A Quick and Easy Guide to Optimize Postrun Nutrition

WHEN YOU FINISH a run, you might think that the important work is behind you. But your goal of becoming a stronger, faster runner has really just begun.

- MATTHEW KADEY, MS, RD

"The concept I try to stress to athletes is that most of the benefits from a workout don't occur until afterward, during the recovery process," says board-certified sports dietitian and runner Lauren Antonucci, RDN, CSSD. "It's here where we need to ask ourselves what our bodies need to repair and recover to better adapt to training and improve in a balanced and additive way." 

Postrun nutrition plays an important role in replenishing energy stores, repairing damaged muscle tissue, and promoting quicker recovery. But many runners neglect their meals and snacks after a run. "It's time that more people think of their post workout fueling as part of their overall training," Antonucci says.

Figuring out what to eat after a workout can feel like a struggle. So, to help you fine-tune your nutrition to recharge your engines and optimize your recovery, follow these after-run fueling tips from sports dietitians.

Prioritize carbs

If there was ever a nonnegotiable recovery aid, it would be carbs. In general, endurance exercise, like running, stresses the carbohydrate stores within muscle cells, known as glycogen. And it's this glycogen that powers your hard efforts. "That makes eating carbs postworkout important for recovering stored glycogen in the muscles so you are prepared for the next training session," says sports dietitian Katie Kissane, MS, RD, owner of Fuel 2 Run in Fort Collins, Colorado.

Research shows that eating enough carbs after a workout restocks glycogen and leads to better muscular performance. Carbohydrate consumption is also thought to be the most effective for lessening the increases of immune disturbances that occur during exercise recovery, which can leave you susceptible to certain illnesses, like a pesky cold.