80 Day Obsession Post-Workout Timed Nutrition Plan with 7 Meal Ideas

Following the 80 Day Obsession timed nutrition plan plays a big part to maximizing your results with Autumn Calabrese’s latest at-home workout program. In this post, I’m going to break down the post-workout supplement and post-workout meal that are recommended and how they affect your body.

For many, the concept of timed nutrition is new (it was for me). The good news is the 80 Day Obsession nutrition plan is super easy to follow.

The 80 Day Obsession Timed-Nutrition plan has you eating two times after completing your daily workout:

1. You’ll first enjoy a protein shake with a piece of fruit within 30 minutes of completing your workout
2. You’ll then get a nutritionally balanced meal 1-2 hours of completing your workout.

Because….why exactly?

When you work out, muscle tissue breaks down. It’s the period of time after you work out when your body repairs itself. We are going to see best results when we optimize this time period by supplying our body with what it needs through properly timed nutrition. 

First, a little science.

Two main things are happening after your work out that we can optimize with nutrition:

1. Muscle glycogen is the main source of energy your muscles use during physical activity. Your body restocks its muscle glycogen stores after workout, consuming simple carbs during this time helps enhance this process.
2. Muscle protein synthesis and breakdown occur. This can be stopped by supplying the body with protein to begin protein synthesis within the muscles(recovery).

To be as non-scientific as possible, to optimize muscle glycogen recovery, it is best to consume a quicker-digesting carbohydrate shortly after working out and then a slower-digesting carb 1-2 hours later. The first post-workout carb should be a simple carbohydrate like a fruit from your purple container on the 80 Day Obsession diet plan. The second carb is a serving of complex carbs, a yellow container.

Protein is an important part of the first and second meals. However like our carbohydrates, the sources should be a little different. Consuming a protein that digests quickly (post workout shake/whey protein) as soon as you can after working out is very important. This allows your muscles to start repairing themselves from the breakdown your workout caused. The second serving of protein should come from whole foods, which will take a longer time period for your body to digest.

The Post-Workout Supplement: A Few Different Choices

The 80 Day Obsession Timed-Nutrition eating plan calls for eating twice after your workout: the Post-Workout Supplement and the Post-Workout Meal.

The post workout supplement is basically an after-workout protein shake. This should be consumed within 30 minutes of finishing your workout.

Beachbody recommends their own post workout shake: Beachbody Performance Recover. The shake should be combined with a serving of fruit (purple container).

There are many other protein shakes to choose from: BSN Syntha-6  closely matches the protein and carbohydrates of the Beachbody Recover at a lower cost, but the ingredients are different, which may or may not affect your results.

Here is a vegan post-workout shake option: Vega Sport Protein Shake

Don’t forget your serving of fruit after your workout! The fruit helps to replenish the muscle glycogen in your muscles and speed your recovery.

Any fruit from the 80 Day Obsession approved-foods list is acceptable, but the following fruits are high on the glycemic index (cause a fast spike in insulin) which helps deliver nutrients quickly to your muscles post-workout:

• Bananas
• Pears
• Grapes
• Watermelon
• Blueberries

Fruit can either be eaten on their own or mixed into your shake. I often eat my fruit separate during the cold winter months, but sometimes I mix frozen banana in with my post workout shake to make a refreshing smoothie.

Then comes….

The Post Workout Meal 1-2 Hours Later

It takes about 30-60 minutes to digest your protein shake and fruit. So while your muscle glycogen stores are being replenished and muscle repair is happening, it’s time to enjoy your second 80 Day Obsession post-workout meal.

This meal should be a whole foods, balanced meal complete with veggies, a complex carbohydrate, protein, and little bit of healthy fat. This meal will take about 2-3 hours for a meal to digest.  This gives your body the nutrients it needs to help you recover.

The Containers You’ll Be Using in the 80 Day Obsession Post-Workout Meal:

• Meal Plans A through C = Green, Red, Yellow, and 1 TSP
• Meal Plans D through F = Green, Red, Red, Yellow, and 1 TSP
• Meal plans D, E or F, simply adjust by adding an extra red (protein) portion to the above.

7 Simple 80 Day Obsession Post Workout Meal Ideas

Your post-workout 80 Day Obsession workout meal is a balanced one. While you can get as fancy as you want, here are some very easy-to-follow recipes that work perfectly with the containers:

1.)  Grilled Chicken, Veggie and Rice Foil Packets

Pre-soak a yellow container of wild or brown rice. Preheat your grill to medium-high heat. In your foil packet, place pre-soaked rice, top with a 4oz piece of chicken, 1 tsp of olive oil, and a green container of vegetables to steam (asparagus, peppers and brussel sprouts work really well). Place each packet on the grill for 20-25 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and veggies are cooked perfectly.

2.)  Chicken or Steak Fajitas on Whole Wheat or Corn Fajita

Coat a non-stick pan with olive oil over medium heat. In a separate bowl, combine a 1lb of sliced and chunked chicken or steak with a with sliced pepper and onion, add a tsp chili powder, quarter tsp cumin, a quarter quarter tsp garlic, and a pinch of sea salt. When your oil is heated add meat and veggies cooking until meat is no longer pink and veggies are tender. Serve on whole wheat of corn fajitas.

3.) Fish and Vegetable Foil Packet in the Oven

This recipe uses a portion of white fish, bag of frozen mixed vegetables and 1 tsp olive oil. Preheat the oven 400 degrees.

Separate one serving of fish (flounder, cod, halibut) onto a square of aluminum foil or parchment paper. Add one serving of frozen veggies (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots) to each packet and top with olive oil Cook in the oven for 25-30 minutes until fish is opaque and veggies are cooked through.

Serve with a side of rice, whole wheat couscous or other yellow conainer.

4) Eggs & Toast with Spinach

Sauté a green container of spinach in 1 tsp of olive oil. Poach two eggs. Toast one piece of whole grain or sprouted bread. Top your toast with spinach, and then top with eggs.

5.) Spicy Salmon, Sweet Potato and Asparagus

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Place salmon on the center of a baking sheet. Arrange servings of asparagus and sweet potato around the salmon, top with olive oil and hot sauce (to your heat preference.)

Bake salmon until it flakes easily and the veggies and sweet potatoes are soft. It usually takes around 30 minutes, depending on your oven.

5.) Vegan-Friendly Sweet Potato, Quinoa and Black Beans

Microwave one sweet potato for five minutes. Then top with a serving of black beans, olive oil and a side of your favorite veggie.

6.) Kitchen Sink Protein Shake

While you should be trying to get in a whole food meal as your after workout meal because it digests slower, I know that sometimes life gets in the way and you just can’t find the time. Here is a protein shake recipe that covers all the 80 Day Obsession containers in one recipe. Simply mix together the following:

• Red container: Use scoop of protein powder (42g = one red container). Syntha-6 is made from a few different slower-digesting proteins.
• Yellow container: Choose one of the following: half a plantain, ground oatmeal, or yam.
• Green container: Greens work well. Spinach, celery or kale are good choices.
• Teaspoon: Choose 1 tsp of nut butter or an oil (you’re not even going to be able to taste it, so don’t worry too much about what oil you choose)

7.) Spinach Chicken Salad with a Yellow Container Side

This is a pretty simple salad. Take one green container of spinach and veggies. Then top with a red container of baked or grilled chicken and dress with 1 tsp of olive oil and vinegar.  Serve with a side of couscous, whole grain bread, or another yellow container food option.

Make life easier by preparing in bulk.

Prepare these meals ahead of time in bulk and store for easy meal making. I like to cook up three days’ worth and save in meal prep containers for the next day and beyond. :)

Have your own yummy 80 Day Obsession approved post-workout meal to share? Please leave a comment below!