John Ivy and Robert Portman make a great comment about the current state of sports nutrition practice. higher energy needs and the benefits of additional protein ingestion , a "bulk nutrition" concept was adopted in which athletes began to believe things like "if protein is good, then more protein must be better.

In other words, when many athletes find out that something is "good," they try to get lots of it. And when many athletes find out that something is "bad," they try to avoid it at all costs. Unfortunately this is nothing more than a combination of the how-much-to-eat and what-to-eat approaches discussed above.

Combine that with a naive good vs. bad approach to food and you've got a recipe for sub-optimal nutritional intake. After all, few foods are always good or always bad well, I can think of a few?

This is certainly unfortunate for two reasons. First, much of the current science points to the fact that if you train regularly, the body is primed for fat gain or fat loss just as it's primed for muscle gain or muscle loss during specific times of the day.

Add in the wrong foods at the wrong times and you sabotage your efforts in the gym. Add the right foods and your efforts are given a giant boost. Secondly, although some foods are not optimal during certain times of the day i.

sugar , some of these same foods can actually be beneficial during other times of the day such as the post-workout period.

Throwing aside the oversimplification inherent in the bulk nutrition concept, let's now get down to the nuts and bolts of optimal nutrient timing. Since I was a consultant in the development of the book, I'm going to go ahead and take the liberty of borrowing from some of Drs.

Ivy and Portman's nomenclature. In the book, the authors refer to three critical times of the day in which nutrient timing takes on a greater importance.

These times are known as the Energy Phase, The Anabolic Phase, and The Growth Phase. Since I like these distinctions, I'll use them here.

However, I'll add another phase that I call, somewhat in jest, The Rest of The Day Phase. The Energy Phase is called this because this phase occurs during the workout when energy demands are highest. As you probably know, the energy used by skeletal muscle is ATP.

This ATP is formed and resynthesized by macronutrients from the diet so carbs, proteins, and fats contribute indirectly to the energy of muscle contraction. This breakdown of nutrients, while completely necessary, is, by definition, catabolic. As such, the workout period, as I've addressed in the past see Precision Nutrition - next week , is marked by a number of anabolic and catabolic effects.

Since this drink not only enhances blood flow but stocks that blood up with amino acids and glucose, the protein balance of the muscle will be shifted toward the positive and glycogen depletion will be significantly reduced.

In addition, those amino acids and glucose units, independent of their effects on muscle protein and glycogen status, can also lead to a decrease in cortisol concentrations and improve the overall immune response part of the acute phase response listed above and described in detail in the Precision Nutrition article.

Of course, if the aforementioned supplement is in a liquid form and is sipped during the exercise bout as recommended , dehydration, a potent performance killer in both strength and endurance athletes, can be staved off as well.

When examining the science of nutrient timing in detail, it becomes clear that one of the key "when to eat" times of the day is during the Energy Phase or during the workout. Of course, in focusing on when to eat, I'm in no way suggesting we should neglect considering what and how much to eat.

In fact, they're probably your next two questions so let's get to them right away. As indicated above, during the Energy Phase it's important to ingest some protein and carbohydrate.

In my experience the easiest way to do this is to drink an easily digested liquid carbohydrate and protein drink.

Dilution is important, especially if you are an endurance athlete or if you're training in a hot environment. If you don't dilute your drink appropriately, you may not replenish your body's water stores at an optimal rate 9; Now that we know when to eat and what to eat, let's figure out how much.

Unfortunately this isn't as easy to answer. How much to eat really has a lot to do with how much energy you're expending during the exercise bout, how much you're eating the rest of the day, whether your primary interest is gaining muscle mass or losing fat mass, and a number of other factors.

For a simple answer, however, I suggest starting out by sipping 0. For you lb guys, that means 80g of carbohydrate and 40g of protein during training. This, of course, is the nutrient make-up of Surge. The Anabolic Phase occurs immediately after the workout and lasts about an hour or two.

This phase is titled "anabolic" because it's during this time that the muscle cells are primed for muscle building. Interestingly, although the cells are primed for muscle building, in the absence of a good nutritional strategy, this phase can remain catabolic.

Without adequate nutrition, the period immediately after strength and endurance training is marked by a net muscle catabolism; that's right, after exercise muscles continue to break down. Now, if you're asking yourself how this can be, you're asking the right question.

After all, training especially weight training makes you bigger, not smaller. And even if you're an endurance athlete, your muscles don't exactly break down either. So how can exercise be so catabolic?

Well, for starters, as I've written before, while the few hours after exercise induce a net catabolic state although protein synthesis does increase after exercise, so does breakdown , it's later in the recovery cycle that the body begins to shift toward anabolism 8; So we typically break down for some time after the workout and then start to build back up later whether that "build up" is in muscle size or in muscle quality.

However, with this said, there are new data showing that with the right nutritional intervention protein and carbohydrate supplementation , we can actually repair and improve muscle size or quality during and immediately after exercise 16; For more on what happens during the postexercise period, check out my articles Solving the Post-Workout Puzzle 1 and Solving the Post Workout Puzzle 2.

From now on, when planning your nutritional intake, you'd better consider both the Energy and Anabolic phases as two of the key "whens" of nutrient timing. Therefore, to maximize your muscle gain and recovery, you'll be feeding both during and immediately after exercise.

Again we come to what and how much. As indicated above, during the Anabolic Phase it's important to ingest some protein and carbohydrate. Just like with the Energy Phase, in my experience the easiest way to do this is to drink an easily digested liquid carbohydrate and protein drink.

While dilution, in this case, isn't as important for rehydration because you've stopped exercising and presumably, sweating, you're now diluting to prevent gastrointestinal distress. I won't go to far into detail here - just take my word for it. You must dilute. Just like with the Energy Phase, how much to eat really has a lot to do with how much energy you expend during the exercise bout, how much you eat the rest of the day, whether your primary interest is gaining muscle mass or losing fat mass, and a number of other factors.

However, just like with the Energy Phase, a simple suggestion is to start out by sipping another serving of 0. If you add up the basic suggestions from the Energy Phase and the Anabolic Phase, you'll find that I've recommended about 1.

They may want to know what to eat for maximum muscle gain, for instance. Or they might wonder if certain diet plans can help speed up their fat loss. But one topic that can typically be discussed is nutrient timing.

Nutrient timing involves eating at specific times to achieve a desired outcome. The goal helps dictate the timing strategy.

Nutrient timing to increase muscle mass looks different than if the goal is weight loss, for example. Generally, the timing of nutrition is centered around the training session.

It breaks down what should be consumed before or even during the workout. It also guides post workout nutrition. Together, this is known as peri-exercise nutrient timing. Nutrient timing even provides advice about what to eat. It gives insight into when carb intake might be the most important. Are pre workout carbs better than post workout carbs?

It also breaks down how to time protein intake. In an editorial published by Nutrition , it explains that nutrition timing is based on three phases:. Energy phase : This is when the muscle releases enough energy to contract during exercise.

Carbohydrate consumption at this time helps keep muscle glycogen stores from depleting. It also helps keep blood sugar from crashing. This reduces fatigue. Add protein to the mix and muscle can exert more effort. It also stunts the rise of cortisol, aiding in muscle recovery. Anabolic phase : The 45 minutes after a workout is the anabolic phase.

This is when damaged muscle protein starts to repair. Muscle glycogen stores are starting to restore. During this phase, insulin sensitivity initially increases, then drops rapidly.

Several hours after exercise, insulin resistance can occur. This can slow muscle recovery and repair. Growth phase : The growth phase starts after the anabolic stage ends and continues until a new workout begins.

Muscle hypertrophy occurs during this phase. Muscle glycogen is also fully replenished. While timing nutrition may seem like a lot of work, it does get easier with practice.

Plus, there are quite a few benefits in timing your meal or snack. Nutrient timing can help maximize muscle growth. A study reported that consuming whey protein after lower-body resistance training contributed to greater rectus femoris muscle size.

Timing your nutrition can also aid in fat loss. One study found that consuming a 1;1. Another study reports that nutrient timing also affects metabolism. If the goal is improved performance, nutrition timing can help with this too. Research supports pre-exercise carbohydrate consumption for endurance athletes.

It may be even more critical when resistance training according to an article in the Journal of Athletic Performance and Nutrition. This article explains that it works by reducing protein degradation and increasing protein synthesis.

Some research even suggests that the timing of other substances may offer more benefits. A study looked at the timing of ergogenic aids and micronutrients. It noted that timing caffeine, nitrates, and creatine affect exercise performance. This timing also impacts the ability to gain strength and for the body to adapt to exercise.

The strategy you use when timing nutrition will vary based on your desired goal. Protein is key to helping muscle grow. It is also critical for boosting muscle strength.

Consuming protein during the anabolic phase can help muscle repair after resistance exercise. It can even help reduce muscle protein breakdown the next morning according to one study. Consuming 20 grams of protein after exercise helps support muscle protein synthesis.

While it may be tempting to aim for more, one study found that this provides no additional benefit. Protein needs vary based on level of physical activity. An athlete engaged in moderate-intensity exercise needs 0. An athlete engaging in more intense exercise needs more, or between 1.

Those engaging in resistance exercise also need this higher amount. What does nutrient timing look like if the goal is weight loss? Much of the research in this area involves eating habits, in general, as opposed to eating before, during, or after exercise.

One study that addresses this topic focuses on endurance athletes. It notes that fat loss can be achieved for this type of athlete by:. The path to fat loss without losing muscle changes depends on exercise intensity. If the intensity is high, increased carbohydrate consumption can help meet this demand.

If the workout is low intensity, focus more on protein. Performance nutrition is gaining in popularity. Some suggest that access to a sports dietitian can improve performance for pro athletes. This is the basis of an April article published in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition.

The strategy for nutrition timing varies based on the sport. If the athlete runs marathons, fueling up a few hours before the run provides energy for the event. Carbohydrate foods are best.

A good calorie count is calories or less. After the race, refuel with a light meal. If the sport relies on muscle strength, refuel with protein within a few hours. This helps the body as it repairs muscle damage.

Approximately 20 grams is a good place to start. More may be needed if the sport is intense. A carbohydrate rich meal a few hours before aerobic exercise helps provide the energy needed. Adding a little protein can help keep the energy going. Have a banana carbohydrate with some peanut butter protein.