Any athlete knows that getting to peak performance not only involves building a powerful, explosive, injury-proof body (which you can do with our All-Strength Guide to Sports Training), it also requires a balanced meal plan. Staying properly fueled with nutrition-packed foods, especially in between meals and workouts, play a key role in training at the highest level.
Here’s what you should eat to maximize your workouts and get game-ready before, during, and after training sessions.
Meal replacement
Taking your game up a notch, either on the field or on the court, requires you to properly fuel your body with nutritionally dense foods that will help aid in recovery, with the right ratio of proteins, carbs, and fats. And since most of us don’t have the time to spend hours prepping meals or the ability to stay in the kitchen all day, focused snacks—like a meal-replacement bar—can fill the holes of your nutrition program.
Personally, we like the Big 100 Super Cookie Crunch Meal Replacement Bar for its strong macronutrient profile and muscle-building properties—and Steve Hess, the strength and conditioning coach for the Denver Nuggets, agrees.
“I love the ratio of carbohydrates to protein in this incredible bar,” says Hess. “It serves two major functions for my athletes: replenishing glycogen stores through carbohydrates and aiding in muscle rebuilding through its 32g of protein.”
To get through a grueling workout, your body uses glycogen—a form of stored carbohydrates—as immediate fuel. After that workout, you need to replenish those glycogen stores to start the muscle recovery process, which is what leads to growth. The harder you work, the more glycogen you need to replace and calories you need to consume. A convenient snack—you can fit a whole box of them in your gym bag—that’s packed with protein and clean calories is exactly what your body needs, in and out of the gym.
As for taste, the bar comes in a variety of delicious flavors, including: Super Cookie Crunch, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, and Crispy Apple Pie. “The bars taste amazing and are easy to travel with, which is an absolute must in my business,” Hess adds.
Post-workout
Do you need to refuel your muscles after an intense training session or practice? Absolutely. But does that mean you have to choke down some dry chicken breast or a chalky shake to do it? No. And if you’re in the market for a better-tasting shake that also packs a nutritional punch, then look no further than MET-Rx’s high-protein Ready to Drink shake.
The key to quicker gains is to ingest rapidly digesting foods so that your body can begin the recovery process. And post-workout is when your muscles are most primed for growth.
What you need is a fast-absorbing shake, like MET-Rx’s RTD, that’s made with real milk and void of crap like artificial sweeteners, flavors, colors, and preservatives—which your body isn’t meant to handle—and instead full of ingredients like leucine, an essential amino acid that helps with the muscle-building process.
*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
