Many runners marvel if they need to eat carbs after a run at night time. On one hand, carbs assist your muscle groups get better so you’ll be able to constantly hit your exercise targets. However, consuming after a run at night time might disrupt your sleep, which compromises restoration. On high of this, sugar is carbohydrate, which may maintain you from feeling sleepy regardless of having simply gone for a run at night time.
To reply the query of what to eat after a run at night time, maintain studying to know how your physique processes the macronutrients (macros for brief) of carbohydrates, fats, and proteins is important.
Your physique requires carbs to offer it with power and it’s good at utilizing them effectively. Fats, alternatively, all the time requires loads of oxygen. Plus, it takes twice as lengthy for fats to offer the identical quantity of power as carbohydrates. That’s the reason we have now to scale back our tempo to burn fats whereas operating, in order that our physique can sustain with the oxidation course of and doesn’t get exhausted. You’ll discover that you just’re within the fat-burning zone when your respiration slows down. In case your respiration is quick and shallow, you’re physique is just not burning the fats it might.
That is additionally when it begins to harm. You would possibly catch your self considering that the sofa seems to be terrible comfortable proper now. Or the query “What the hell am I doing?” retains popping into your head. However after you have conquered these psychological hurdles, issues will begin to get simpler.
Your physique shops carbs within the type of glycogen in your liver and muscle groups. They’re vital power reserves — particularly for bold runners. The extra glycogen you have got saved in your muscle groups, the higher and longer they will carry out.
Basically, the next nutrient ratio is beneficial for endurance athletes:
- Carbohydrates: 55-65%
- Protein: 10-15%
- Fats: 25-30%
The Role of Carbs After A Run
Carbs are your muscles’ fuel. The macronutrient is very important for runners looking to enhance their performance (for instance, for a marathon) – not only before workouts, but also after you finish running. If you refill your glycogen stores right after a run, your body will recover faster. This helps your body adapt better to a new or harder workout and builds up your immune system faster again after your training. The more often or intensely you train, the more important a diet rich in carbohydrates is for your recovery.
| Activity | Carb intake | |
| Light | < 1 hour/day | 3-5 g kg/day |
| Moderate | > 1 hour/day | 5-7 g kg/day |
| High | 1-3 hour/day | 7-10 g kg/day |
| Very high | > 4-5 hour/day | 10-12 g kg/day |
When and How Many Carbs to Eat After a Run
The best time for your body to replenish its glycogen stores is within the first 30 minutes after your workout. Consume about 0.5 g of carbohydrates per kg of bodyweight. For a 65 kg woman this should be about 30 g of carbohydrates.
30 g of carbohydrates can be in the form of:
- one medium banana
- 5 dates
- 1 slice of bread with jam
- 40 g of granola with 200 ml of cow’s milk
These carbohydrates (simple carbs) are easy to digest, and the body absorbs them quickly. After 30 minutes, the window starts to gradually close, and your body is no longer able to absorb carbs as efficiently and quickly.
Keep in mind:
You don’t need to eat carbohydrates after a short run (5 to 10 km), because the glycogen stores have not been depleted.
What to Eat After a Run at Night
An hour after your run, you should eat a full meal with carbs, protein and fat. To be more exact, your meal should contain a 3:1 carbs to protein ratio. Carbs are still important at this point, but your body also needs protein to build muscles. Too much of this macronutrient, however, can interfere with efficient absorption of carbohydrates and disturb your body’s fluid balance.
A good post-run meal is loaded sweet potato skins.
What to Eat After a Run at Night if You Want to Lose Weight
Runners whose top priority is to lose weight should try to avoid eating too many carbs. This applies particularly to simple carbohydrates. Complex carbs are necessary as part of a balanced diet, as we shall see below. Short endurance runs (like 5K runs) do not deplete our glycogen stores – so you don’t need to replenish them during your run (for example, with isotonic sports drinks) or right after the run. The best thing to drink after short runs is water.
Eat a mix of complex carbohydrates and protein, as described above one to two hours after your run. But at the end of the day, if you are looking to lose weight, what matters is a negative energy balance (approx. 500 calories/day). This means you should burn more calories than you consume.
Eat Complex Carbs After a Run at Night
Runners looking to lose weight need to pay attention to what they eat, as well as their training. The best thing for you to eat is complex carbohydrates (along with high quality protein and healthy fats). These not only keep you feeling full longer, but they provide you with plenty of additional important minerals and vitamins for your metabolism and immune system. Complex carbohydrates are found, for instance, in whole-grain products (like pasta and bread) and brown rice. Whole-grain foods include all the original parts (bran, germ, and endosperm) as well as all their nutrients. Simple carbohydrates are obtained by removing the outside and only keeping the endosperm. Other foods containing complex carbohydrates are potatoes with the skin on them, legumes, and vegetables.
Where are different types of carbohydrates found?
Complex Carbs to Refuel After a Run at Night
Complex Carbs take longer to digest and provide plenty of vitamins, minerals, trace elements and fiber that boost your metabolism and strengthen your immune system:
- Whole grains and products incl. pasta, bread, and rolls
- Potatoes with the skin on them
- Brown rice
- Beans, lentils and peas
- Vegetables, 100% vegetable juice
- Fruit
Avoid Simple Carbs After a Run at Night
are a quick source of energy because they are digested rapidly. They cause your blood sugar and your insulin levels to rise:
- pastry flour and products, cakes, cookies, bread, and rolls
- white pasta
- soft drinks
- sugar and sweets
- alcohol
Do You Need Carbs After a Run at Night?
Yes and no. A high-carb snack will refill empty glycogen stores within the first 30 minutes after a long run (over 10 km). The ideal ratio of carbs to protein in a post-run meal is 3:1 for optimal recovery.
The bottom line: eat carbs after night runs to prioritize recovery. Minimize eating carbs after runs at night if that is part of your weight loss strategy.
***
