Post-Workout Starvation
 

Hi all,

I have a bit of a question.

When I get home from the gym I am absolutely starving, just totally ravenous. I time my trips to the gym so that I eat lunch when I get back. I've been having a big salad with protein, or a wrap with salad and protein when I get home, but I feel as though I metabolize the food almost instantly upon eating it, and I'm hungry again right away. I usually resort to simple carbs like potatoes for my second lunch, but I have been known to eat fats instead...and since I feel hungry after the gym, I tend to feel hungry for the rest of the day, and snack accordingly.

Does anyone have any suggestions for dealing with this tricky problem? I've been trying to limit my lunch to 300 calories, which seems like it should be enough. Should I try feeding myself more calories at lunch? What can I eat that is lo-cal but substantial enough to combat this starvation? Should I just be eating a greater quantity of baby spinach?

Help!

You might want to experiment with eating lunch first and then going to the gym. Some people like to "fuel their workouts" and it works for them. Personally, I find it best to work out first since exercise can be an appetite supressant (not always though). When I used to eat lunch first, and then go work out, I'd find that I would be ravenous even if I had just eaten an hour before.

It sounds like you're doing well with including carbs and protein into your diet; maybe you might want to increase them a little more. Just experiment. It's all about finding what works best for you. Now that I think of it, you've mentioned salads and wraps...maybe you need something hot to give you the feeling of satiety. Maybe try adding a cup of broth?

Are you taking in any (healthy) fat with your salads? That might help.

I did a bit better today, despite doing 90 mins of cardio instead of the usual 60. I prepared my salad before I went to the gym and I made it GIANT, with at least two cups of spinach and another cup of veggies. I added some kalamata olives, a hard boiled egg and 3oz of shrimp. It was pretty yummy, actually. I also had two pieces of toast with it, for the carbs. There's a teeny bit of olive oil in my dressing, and fat in the olives, so that's probably enough.

I think my problem has been this wrap phase I've been going through. I like to eat carbs, especially after working out, and the wrap seemed like a good way of consuming them. They're too small to get much salad in though, so I think if I want to go that route, I need to make a side salad to go with the protein and salad wrap. I might make a nice 100-cal/serving soup to have with my salad tomorrow. The comment above about feeling more sated after a warm meal than a cold one is spot on, I think.

When I come back from the gym I am also ravenous!! I have eaten usually at 8am before leaving for the gym too... I am back at around 10 or so, I will eat a protein drink with a carb like an apple or strawberries... I take my shower and after that I am hungry again I WILL eat my lunch, another protein , lean chicken, tuna and a carb portion usually chickpeas or even a bowl of oatmeal if I'm really hungry I'll have a salad or a vegetable soup.

After this initial feeling of starvation and the food, as you said, being metabolised almost immediately, I'm ok the rest of the day...So, between 8am and noon I've eaten at least 3 times. Some days are worse than others, I'm a bear after a leg workout... I just make sure I eat every 2 to 3 hours on those days... There's nothing wrong with eating 5-6 mini meals throughout the day, this way you're never ravenous if you know you will be able to eat in an hour or so agian...

When I was hitting the gym I would eat a banana before hand and then two hard boiled eggs afterward. The protein and fiber were awesome and it cut down on my feelings of "Holy S***, I am going to eat my house"

I used to feel super hungry after the gym, too, then I read about consuming 100 calories within about an hour of working out.

I had a big (unused) jug of Post Workout Recovery Drink Mix from BeachBody, and I use one scoop instead of 2. (One scoop is 100 calories.)

It tastes great, and TOTALLY does the trick.. no monster hunger.

I keep 8 oz bottles of water in the fridge, and mix my bottle before hitting the gym, so it's ready to drink as soon as I'm done.

hth

:) It's not true for everyone, but I find that potatoes are a food that will make me hungry fairly quickly after eating them. The same goes for bread and rice. Have you tried making your biggest meal of the day lunch ? or breaking it down like Ilene, into smaller meals more often. :)