Source
r/Velo•
Raidion

How do you recover most effectively in the hour or two after a workout?

Let's say it's 10pm, I just did a 110 TSS workout that burned about 900 Calories. I have another 90+ TSS workout in 22 hours. What's a scientific approach for recovery? How many calories do I need to eat? What are the macros of those calories? Does it matter if I stretch before or after the shower?

Usual routine for me, hop off the bike, make a protein shake, stretch for <5 minutes, hop in the shower, maybe stretch a bit more, get out of the shower, eat whatever I feel like, and then go to bed. Seems to be working out alright, but there are probably better ways to go about it. I'm not focused on weight loss or anything, just trying to get faster.

Thanks!

Posted Dec 20, 2020, 9:00 PM UTC

1616
2FlydeMouche•

Probably smoke a fat bat, load up on some carbs and protein and do some yoga in front of the fireplace.

42
[deleted]•

[deleted]

1
jellystones•

Exercising/Eating that much before bed gives me poorer than usual sleep and less effective recovery. I would experiment with trying a bit earlier

25
ether_bandit•

Not to mention that it’s hard to drink enough water to rehydrate and take care of the food you ate without having to wake up throughout the night to either use the bathroom or drink more...

10
RaidionOP•

I honestly don't usually have a problem with the sleep after a workout. I'm out like a light. Only issue I can have is if I drink too much water, it will wake me up a bit earlier than I would like. That's usually a pretty significant amount of water though. I think that limit comes somewhere around 28oz/1 Liter for me.

2
aedes•

I would advise ignoring the other comment you got. Your kidneys and brain are pretty good at figuring out how much water you need.

If you don’t feel thirsty an hour or two post workout, and you have to wake up in the middle of the night because you need to piss a bunch of it out, you’re already drinking plenty.

5
Noshferatu•

This is a pretty big clue as to the way that you can improve your recovery. You say that 1L is a pretty big amount of water - it's only 2 bidons, and in the couple of hours following your workout, you should be drinking at least that much water, even if you've drunk a lot during your workout. You lose a good amount of water during your workout and as a result your blood isn't able to carry everything it needs to carry as effectively (waste products etc.). I'd recommend moving your workouts earlier to give you enough time to top up your water and glycogen before going to bed. Recovery is multi-faceted, and every facet is important. Some are more important than others though, and while I try and get them all right, I try and prioritise in this order (I don't necessarily do them in this order though):

  1. water
  2. carbs
  3. protein
  4. sleep
  5. stretch

Carbs and protein can be combined into a recovery shake (normally at 4:1 carb:protein) after a tough workout if you have a tough workout the following day, but if you eat a meal soon after your workout you can drop the shake altogether. A straight protein shake isn't going to do much for you unless you're really hitting the weights off the bike, as you'll likely be getting all of the protein you need through meals. Youre probably peeing most of that out and putting on the rest as fat. I forget what the ideal protein intake range is for cyclists, but I think its something like 0.8g to 1.4g per Kg bodyweight, with diminishing returns after that. Different strokes. Personally I aim for 1g/kg, and considering I'm 63kg at the moment, protein shakes don't really have a place in my diet. I might have one if I've really neglected my macros and they're looking particularly rough after dinner, but certainly not as a matter of course. If I'm supplementing protein then I've messed up.

Recovery isn't as confusing as all of the articles and forum chat make it out to be - not unless youve bailed the basics and you're trying to eek out the last 0.5% of recovery by slamming beetroot juice and putting sour cherries into your ears.

1
AdonisChrist•

A carb-heavy balanced meal asap. I get off, eat, stretch for 10-15min, shower, chill.

8
MyDogOper8sBetrThanU•

Something a bit life changing for me was to switch my protein shake post workout to something that is 4:1 carb to protein like Skratch or Cliff. It has like 38 grams of carbs more than my regular old whey and sets up my recovery ten fold. TrainerRoad recently did a deep dive on this exact subject for anyone interested, but it’s truly a night and day difference for me.

5
RaidionOP•

Got a link (or googleable term) for that TrainerRoad article?

1
swimbikerun91•

No research, but this works way better for me anecdotally too. You don’t need a 20g+ protein shake. Your body needs to replenish carbs and it’s much faster post workout. Basically refilling glycogen stores. Scratch recovery is awesome and tastes great too

3
MyDogOper8sBetrThanU•

https://youtu.be/jqS5Lmai8PY

Starting at the 1 hour mark. The whole episode is great. Enjoy

2
Antandron•

An Evidence-Based Approach for Choosing Post-exercise Recovery Techniques to Reduce Markers of Muscle Damage, Soreness, Fatigue, and Inflammation: A Systematic Review With Meta-Analysis

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fphys.2018.00403/full

The evidence for the efficacy of static stretching is equivocal. You can put on compression tights, foam roll for 10-15 minutes then sleep in the tights.

4
aedes•

That study is mostly measuring reduction of DOMS as it’s endpoint. As DOMS aren’t as common a manifestation in cycling, it’s less clear how these results apply to recovery from cycling.

1
sirillow•

Similar case for me. I play hockey really late at night and had to figure out what to do. The youtube channel Hockey Training has really helped me. Their latest video even talks about what to drink after. Similar thought process, less protein way more carbs. Section starts at 25:00 in: https://youtu.be/JHrso9aYxRk

2
Seabhac7•

Similar to what a few others are saying here, it seems the science indicates that a carb heavy, rather than protein heavy, post-ride meal is important. I quite like Dylan Johnson’s channel, he does a lot of evidence-based videos. Starts on the topic at about 9:30 here, looking at some studies:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Bt8JbqrK9R8

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[deleted]•

[deleted]

1
LordSteinerTheBoss•

EAT FOOD

(no stimulants ater exercise, especially)

relaxx, shower

1