Why I’m Not Wiped Out After Tough Workout

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Feeling mighty sweaty and exhausted after weight training and 1 mile run. The banana and protein shake recharged my battery.

Feeling mighty sweaty and exhausted after weight training and 1 mile run. The banana and protein shake recharged my battery.

This morning my trainer kicked my butt with a tough workout. I followed up with 30 solid minutes of interval training for a 5K.  Why am I not wiped out after such an intense workout?

After yesterday’s cycling class, I felt too week and sleepy to do anything…other than take a 3 hour nap. Yet I worked harder today than yesterday, but feel the opposite. I’m ready to take on the world.

What Workouts Did I Do Today?
Today’s muscle workout focused on using the TRX suspension system. I did 3 sets of 12 repetitions for each exercise.

Yes, it was grueling, but I felt great.  As my dad would say, I was “filled with piss and vinegar.” So I decided to do my 5K-interval training once I got home.

Slated to run for 1 mile, using the 20/40 second run/walk rotation, I forgot to turn on my app’s GPS system. So my app didn’t track mileage. So rather than running a mile, I ended up running 1.5 miles. D’oh.

Now I was exhausted. And very, very sweaty! I promptly ate 1/2 banana, downed my chocolate flavored protein shake and chugged two glass of water.

I bounced back immediately after the food. Now I’m ready to take on the rest of the day!

So what was the difference between today and yesterday? Three things stand out.

Getting The Diet Right
I think I’m doing a better job balancing the low carb diet on the days with my muscle workouts. On these workout intense days I up my carb in take to 100g.

My major carbs – whole grains, fruit, protein shakes – I eat before and after my muscle workout.

It helps with the soreness – I’m recovering faster — and my energy level stays high.

On days where I’m only doing cardio, I should eat up to 50g of carbs.  But yesterday, I only ate 20g.  Normally that would be fine, but with that 60-minute spinning class, my body needed a little more fuel.

No Longer Waking Up At The Crack Of Noon
I’m an insomniac. Getting to bed by 3:00 a.m. is early for me. But I’ve noticed a change in my sleeping habits since the weight loss. For the last few weeks, I’ve turned in before midnight.

I notice a huge difference in how I feel after a workout when I get 7-8 hours of sleep. The night before my cycling class, I slept for less than 5 hours. After cycling, I came home and slept for 3 hours. Yikes!

Last night I got 7 hours and after 60-minutes of very intense exercise, I feel great.

Drinking My Aqua
I’ve read that drinking water before, during and after a workout helps to fight fatigue.

Looking at my tracker, I see a huge difference in how much water I had between yesterday (cycling class) and today (muscle workout/run).

Yesterday I drank 1 liter of water…all day. Well below the 3 liters I normally drink. Before noon today, I’ve already drunk 1.5 liters.

Since I’m upping my cardio, I’ll need to find the right carb balance on those non-muscle workout days. And I got to get my 3 liters of water in per day. That’s a biggie!

As for sleep, if I keep up with days like today, I think hitting the pillow early won’t be a problem.