Pre/Post Workout Meals

I woke up at 5:30AM today to train our 6:30AM class. Luckily, I had already prepared some food the night prior for a quick and easy breakfast...

Protein:
-one chicken breast
-two slices of roast beef
-two slices bacon
-slice of Swiss cheese

Carbs:
-strawberries
-blueberries
-grapes

Fat:
-bacon

Extra:
-three capsules of fish oil
-lots of water

You will notice a few things about this meal. I'm definitely missing out on fat. I had an avocado that I forgot to eat, but I did eat some almonds as I was training a few clients. Another thing significantly lacking is vegetables, something I could definitely eat more of. Classes ended at 8:30AM. I did my lifts and then some sprint work on the local track. At about 11AM, I had this post-workout meal...

Protein:
-one chicken breast
-one salmon filet
-two pieces of bacon
-a protein shake (not pictured)

Carbs:
-half a sweet potatoe
-strawberries
-blueberries
-grapes
-another shake (Perfect Food's Super Green Formula)

Fat:
-bacon
-olive oil on the sweet potato
-cashews (not pictured)

Extra:
-three capsules of fish oil
-lots of water

This meal is similar to my breakfast, but with some obvious adjustments. First off, there's a lot more protein in this meal. Post-workout is the ideal time to consume more protein in hopes to gain weight/muscle. This is especially necessary for a hard gainer like myself. Once again, I forgot to eat my damn avocado. I'm also eating half a sweet potatoe post-workout. According to Robb Wolf, there is a 45-minute window immediately following a workout in which your insulin sensitivity is at it's highest. This is where you want to consume a majority of your daily carbs, especially those rich in nutrients - like sweet potatoes. I can elaborate on insulin sensitivity if anyone is interested, but I'll leave it alone for now. You'll also notice I had a shake of Perfect Food's Super Green Formula. It's designed for people who don't consume enough leafy/green vegetables. I do not recommend it for several reasons: 1) It tastes awful, literally awful 2) There's no excuse for not eating enough veggies and I admit this supplement is a bit of a cop-out, but I'm a busy man damn it. And finally, the last thing to take note of is that I have upped my fish oil intake to three capsules per meal. I'm essentially going for 12 per day. Why? Because we need at least 3g of essential fatty acids (EPA/DHA). This requires a lot of fish oil everday.

I hope everyone is starting to take their nutrition more seriously. With football season fast-approaching, it's going to be very hard to stay disciplined. Do you best and let's hope the Patriots fail miserably...