It’s a new year and if you are like the majority of resolution makers — including yours truly — you have probably vowed to lose weight, exercise more, or get healthier in 2018. While you make sure to get those workouts in, we’ll help make sure that you stay well nourished.
It turns out that a mix of protein and carbohydrates makes the perfect post-workout snack. You want to aim for a 4:1 ratio of carbs to protein, which is 30 to 40 grams of carbs with 10 to 15 grams of protein. Eating foods with this combination of nutrients shortly after a workout will restore your energy and assists in muscle recovery and repair.
With that in mind, here are five post-workout foods to keep on hand all year long. Because keeping exercise delicious means you’ll stick with it longer. Trust us.
Related: 15 super healthy foods to always keep on hand this year.
Greek Yogurt and Berries
A serving of Greek-style yogurt, which is packed with protein, and fresh berries is a great post-workout food, so long as you buy the plain kind. You can splurge like The Kitchen Magpie does with her Greek Yogurt & Berries recipe (click over to see her all-natural treat), but be sure to skip the pre-flavored kind or you’ll be packing in way too much sugar.
Hard Boiled Egg on Whole Grain Toast
Toast a slice of your favorite whole grain bread, peel a hard boiled egg, and you have an excellent savory, post-workout snack. I hard boil eggs for a week every Sunday so that I always have them on hand for this grab-and-go mini-meal. If you want more flavor, try the Hard Boiled Egg on Toast at Jelly Toast Blog. Two quick-add ingredients amp up the flavor big time.
Related: Skip the fancy supplements with these 7 healthy, easy to find smoothie add-in’s
Chocolate Milk
Calling all chocolate lovers! Drinking a glass of chocolate milk after a workout is really good for you. It contains the ideal carbohydrate to protein ratio of 4:1 with around eight grams of protein. Buy ready made reduced fat chocolate milk (you can even grab one of your kid’s milk boxes) or make your own: Baking Mischief has a great recipe for Chocolate Milk for One.
Apple with Almonds
The combination of apple, a high fiber fruit, and nuts is a great post-workout snack that will give you an energy boost after a hard workout. I also love that it’s an easy grab-and-go snack that you can prep ahead of time. In fact, I keep a container of sliced apples in my fridge ready to go — just give them a squeeze of lemon juice to avoid browning. If you can, choose raw almonds instead of roasted salted ones so that so you’re not also adding more fat and sodium.
Related: 5 easy, healthy food substitutions to keep it light and tasty too.
Peanut Butter and Banana Smoothie
For those who put in a hard workout first thing in the morning, a protein-packed smoothie makes the best breakfast after that killer spin class. This Peanut Butter and Banana Smoothie at Skinny Ms. calls for only four ingredients and will keep you full all morning, which is exactly what you need after expending tons of energy. If you have allergies, you can easily substitute almond butter or SunButter for the peanut butter — easy breezy.
