8 Foods to Eat After a Workout for Optimal Recovery

There’s nothing quite like the satisfaction of finishing a tough workout. Once we leave the gym or unlace our running shoes, we often feel a boost of confidence and motivation to continue taking care of ourselves. Well, what better way to do that than by refueling our bodies effectively. Eating the right foods after a strenuous workout is the best way to replenish our energy stores while taking advantage of the unique metabolic benefits our cells experience after exercise.

Here we’ll dive into which foods best support your body post-workout, and the nutrients that make them especially beneficial after you break a sweat.

8 Foods to Eat After a Workout

Without further ado, let’s dive into some delicious ways to nourish your body after a workout. As you’ll see, many of these foods and food combinations boast a mix of the best post-workout nutrients for optimal recovery. While it’s ideal to combine several key nutrients, “you want to make sure you at least have a combination of protein and carbohydrates in your post-workout meal or snack for muscle repair and glycogen replenishment,” Maxine Yeung, MS, RD, CPT, NBC-HWC explains.

Chocolate Milk

Chocolate milk has long been touted as one of the best post-workout drinks—and for good reason. “Chocolate milk is ideal because of its carbohydrates to protein ratio. It also contains fat, water, and electrolytes, making it a comprehensive recovery drink,” says Yeung. Research has also shown that drinking chocolate milk after a workout offers similar or even superior results to a placebo or other recovery drinks. Dairy-free chocolate milk works here as well, because while it has slightly altered nutrition, it still offers much of the same benefits.

Loaded Sweet Potato

If you’re looking for something a bit more robust after you’ve finished exercising, a loaded sweet potato is a super tasty option. Not only is it easy to whip up, but it’s a great source of fiber, plant compounds, and electrolytes, and can be rich in protein with the addition of cheese, sour cream, or plain Greek yogurt, as well as healthy fats with a dollop of mashed avocado.

Green Smoothie

Smoothies are a classic grab after completing a strenuous bout of exercise, as they are a convenient way to obtain a lot of nutrition. Any yogurt, protein powder, nut butters, seeds, milk, and fruit you add offers complex carbs, protein, healthy fat, water, plant compounds, and electrolytes. But by turning your smoothie green with the addition of fresh leafy greens, spirulina, or a greens powder, you’ll boost the electrolyte, fiber, and plant compound content even more!

Yogurt, Fruit, and Granola

A crunchy granola mixed with fruit and yogurt is a super refreshing and satisfying snack after getting home from the gym or a run. Plus, it provides many of the nutrients you need to recover, including complex carbs, protein, fat, plant compounds, and electrolytes. Either dairy-based or alternative yogurts work really well here, offering much of the same probiotic-rich nutrition.

Avocado Toast

The complex carbohydrate, plant compound, electrolyte (flaky sea salt, anyone?), and healthy fat content of avocado toast can’t be beat after a hard workout. Top it with a runny egg or hemp hearts to make it a complete, protein-rich post-exercise snack.

Trail Mix

If you need to head straight to the next agenda item after a tough workout, trail mix is a great grab-and-go snack that still helps you recover effectively. This is thanks to the protein, fat, carbohydrate, electrolyte, and plant compounds it contains. For a more nourishing trail mix, opt for a brand without too much added refined sugar and one that has a nice array of dried fruits.

Salmon Salad

When your workout bumps right up against dinner time, a hearty salad topped with seared salmon is an excellent (and delicious) meal to refuel with. This savory dinner has all the nutrients we’re looking for—namely protein, omega-3 fatty acids, plant compounds, electrolytes, water, and, with the addition of quinoa to your salad or a whole grain piece of toast on the side, complex carbohydrates.

Fruit Salad With a Cheese Stick

And if eating after a workout is a struggle, opting for a light snack is still a powerful way to refuel. A simple fruit salad and a cheese stick will do! This combination offers water, electrolytes, carbs, protein, fat, and plant compounds without weighing you down.

How Soon to Eat After a Workout

So, how soon after exercising should you be eating? Post-workout, our muscles are more receptive to nutrients for repair and recovery, plus our cells are more sensitive to insulin. However, the time range of when this is most pronounced is still up for debate within the health community.

“Generally, it's recommended to refuel within 30 to 120 minutes after your workout to help replenish your glycogen stores and support muscle repair,” says Yeung. However, she also adds that other research shows that depending on when you ate before your workout, you can still reap most of the benefits from protein on muscle recovery and growth several hours after exercising.

Nutrients to Support You After A Hard Workout

As you can tell from our list of the best post-workout foods, there’s a handful of nutrients that specifically target the body’s needs after a challenging workout. Complex carbs, protein, healthy fats, water, electrolytes, and plant compounds are most fit for the job. These nutrients can help restore lost energy stores, mitigate muscle soreness, replenish hydration, and reduce inflammation. Let’s learn a little bit more about each one.

Complex Carbohydrates

Whether we engage in prolonged cardiovascular exercise like running, biking, swimming, or rowing, or resistance exercise like weightlifting, our body typically utilizes glycogen stores to get the job done. Glycogen is a form of glucose or sugar (the body’s main energy source) stored in the liver and muscles. “Complex carbohydrates help to refuel any lost glycogen stores during exercise,” says Yeung.

Fiber-rich complex carbohydrates include plant-based foods, like whole grains, legumes, fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds.

Protein

Muscle fatigue and tiny muscle fiber micro tears can also occur when we’re pushing ourselves during strenuous exercise. “Dietary protein can support muscle repair, recovery, and growth after a tough workout,” Yeung explains. And while all protein-rich foods accomplish this, research shows that foods or supplements containing collagen may amplify these benefits. 

A 2021 study revealed that collagen peptide supplementation improved joint functionality, reduced joint pain, and promoted overall strength and muscle recovery after exercise, though more research is needed to fully prove causality.

Foods high in protein include nuts, seeds, eggs, dairy, poultry, fish, meat, and legumes like peas, beans, and lentils. Naturally collagen-rich foods include fish, meat, and poultry.

Healthy Fats

Pain, inflammation, or soreness can be common concerns following a big workout, depending on the individual. This is where healthy fats can be super beneficial. “Healthy fats, particularly omega-3 fatty acids, can target inflammation in the body to help alleviate some of these concerns,” adds Yeung. Evidence backs this up with a 2020 study published in Nutrients citing omega-3 rich fish oil consumption after exercise optimized muscle recovery.

Sources of healthy fat include nuts, seeds, avocado, olives, olive oil, and fatty fish. Meanwhile, particularly fantastic sources of omega-3s include seaweeds like spirulina, walnuts, chia seeds, and flaxseeds, and fish such as sardines, anchovies, salmon, trout, and mackerel.

Plant Compounds

Speaking of inflammation, plant compounds are an excellent addition to a post-workout meal or snack as potent anti-inflammatory agents. In fact, a 2022 review found that polyphenol (another name for plant compound) consumption after exercise was associated with decreased muscle soreness and improved muscle function.

These micronutrients can be found in pretty much any plant-based food, including fruits, veggies, whole grains, nuts, seeds, and legumes.

Water

Sweating is inevitable during a demanding workout, potentially leading to dehydration. “Water is key before, during, and after a strenuous workout. Staying hydrated helps with overall recovery, supports muscle function, and prevents dehydration, which can lead to serious health complications,” explains Yeung.

While simply drinking water or any other decaffeinated, unsweetened beverage is a great way to obtain this nutrient, you can also rehydrate with water-rich fruits and vegetables, like melon, cucumber, leafy greens, and berries, after you’ve finished exercising.

Electrolytes

But water is not the only thing we’re losing through sweat while exercising, we’re also losing key electrolytes. “Important electrolytes to pay attention to after a sweaty workout include sodium, potassium, magnesium, and calcium. Replenishing these will help maintain fluid balance and prevent muscle cramping,” says Yeung.

To replace these, she recommends adding a small pinch of salt to your water, having a salty snack like pretzels, choosing a low-sugar sports drink, or an electrolyte replacement powder. However, be mindful of how much sodium is in these products, as sometimes it’s quite a bit more than you need. This could contribute to bloating or elevated blood pressure in certain individuals. Look for 600 milligrams of sodium per serving or less in any of the aforementioned products to avoid this.

But many of these electrolytes can be also naturally found in many fruits and vegetables as well as dairy products.