Pre-Training

General advice for eating before exercise is to have a carbohydrate rich meal (e.g. pasta dish, sweet potato or rice) 2-4 hours before you start.  Followed by a pre-workout snack e.g. Musashi 100% Whey 30-minutes before.

This is more easily achievable when training later in the day, but it is not always practical before early morning sessions.  In this situation, a ‘planned grazing’ approach can be useful.  A small snack (e.g. banana) before training and top up energy by sipping Musashi Intra-Workout during your session. Following your training a Musashi Bulk Protein should be consumed within 30-minutes of finishing and breakfast e.g. oats or omelette within 2-hours.

Grazing throughout the day on nutritious snacks is also a good tactic for those who are in a tournament situation, when time is limited between events and it’s not practical to train on a full stomach. Consuming small amounts of protein (20g) 5-6 times a day is also proven to maximise muscle building and lean definition[1]. Musashi Deluxe Protein Bar contains 20g of protein providing rapid, easy to digest protein which can be easily be eaten before or after training.

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Post-Training

Consuming carbohydrate and protein during the early phases of recovery e.g. within 1-hour of finishing positively affects future exercise performance and is of benefit for athletes who complete multiple training sessions in a day or even heavy training on consecutive days.

Endurance athletes generally focus on carbohydrate intake to restore energy in the muscles, whereas resistance athletes are mainly interested in post-exercise protein to increase muscle mass. However, all athletes will benefit from a combination of carbohydrate and protein.

The biggest advantage of a protein shake is not that it can help you recover faster than foods, such as eggs or a chicken breast, but it provides convenient high-quality nutrition on the go. It is easier to drink a protein shake than to buy, cook and consume whole foods – when time is short.

Musashi Bulk contains a combination of carbohydrates and protein, making it a nutritionally complete post-training snack. Another great post-workout snack is a protein smoothie (banana, berries, 4 tablespoons Greek yogurt, Musashi High Protein and ice).

The right foods at the right time can make a difference to performance but the wrong foods at the wrong time can sabotage your efforts in the gym.  A number of factors can interfere with pre and post nutrition strategies including fatigue, loss of appetite, poor access to foods and personal commitments.  It is important to take a planned approach and ensure foods are convenient and easily available.

High quality sports supplements provide a practical and convenient way to consume energy, especially when everyday foods are not available or cannot be tolerated.  You can confidently include Musashi 100% Whey, Musashi Bulk Protein and Musashi Shred and Burn as part of your training program.

 

[1] Breen L, Tipton KD, Jeukendrup AE. No effect of carbohydrate-protein on cycling performance and indices of recovery. Med Sci Sports Exerc. (2010) 42:1140–8.