After run hunger (Read 4124 times)

I need Help/Advice with after run hunger. I binge on Goldfish/wheat thins and other crap in the house! After my run/workouts I drink a lot of water, and if it is a longer run of 8 miles or more I will drink an electrolyte replacement. I come with the belief that I need to eat to within 1 hour of the run to replenish lost nutrients and refuel. Tonight I ran 4 miles. 6pm -Drank 16 oz of water right after. -Within 20 minutes had a banana -Within 45 minutes had long grain rice mixed with black beans on a tortilla. (2 tortilla, 3/4 can beans, 1 cup rice) and 32 ounces of water. Now two hours later I feel full, but I am craving crunchy junk food.........Any thoughts, advice, or similar issues? (I am not overly concerned with weight loss, I could stand to shed 4-5 lbs max). I am seeking good nutrition.

i love a good PB (Jif extra crunchy) on whole wheat or PB&J on whole wheat with skim milk to get me through the shower. Then I go for something else like cold left over roast chicken on whole wheat. we always seem to have pasta of some kind with lots of good stuff in it - olives, olive oil, mushrooms, parm cheese, tomatoes, spinach, garlic, feta cheese - not neccessarily all together... Honestly, after a tiring run, I've been known to eat a potato chip sandwitch if we're running low on other stuff.

Wow! That is a lot of food Ed! I usually eat very little after any run shorter than 6 miles, but do eat quite a bit of protein following any run over 8. I am also trying to lose weight which has something to do with it. Regardless of the length of run, I try to eat protein immediately, and also some carbs. The carbs may not be right, but seems to help me recover. If I am wrong on carbs let me know.

While some protein is important in the first hour after a run, you should be focusing primarily on high-moderate glycemic carbohydrates to boost muscle recovery as quickly as possible. Running for an hour or more has a significant impact on the level of one's muscle glycogen stores; these stores can not be replenished as efficiently by fat and protein as they can be by carbs in the post-run meal/snack (that's why you are craving crunchy, easily-digestable carbohydrate foods). However, the right amount of quality protein consumed in the 60min "recovery window" following a workout can aid in repairing damaged muscle/tissue cells. Try one of the following snacks after your next run and see if you still crave the junk food: Powerbar Performance Bar and a Banana Sports Drink and a Granola Bar (or two) Skim/Soy Milk and 5-6 Low-Fat Fig Cookies Lightly Sweetened Cereal w/ Skim Milk and a Banana Plain Yogurt w/ Fruit and a Fairly-High Glycemic Granola (not much fiber)

This sounds like the best aid station at the best race on the planet.

I am prone to typos. But perhaps that was one of my better ones! Now where did I put that chocolate. Victor