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Post workout meal

stevered said Aug 6, 2007, 10:14 PM:

Hey Rob,
I am full strength inner circle member and absolutely love the product. I wrote a comment to Shawn a year ago about how great I thought it was which can be found here

http://bestabs.typepad.com/fullstrength/2006/07/a_thoughtful_re.html .

I have a general question about post workout meals mainly for an aerobic activity and the required carb replacement. I play basketball 3 times a week @ 6am. I do not eat before playing and believe me I've tried and it doesn't work well. Anyway, we play full court for an hour or so and it is fairly high intensity. Also, I am 42 years old.

After playing I have downed my full strength shake and noticed that I don't get the usual lift in energy that I do when I drink it at other times like after lifting weights or on a morning when I don't play bball. Also, I have about a 3/4 mile walk in from the parking lot at my work and frequently on bball mornings I will feel quite lousy by the time I get to the door.

In the last two months, I have tried a carb replacement drink called endurox. Have you heard of it? If not, it is a high carb with a propietary protein to carb mix for max muscle replenishment, or so they claim anyway. I keep it @ about 250 calories and then don't eat for another 3 hrs. It seems to work quite well and I don't get the same effect when walking in.

Could full strenght not be the right choice post workout for high aerobic activity? Still love the product, just wondering what your thoughts are on this? and if you have any comments on the carb replacement theory. Also, from your other posts it seems like I am not going to be getting enough protein and tearing my body down as you called it.

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Re: Post workout meal

Rob said Aug 6, 2007, 11:02 PM:

Hey Stevered,

I'm so glad you're enjoying Full Strength - It's such an amazing product.

Have you seen some of preliminary clinical results? if not check them out here.

As for post workout recovery - in particular cardiovascular training - this is one of Full Strength's few weaknesses as it simply does not have enough carbohydrates. You're not getting the lift because you're not getting the necessary carbs. As a result your body is having to convert (expending yet more energy) protein to carbs. That's my guess as to why you're feeling pretty lousy by the time you get to your door.

Endurox and Acclerade (not sure if you've tried this one) are both excellent products backed by some solid research. They're adhering to the 4 to 1 ratio that appears to be ideal following training. That's 4 carbs to every 1 protein (Full Strength's a different “animal” in this regard). So Full Strength isn't your best choice following an hour or more of basketball. An Endurox or Accelerade is going to serve you much better.

Here's where you're going wrong though - at least in how I interpreted your post. Following up your basketball with 250 calories and then waiting 3 hours for your next meal is the wrong course of action. Within 30 to 45 minutes (preferably as soon as you finish) get in your carb centric recovery drink (Endurox). This is what you're body needs within this first window.

I'd experiment with plugging in Full Strength at an hour or an hour and a half following your basketball / training. 2 hours is pushing it. I wouldn't ask your body and mind to go any longer than this following your training before you have an integrated meal - which is Full Strength's strong suit.

Give that a try and get your protein in buddy. Shoot for .6 to .8 grams of protein per kg of body weight. This is the standard recommendation - but err on the top side to be safe. As soon as your amino acid pool runs low you start “strip mining” as I've been calling lately.

Let us know how things go moving forward.

Peace,

~Rob

Re: Post workout meal

stevered said Aug 7, 2007, 8:36 PM:

Thanks man! Makes a lot of sense. Good to hear that you think there is some credibility to the 4 to 1 ratio and it is not some marketing gimmick. I'll bring a shake with me to work and drink it 1-1.5 hrs after the Endurox and maybe push my lunch back a little. I'm certain this will work great.

Re: Post workout meal

Rob said Aug 11, 2007, 9:50 AM:

No problem, Good luck on the court!

Re: Post workout meal

stevered said Sep 24, 2007, 11:05 PM:

Hey Rob,
Its been a month or so and just thought I would let you know that the suggested post workout endurox/accelerade drink followed by a full strength 1.5 hrs later is working like a charm. I feel a faster recovery and a big bounce after my shake. It's also helped keep my meals smaller and I find even on non-bball days its easy for me to eat 5 smaller meals instead of 3-4 larger meals. My energy is up and my body fat is coming back down into a really good range, which is always a challenge after the big 4-0 and Ive also recently discovered that I am hypothyroid (Hashimoto's).

Just feel like the body is firing on all cylinders right now. I think the daily full strength is really keeping me in optimal health. Keep up the great work, thanks.