PWO meals and what to have for evening workouts?

[Angie Spada]

Hi there, I am new to this site and wanted to introduce myself. I am from Australia, married and a mother of 1 beautiful little 6 year old girl. I used to be overweight, but in 12 months I lost 64lbs or 31 kilos. Now I am on the road to transformation. I am 5ft 0", 33 years old and weigh 113lbs.

I workout in the evenings due to owning a business and family life. By the time I get home after training it is  approximately 10pm and I have my PWO meal around 10.45pm.

Now I normally have 1 cup of liquid egg whites and 1/4 cup of rolled oats with a little cinnamon. Just wondering if this is ok to have?

If not, what would you suggest? Keep in mind it will be late in the evening when I will be consuming the meal. 

thanks very much

Angie

[Rodney Tyler Bruhm]

seems like a great post workout meal if your goal is to loose fat and gain muscle, good carbs and protein.only issue may be the carbs late at night, normally is a bulk up routine, but if your working out hard the muscles will put it all in the right places. you sound like me in alot of way's, workout late after work and kid's to bed...but it's better than doing nothing i say.

[Angie Spada]

very true. Thats the only time I can go. To be honest I enjoy it as my training is better and its also a stress relief..lol
The late carb thing was my concern, but I lift weights for 1 hr and do cardio for 30 mins so I think i am good to go. not sure if there are better choices though. Would be good to hear other opinions.

[Mario Fanzolato]

Hi Angie. Rodney is right. It's a good, healthy meal.

Seeing that your workout is quite intense, including both weight training and cardio... You definitely need to be replenishing your sugars directly afterwards (along with the protein, of course). If you only take in the egg whites, then you'll have a difficult time putting on (or even maintaining) muscle. Even though complex carbs are usually the preferred source for bodybuilders/athletes (over simple sugars, which temporarily diminish your body's ability to burn fat)... When eating late at night (and before bed) it's probably best to avoid starchy carbohydrates. The reason for this is so that you won't be bloated the following morning and possibly in the longterm. In my opinion it would be best to replace the rolled oats with a fruit. This is unless you're diabetic. Gary Udit, an NPC bodybuilding judge, mentions this in his DVD "Perfect Contest Diet". He offers a very natural, healthy approach to dieting to achieve extremely low percentage of body fat.

Concerning nutrition, it's important to be conscious of the way you look and feel at all times. Listen to your body. What I, or anyone else tells you (no matter how knowledgeable that person is) may actually hinder your results. There are so many factors to take into account that it's impossible for us to know exactly what works for you. Let your instincts guide you. If you absolutely crave rolled oats after your workout, then that may be a sign that you need them. Let us know how things go :)

[Angie Spada]

ok thankyou mario. So you think that I should maybe then stop the oats? I can have an apple I guess. what are the best fruits to have?

[MRFITNESS_28]

Why not boil the egg whites? raw = protein not used body just flushes it out.

Id suggest a portion of almonds, can of fish and salad. If you want the oats have with a protein powder and some flaxseed oil.

Try this ;)

[Angie Spada]

Thanks for your reply. I was told to avoid fats before bed or late at night, so this is why I am having conflicting messages. I used to have 1 cup of greek low fat yogurt, 1 tsp of ground flaxseed and some blueberries. Not so sure now.
Initially after my training, I have 1 scoop of whey powder, 5gms creatine and glutamine and 25g of dextrose. Then I was told to have a protein/carb meal within 1 hour of my workout. Is this right?

[MRFITNESS_28]

Everything you mentioned is acceptable ;)

Post workout also on par, good work.

Simple sugars post as you have done solid within 1 - 2hrs would be effecient.
I train 530am - 630 or 6 then take post workout - anabolic injection = amino acids powder formula and right after that a mass gainer quality protein with 1 cup of oats in it. - head to work 2 hrs later have a heavy carb meal with protein and vegies and soy milk or light.

1 - 2 hrs main meal should be ok - but remember post workout meal is the one for the money most important of the day beside breaky of course ;)

If you have minimal fat it couldnt hurt like 10 almonds or so, or a tablespoon of monounsaturated oil i.e flaxseed.

[Angie Spada]

Ok thank you. I love peanut butter, so if i can have 1 tsp of that id be satisfied..lol

[Mario Fanzolato]

Hi Angie. My fruit of choice would be a banana... however that may be a little too heavy for you right before bed. In that case, select a nice sweet, yet light fruit. Something along the lines of an apple, or pineapple, or an orange (or two tangerines), etc. You can mix it up a little for some variety. For example, an apple on Mondays/Wednesdays, an orange on Tuesdays/Thursdays, pineapple on Fridays, etc.

I understand that it could be a little confusing when getting conflicting opinions on the subject of nutrition. One way to see what works for you is to try out a certain type of post-workout meal for at least 2 weeks, but preferably a month. See what results it brings, then switch it up a bit... again giving yourself a month to analyze the results & compare it to the previous month's results. The only problem with this is that your body is in a constant evolution. Physically, who you are today is not who you are tomorrow. That's why the best advice I could give you concerning nutrition (as well as every other aspect of fitness), is to always listen to your body. There's a little voice inside you that tells you when something is right (or wrong). Over the past 10 years I've had trainers, each with their own points of view and very different philosophies on weight training, cardio, nutrition, etc. What I did was take from each of them what I felt was right, and disregarded the rest. I truly believe that a person can only begin tapping into their potential once they've mastered listening to their own instincts (and this sometimes takes years). But I think you're there, or almost there judging by your pics. You're ripped and I'm sure that many of us here on this forum and other areas of the website have a lot to learn from you (myself included).

Keep going... and please let us know about your progress.

[Angie Spada]

Thank you so Much for your detailed reply Mario I appreciate it very much. I had an apple last night, and you are right, it did not bloat me as much. 1 other question and sorry for being a pain, If I am including dextrose in my PWO shake immediately after my training, do I still need to eat carbs with my other meal (within the 1 hr bracket)? Is it crucial to do so?
Also just before bed (about 1 hr after my PWO food meal), I will have either a casein shake or 1/2 cup of FF cottage cheese. I have been doing this for some time now and it is working for me. Do you think this is ok? Sorry for all the questions but I like to get advice from people who are more knowledgeable in this department and you seem like you know your stuff. lol.
thank you

[Mario Fanzolato]

No problem Angie... It's my pleasure to help all of our members out, and as often as I can. Also, it's great that you're asking questions, as I learn a lot of things in the process (so please don't ever hesitate to do so).

If directly after your workout you have a shake that includes dextrose, then you should be replenishing your sugars enough to recover fully (and to be good for the night). And as you've said, about an hour after that (& right before bed), you have either a casein shake or cottage cheese... allowing your body enough protein to sustain you throughout the night (which is all you really need... So, no don't take in more carbs).

You're on the right track to building super-lean muscle. Keep up the good work Angie :)

[Stephanie]

G'day Angie, I've just joined the site today and saw your post. Like you I'm from Australia, Vic... I've been using the bb.com site for a while but wanted to give this site a go. Sorry I can't answer your question about what you should eat but wanted to let you know that I always had conflicting advice about what and when to eat. So I'm using a nutritional coach for a while, as he knows my usual daily workout patterns and my daily challenges. He has made a meal plan to suit me. I've been on it a month now and seeing the most changes I've had so far. I know its not for everyone but its something to think about.