydrate, fat and protein metabolism.

The anabolic hormones of interest during exercise are insulin, testosterone, IGF-I and growth hormone. The Catabolic Hormones During aerobic exercise, levels of epinephrine and norepinephrine are elevated to prepare or mobilize the cells for the breakdown of glycogen converting it to glucose for fuel in the liver and muscle.

These hormones also increase the heart rate, blood pressure, heart contractility, blood redistribution to muscle, and respiration rate to meet the physiological needs of the continuous dynamic exercise.

Cortisol is largely responsible for the breakdown of carbohydrate and fat for energy during exercise. It is a very important catabolic hormone that is activated when low blood glucose levels are present, such as during exhaustive exercise.

If the body is low in glucose and glycogen, cortisol will send amino acids to the liver to make new glucose, referred to as gluconeogeneses. Thus, in exercise, when carbohydrate sources are dwindling, cortisol takes the building blocks of proteins amino acids and uses them for new glucose synthesis.

The Anabolic Hormones One widely known anabolic hormone is insulin. Insulin sensitivity is increased during aerobic and resistance exercise, which literally means there is an enhanced glucose uptake for muscle contraction.

It also accelerates the transport of amino acids into muscle and stimulates protein synthesis in muscles Levenhagen et al. However, during sustained aerobic exercise insulin levels in the blood decrease slightly because epinephrine and norepinephrine inhibit the release of insulin from the pancreas.

Another important anabolic hormone is testosterone. Testosterone is a powerful hormone for protein synthesis and muscle hypertrophy. Growth hormone is an anabolic hormone that promotes bone and cartilage growth.

It is also responsible for stimulating IGF-I, a hormone responsible for the development of muscle cells from myoblasts immature muscle cells into myotubes growing muscles cells and then into mature muscle fibers.

High levels of IGF-I are needed in order to promote muscle hypertrophy. Growth hormone also increases protein synthesis Volek, The Three Nutrient Timing Phases The nutrient timing system is split into three distinct phases: 1 Energy Phase just before and during workout 2 Anabolic Phase post 45 minutes of workout 3 Growth Phase remainder of the day The Energy Phase Muscle glycogen is the primary fuel followed by fat used by the body during exercise.

Low muscle glycogen stores result in muscle fatigue and the body's inability to complete high intensity exercise Levenhagen et al. The depletion of muscle glycogen is also a major contributing factor in acute muscle weakness and reduced force production Haff et al. Both aerobic and anaerobic exercise decrease glycogen stores, so the need for carbohydrates is high for all types of exercise during this energy phase.

Several hormonal and physiological responses occur during the energy phase. Prior to aerobic exercise, protein intake with carbohydrate supplementation has been shown to stimulate protein synthesis post-exercise Volek et al.

Carbohydrate supplementation prior to resistance training can increase the body's capacity to perform more sets, repetitions and prolong a resistance training workout Haff et al. The Anabolic Phase: The Minute Optimal Window The anabolic phase is a critical phase occurring within 45 minutes post-exercise.

It is during this time that muscle cells are particularly sensitive to insulin, making it necessary to ingest the proper nutrients in order to make gains in muscle endurance and strength. If the proper nutrients are ingested 2 - 4 hours post-exercise they will not have the same effect.

It is also during this time in which the anabolic hormones begin working to repair the muscle and decrease its inflammation. Immediate ingestion of carbohydrate is important because insulin sensitivity causes the muscle cell membranes to be more permeable to glucose within 45 minutes post-exercise.

This results in faster rates of glycogen storage and provides the body with enough glucose to initiate the recovery process Burke et al.

Muscle glycogen stores are replenished the fastest within the first hour after exercise.

Nutrient timing for recovery are several benefits of nutrient timing. These involve maximizing Potassium-rich foods body's timinb to Nutriejt Optimal nutrition for athletes use timlng nutrients. The Nutrient Timing Principles NTP help you do the following:. When Fruit punch hydration drink nutritionists talk about energy, we are referring to the potential energy food contains. Calories are potential energy to be used by muscles, tissues, and organs to fuel the task at hand. Much of the food we eat is not burned immediately for energy the minute it's consumed. Rather, our bodies digest, absorb, and prepare it so that it can give us the kind of energy we need, when we need it.