7 THINGS NOT TO DO AFTER A WORKOUT

And How to Correct Them

No matter how hard you work out, here are 7 things not to do after a workout that “YOU MUST DO” to actually grow new lean muscle. It is important to remember that if you wish to maximize your progress, it is what you do (or don’t do) in the first 30-45 minutes after grinding out that final rep that will make or break the long-term result. You see, training in and of itself acts only as the stimulus for hypertrophy, but will do very little to actually manifest it, unless the body is rapidly fed the

BUILDING BLOCKS TO ACTUALLY GROW NEW LEAN MUSCLE

nutrients/compounds needed to not only facilitate muscular/systemic recovery, but also to provide the necessary “material” or “building blocks” to actually grow new lean tissue (muscle). As well, several other specific mistakes are often made after a workout that must be avoided if one is interested in efficiently building a leaner and more muscular physique. Let’s take a look the things you should not do after training and how to go about correcting these costly errors.

There’s absolutely nothing wrong with doing a moderate amount of cardio after you finish lifting, since it will help to cool you down, burn off a little extra body fat and allow you to catch up on your text messages. But it should not be excessive, or you will severely hamper the physiological and hormonal mechanisms that lead to muscular hypertrophy. If your overall program calls for large amounts of cardio, it would be best to separate it from your weight-training workout by a good five to six hours. This approach will keep cardio from stepping on your anabolic toes. Coach’s suggestion: If the main goal is muscle growth then limit post workout cardio to no longer than 20-30 minutes and make sure it is “steady state.” If the goal is to maintain muscle while significantly lowering overall body fat, then opt for fasted cardio first thing in the morning – either about 60 minutes performed steady state or 30 minutes done in “HIIT” style.

Something 95% of all trainees fail to do after training is to intensely stretch the muscles that were just worked. It is vital to understand that by simply putting a muscle under the tension of a powerful stretch, one will facilitate a very profound anabolic (growth-promoting) pathway into action. Coach’s suggestion: Once your workout is complete (do not do this before training), stretch the targeted muscles (with the use of resistance if possible) for 3 sets of 30 seconds. For example – if you trained chest, then lie down on a bench with a pair of fairly heavy DB’s and sink to the bottom of a flye movement. Hold the deepest part of the stretch for 30 seconds before taking a one minute break and repeating again two more times.

After spending 90 minutes to two hours pounding the iron, your body is in severe need (as in ASAP) of nutrients—especially amino acids and carbohydrates, to replenish, restore, and repair damaged muscle cells while feeding the exhausted nervous system. Additionally, a short anabolic window exists for about 30 minutes post-workout, where the body is physiologically set up to push nutrients directly toward muscles while avoiding fat cells – the perfect scenario for positively altering body composition. Too many trainees ignore this, waiting for 1-2 hours before eating their post workout meal, which is one of the most profound mistakes that could be made. Don’t let you hard work go to waste! Coach’s suggestion: As soon as you finish that last rep, take a look at the time and make sure you will be ready to chow down within 30 minutes. If you have a long drive home from the gym, then always have a meal with you that can be consumed before or during the trip. Some gyms even have microwaves available so that you can pop your food in and heat it before you leave.

Because whey protein (especially in isolate and hydrolyzed form) is digested very quickly, it will supply your muscle cells with much-needed amino acids more rapidly than any other protein source. Additionally, whey is very high in the branched chain amino acids, which help turn on a major muscle growth pathway and facilitate protein synthesis. Failing to utilize the power of whey would certainly be a serious blunder when the goal is adding or maintaining lean muscle tissue. Coach’s suggestion: Within 15-30 minutes after completing you workout, mix 1-2 scoops of ISOFLEX in 8 oz. of water or almond milk for the perfect post workout protein.

As I mentioned previously, it’s essential (if maximum progress is your goal) to quickly consume the proper nutrients immediately after a workout—and carbs play a very important role in this equation. Avoiding moderate to high amounts carbs for fear of gaining fat is an understandable concern, but this reasoning is null and void when it comes to the post workout feeding. After weight training the body is in a hormonal environment whereby carbohydrate calories are almost entirely shuttled towards muscle cells to replace lost glycogen, which keeps the fat cells starved and empty. Do not make the misinformed mistake of missing out on the muscle building power of carbs as part of your post workout meal. Coach’s suggestion: Along with ISOFLEX consume about twice as many carbs as protein (so a 2:1 ratio of carbs to proteins) in the form of rice, potatoes, rice cakes, bread or for optimum glycogen replenishment and nutrient partitioning, ALLMAX CARBION. (Note: CARBION can simply be mixed together with ISOFLEX for an incredibly easy and efficient post workout meal).

When it comes to making optimal gains, there’s nothing more important than proper diet and training – those make up your “foundation.” However, when the foundation is strong, then a scientifically validated, well-timed, high quality supplement program will certainly hasten the process significantly. However, either out of ignorance or laziness, many lifters ignore supplements entirely, which is a huge mistake (and missed opportunity for greater progress) especially after crushing the weights for a couple of hours. Thus, if gaining muscle and losing fat are high on your priority list, then make sure to take advantage of such proven post-workout supplements as creatine, leucine, LCLT, taurine, betaine, and beta-alanine. By consuming an efficacious dose of each immediately after training, you will help make sure that not a single rep or set goes to waste. Coach’s suggestion: Right after you complete that final repetition immediately consume 5g. ALLMAX L-LEUCINE, 5 g.  ALLMAX CREATINE, and 1 scoop of C:VOL.

Too many people ignore the restorative and muscle-building power of a good night’s sleep. And this is a shame, because even if one is killing it in the gym, eating to perfection, and adhering to a meticulous regimen of super supplementation, without enough high quality sleep, progress will fail to materialize. It is vital (if one is truly serious about building muscle, losing fat, increasing performance and enhancing overall health) that each of us take measures to induce relaxation before bedtime and set up our physiology so that our “bio-clock” is optimally timed for a proper sleep-wake cycle. This will help to not only increase REM sleep during the night, but also allow us to wake up refreshed and full of energy for the day ahead. Coach’s suggestion: Approximately 30 minutes before bed, take 1-2 capsules of LIGHT’S OUT to begin feeling relaxed and stress free before hitting the sack. Additionally, consume 1-2 scoops of CASEINFX to make sure your body remains in an anabolic state while asleep for 7-8 hours.

Remember, what you do right after a workout can make or break your muscle building and fat burning efforts, so simply follow my suggestions and you can rest assured you are getting the most out of every single rep!