Calorie Confusion: How to recover fully but not bulk up?

Hey Georgie. I was just reading your article at Behind the Burner, and it raised a question for me. I train a lot and have trouble finding the appropriate amount of calories for adequate recovery while not elevating passed my weight division. I find that when I trim the calories I slow in gains, and when I eat as much as my training partners, I bulk up. How do I find my ‘happy place,’ Georgie? Thanks! Ryan

Thanks for checking out my interview! Soon some of my recipes will appear on that site too, but of course you can find them here as well.

In short, the “happy place” of caloric balance is when you eat just enough calories to replace what you use in a day, no more and no less. For most people, this means waiting until you’re actually hungry to eat, eating slowly and realizing when you’re full, and then stopping. (And waiting until you’re hungry again to repeat.) Now, isn’t that utopian? Trouble comes in when you want to ensure recovery after intense training: this means eating when you may not want to (right after exercise). To ensure optimal recovery without gaining weight, use the recovery strategies, but compensate with a slight calorie reduction the rest of the day.

When you’re aiming for fast and efficient recovery, how much isn’t the only question, but also what and when. Assuming your goals are to maintain or gain muscle while losing fat, you want to first look at your post-training meal. I’ve mentioned before that the most important thing following a training session is to get carbohydrates into your bloodstream ASAP, and accompanying them with some protein improves glycogen replenishment. Together, they stop the catabolism which occurs during your workout (breaking yourself down) and begin the anabolic process (rebuilding yourself back up).

For most athletes between 100-200 pounds, aiming for ~30 grams of carbohydrate and 10-15 grams of protein immediately post workout (within 20 min of your last rep) is a conservative (low-end) estimate for recovery. (You may need up to double those numbers, especially if you train for more than an hour. But keep that ratio: more carbs than protein.) Also, rehydrate with at least 16 ounces of fluid for every pound lost during your workout. Following that, allow your appetite to tell you when you need to eat again. It maybe within an hour, or as long as 3 hours later. Give your body another balanced meal at that time, and continue to eat small meals about every 4 hours.

Now, to avoid weight gains or encourage fat losses, you have to look at the rest of the day. Post-workout is not the time to cut calories, it will only deprive your muscles of the fuel they need to grow and perform. But at other times of the day, sitting in class or at a desk, reducing calorie intake can help reduce your bodyfat. If you’ve already loaded your muscles with fuel in that critical post-workout window, a mild calorie deficit will encourage fat breakdown and muscle retention.

To achieve the calorie deficit, reduce your intake of low-nutrient foods, like sweets, soda, (basically any caloric drinks), and refined carbohydrates. High carb, high glycemic foods do good things for your body when your muscles have the stimulus to take them up. That is: while you’re training, or soon after exercise. At other times, the spike in insulin and glucose will cause storage of the glucose in both fat tissue, which you don’t need. To maintain a nice steady blood glucose level, which helps maintain a lean body composition and high metabolism: eat frequently, but keep meals small and based on plant foods and protein, with some healthy fats. This pattern of eating will help keep your appetite in check, your energy high, and preserve your muscle while shedding fat. One easy way is to mindlessly lower your calorie intake is to double (or triple!) the amount of vegetables you eat, making sure to eat some plant food (fruit or vegetable) at every meal and snack. Lots of filling, high fiber, low-glycemic carbohydrates can help crowd more calorie-dense foods off your plate, and you’ll benefit from the disease-fighting antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals they contain.

Note that it is entirely possible to concentrate more calories into your post-workout recovery period, and still achieve a net calorie deficit for the day. Just slightly downsize meals during your less-active hours. As long as the calorie deficit is small (not more than a few 100 calories) you can still maintain enough stored glycogen to train and compete well. (The small, frequent meals also help keep glycogen stores full by introducing nutrients into the bloodstream at may points during the day.) I’d avoid any drastic calorie reductions in efforts to make weight, it will leave you with empty glycogen stores, dehydrated, and feeling weak right when you need to perform!

If you are already choosing healthy foods in moderate portions, with the bulk of your carbohydrates consumed post-workout, and little to no junk food or treats…you may be faced with the difficult reality that your body wants to be in a higher weight division! If you “bulk up” with lean muscle, that may just make you a stronger more powerful, fully-fueled athlete. Maybe you want to consider the higher weight class as an option? If the “bulking up” that you’ve noticed isn’t lean gains, though, it’s too many calories for your current training program.

Hope this helps, if you have more specific questions, just write again! - Georgie