This post is the final installment in my “supermarket sports nutrition” series, dedicated to helping runners identify easy-to-make, inexpensive meal & fuel ideas – all of which can be found at your local ALDI supermarket! {Disclosure: This post is sponsored by ALDI}. That’s right – you can fuel from start to finish using common supermarket ingredients. This post is part three, focused on inexpensive recovery meals. If you missed the previous posts, be sure to check out this post on pre-run meal ideas as well as this post on run fueling tips, complete with ideas for fueling with whole foods.
If you’re a runner, there’s no doubt that you’ve probably heard about the importance of recovery meals after a long run. However, there are a lot of misconceptions out there about recovery that I’m hoping to clear up for you today – and share some easy, inexpensive recovery meals and snacks! Let’s start with the sorting the fact from fiction…
Common misconception: Focus on protein after your long runs.
Truth: You need to focus on both carbohydrates and protein.
On long runs, your body is using up a large portion of the stored carbohydrate in your muscles (called glycogen). After a run, it’s important to replenish those glycogen stores so that your muscles have that energy stored for the next run. That means you need to make sure you’re eating carbohydrate after your runs.
Of course, protein is also important – it helps with muscle repair and recovery. But you don’t need excessive amounts and you definitely need more carbohydrate than protein after a long run.
Your focus after a long run should be on getting about 15-25 grams of protein, and about 3-4x that amount of carbohydrate. {Specific recommendations vary based on your weight – a sports RD can give you individualized recommendations!} It’s fine if you’re having a bit more protein so long as you’re not crowding out your carbohydrate intake.
Aim to eat/drink your recovery meal or snack within 30-60 minutes of completing your long run.
Common misconception: You need recovery food after every run.
Truth: Focus on recovery after long runs (1.5+ hours), when you are doing two-a-day workouts, or after a very intense session.
A lot of athletes come to me because they’re confused about why they are gaining weight when they’re training for a marathon or triathlon. While there are many factors that go into this (exercise increasing appetite, sedentary time outside of running, etc) – overdoing recovery can be one contributing issue.
There has been such a focus put on recovery that sometimes we think we need a snack or meal after every single run, and this just isn’t true for the recreational athlete. If you’re doing a short run, there is no need to add a snack in afterwards. Your daily meal plan will help you recover properly.
That said, you can always time your meals and snacks around your training – which is smart to do. So if you know you’ll be doing an hour run mid-morning, maybe you have an early lunch within an hour of finishing. You’re not adding anything special in for recovery, you’re just eating what you would normally eat at an optimal time.
Now, if you’re doing long runs (1.5+ hours), if you are working out twice a day, or if you have just competed at a high intensity (like race day) – that’s when it’s smart to really focus on proper recovery using those guidelines mentioned above. That’s what will help you bounce back quickly and avoid the ‘dead legs’ sensation on your next run.
Common misconception: You need special recovery drinks.
Truth: You can recover with whole foods too!
There’s not anything necessarily wrong with recovery drinks, so if you like them, that’s fine. {Of course, make sure that the ones you are choosing are meant for endurance athletes – not the protein-heavy ones marketed towards strength athletes.} However, I find that those specialty drinks can be expensive and are not any more effective than good old whole foods from the supermarket.
With whole foods, just think about combining healthy sources of carbohydrates with some protein-rich foods. You might include whole grains, fruits, vegetables, beans/legumes, or dairy for your healthy carbs. For protein, think about chicken, beef, fish, nuts/nut butters, beans/legumes, and dairy products. This is by no means an extensive list of course!
To give you some ideas, I’ve put together 5 recovery meals that are inexpensive, easy to put together, and use whole foods from the supermarket. I bought everything at ALDI – my total for ALL my recovery meals, run fuel choices, AND pre-exercise meals was under $50. If you didn’t see it in my first post, this is my receipt from my shopping trip:
5 Post-Run Meals & Snacks for Recovery!
1. Chicken, Veggie, & Brown Rice Bowl
I’ve got two dishes with chicken in here, because it tends to be cheap and versatile. I purchased a whole chicken, then cooked it in my crockpot with some seasonings. When that was done, I had lots of chicken meat that I threw in a tupperware and could take out and use throughout the week.
For this bowl, I combined the chicken with instant brown rice and a bag of steam-fresh veggies.
This is super easy to do and quick: just cook the rice (10 minutes) and while that’s on the stove-top, steam the veggies (5 minutes) and heat up the already-cooked chicken (2 minutes) in the microwave. Throw it all together, add a little salt/pepper to the top, and you’ve got a great recovery meal.
2. Chocolate Milk
This is probably the easiest recovery snack that exists. Chocolate milk has a great carb to protein ratio, meaning it’s mostly carbs with some protein. And dairy products are one of the best sources of leucine in our diet, an amino acid that has been shown in research to help with recovery. A tall glass (16 ounces) is a really easy post-run snack. This is a nice option for those of you that might not feel like eating immediately after a hard workout – drinking a glass of chocolate milk is sometimes much more appealing.
My husband is a big fan of chocolate milk, as you can see by how much is left in the half gallon I bought…
3. Rice & Beans
If you’re a vegan athlete, there’s nothing like rice and beans for a good recovery meal. This is one of my favorite dishes to make regardless because it is so quick & cheap! Just combine cooked instant brown rice, a can of tomatoes with green chiles, a can of black beans, and a little sliced avocado. {Makes several servings}
4. Chicken & Avocado Wrap with a side of fruit
This is another meal where I used my roasted chicken from the crockpot. I grabbed a few other ingredients at ALDI that I knew would be versatile and used in several ways: tortillas and avocado. In addition to their use in this meal, I also used the tortillas for the banana peanut butter “sushi” as a pre-run meal, and I used the rest of the avocado in the rice and beans above.
This is another one that’s super easy to make! Just put the roasted chicken and a third of a sliced avocado in a whole wheat tortilla and wrap it up. You can also add in any other veggies of your choice, like lettuce, tomato, cucumber, etc {and I totally encourage you to just throw in any veggies that you have lying around}! Then enjoy it alongside a piece of fruit for some extra healthy carbohydrate.
5. Yogurt Parfait
I love yogurt parfaits because they’re versatile and you can always change up the flavors with different fruits & toppings. For this one, I used greek yogurt and toasted oat cereal (shown below) plus a nectarine.
Despite my cutesy mason jar presentation (don’t hate fellow bloggers – I still love the mason jar trend! 🙂 ) – you can also just toss everything into a bowl super quick after you run. I like using greek yogurt in these parfaits because it’s higher in protein than traditional yogurts, making it a nice option for recovery meals. You can top greek yogurt with whatever fruit you’d like. In this case, I topped it with some sliced juicy nectarines. I also added a drizzle of honey and some toasted oat cereal for a little crunch.
And there you have it – 5 inexpensive and easy recovery meals, all purchased at ALDI! Definitely check them out on their website, facebook, and twitter for more information about all the inexpensive options you can score. There are also plenty of other recovery options of course, but hopefully this helps get you started.
Share with me: What’s your favorite recovery meal or snack after a run?
Disclosure: This post series is sponsored by ALDI. I received gift cards as compensation for my efforts in writing this post. As always, all opinions are my own and I only partner with brands I believe in.
- Cross Training Tips for Runners (From a Coach) - April 17, 2025
- Cottage Cheese Brownies - April 14, 2025
- What To Eat the Night Before a Race, According to a Dietitian - April 5, 2025
This is such a great post. Thank you. I love anything that encourages me to drink more chocolate milk. 🙂 Okay, what I really love is that you share your knowledge in an easygoing way that makes me feel I can get organized and eat clean. I’m also thinking about making a trip to the Aldi here. I keep hearing they’ve got great prices but I wasn’t sure about the variety. From the looks of this post, that’s not an issue.
Thank you CJ! Haha – I spoke to a group of teen athletes the other day and they were all very excited about the fact that I give permission for chocolate milk after hard games.
Chocolate milk is one of my favs! People tend to forget you don’t need to carry around bags of powder for recovery (one too many gym bag accidents…)! I usually just swing by the convenience store after the gym and pick up a chocolate milk.
Yes, so true Carmy! Plus a lot of times I see people overdo the scoops of protein powder and essentially they’re just wasting money by not spreading it out and timing it better.
I love all of these ideas!! Pinning this so I can come back to it later 🙂
Yay, happy you found it helpful! 🙂
What a great post! I’m a fan of protein oats or a smoothie after a long run or tough sweat sesh. I love the idea of the brown rice and chicken bowl!
I love smoothies too! I’m a big fan of banana, milk, peanut butter, and chocolate chips.
Can I just tell you how much I loved this series?? Seriously, I struggle with the food part of marathon training and this has been so helpful.
My quick go-to is always a glass of chocolate milk. But I also love a grilled cheese sandwich.
I’m so glad you found it helpful Amanda!
I’ve tried so many things after long runs and what always seems to work for me is an old fashion peanut butter sandwich and a glass of chocolate milk. So glad to have these options to read about and save for later.
Such a great recovery meal Jenna! I’m a weirdo that doesn’t like peanut butter on bread, but I do love eating a few spoonfuls right from the jar.
This series couldn’t have come out at a better time for me! I’ve got my first half coming up in October and I had just started to research all three of these topics. I’ve also been focusing on eating real food for my fueling, so this was absolutely perfect.
Thank you so much.
I just wanted to point out that in this article you say “Your focus after a long run should be on getting about 15-25 grams of carbohydrate, and about 3-4x that amount of carbohydrate.” I suspect that you meant to say “15-25 grams of protein…”
Awesome! What half will you be doing Wendy?
And thank you for catching that – fixed it! 🙂
I love these quick, easy, yummy, nourishing meals! I also get as happy about chocolate milk as that precious baby of yours! I seem to always go for the same post long run, or half marathon recovery food….a protein bar. I think because I am trying to get that protein and carb combo in before an hour, I never have time for anything else. I do need to start planning a little better to enjoy more whole foods for recovery. Thanks Chrissy!
Aww, thanks for the baby compliments! He was seriously excited about playing with the container it was in, haha.
You can always combine the protein bar with a quick & easy source of carbs, like two pieces of fruit, if you need something to grab and go.
Were you spying on me yesterday? I had the WORST recovery meal LOL! I was craving ritz crackers my entire run and came back and had…cheddar cheese (but super amazing Alpine Cheddar from my pals at Cabot), Salami (because mmm!), and Trader Joe’s version of Ritz Crackers. It’s probably best not to admit how much I ate. LOL! Not the best fuel, I definitely felt exhausted later from not having the right balance and over-indulging!
Hahaha that recovery meal actually sounds amazing right now – I miss cheese SO much right now while I’m dairy free for breastfeeding! And I love that Alpine Cheddar. But yes, I totally know what you mean about not eating quite the right balance afterward and then not feeling as well-recovered as you’d like.
What a great post! I also prefer to recover with real foods instead of stuff that is contrived. I love making whole grain bowls with veggies and tofu.
Bowls with veggies and tofu is a another great option! I like that you can combine so many things in bowls – rice, quinoa, barley etc as the grain, any kind of veggie you want, and lots of types of protein – tofu, chicken, beef, shrimp, etc.
I love this!
After a hard workout I’ll usually have Vega Recovery Accelerator ASAP and then have a meal with real food. It depends on the time of day, but it might be a salad with chicken and some crackers, or a sweet potato with eggs.
Having real food definitely makes a difference.
Sweet potatoes and eggs sound like an awesome recovery meal!!
Chocolate milk, baby! My recovery drink of choice. Of course, a cold beer always is welcome…
Haha, yes. Nothing tastes as good after a long race like an ice cold beer. 🙂
Thank you for dispelling these myths! So many get post-run recovery totally wrong. Wow your meal ideas look great. Can you tell I’m hungry?
You’re so welcome! I’m glad you like the meal ideas 🙂
i love wraps. and good tips – you shared some important info. i do chicken and veggies as a stir fry or “fried” rice all the time. yum!
Wraps are awesome because they are so quick to throw together! And I love stir fry too. 🙂
That rice bowl looks absolutely delicious! I’m a huge fan of stir fry dishes. They’re a great way to combine protein, carbs, and veggies.
Yes, stir fries are great! And I love that you can make them with basically whatever you have extra of in the fridge.
My go to, after every workout is chocolate milk. I’ve been using it for years and I love both the taste and what it does to help my body be ready for the next day. This is a great post, and love the pix!
Thanks Christina! 🙂 It sounds like chocolate milk is definitely a fav of many athletes here!
Yum! I’m a huge fan of chocolate milk after a run. I’m always hungry and thirsty (I don’t fuel if I’m running less than 2 hours), so a glass of chocolate milk hits the spot immediately. The others sound perfect for once I’ve cooled down and am hungry.
Yep, that’s why I think chocolate milk is a nice option – it’s so easy to get down after running (and also satisfies thirst too).
I love chocolate milk soon after the race and then a little bit later, when I feel like eating, a burrito bowl with guac is a favorite.
LOVE burrito bowls with guac! Great suggestion.
I love chocolate milk after a good long run. And sometimes peanut butter toast.
Am I the only person that doesn’t like peanut butter on bread? I feel like I weirdly never got into that. I love bread and I love peanut butter, just not together, haha.
Great ideas! I am a huge chocolate milk fan – it is my go to after my long runs.
Thanks Michelle – glad to hear that you are a chocolate milk fan too!
Great post. I was struggling with gaining weight during every single marathon training cycle I did. I was seeing a nutritionist and I finally realized that one of my issues was that I was refueling after a run with a protein bar that had only 2g of carbs. I wasn’t replenishing my glycogen. I’ve since changed that and haven’t noticed any weight gain!
It’s awesome to hear that you got some guidance from a nutritionist! I think people sometimes put proper nutrition on the backburner when it can play such a big role in marathon performance (and just how you feel after long runs).
Great post! Post recovery nutrition is def something I need to work on! I actually just visited an ALDI on Sunday for the first time ever. It’s a great store to save money I just wished they offered more organic options.
I am an ALDI convert after seeing how inexpensive everything is. My recommendation – if it’s closeby, pop in frequently as they don’t necessarily have the same organic produce every single time. You might find something there one week that wasn’t there the next. (At least that’s how it’s been in my experience).
First of all, you have no idea how much I needed this post! I just grab the first thing I find, which is usually a protein bar and then whatever meal I can whip up at home (which isn’t always the healthiest). Second, Aldi is the greatest store ever!! I’m lucky to have one only a few blocks away, and I save so much. Thanks for posting!
I’m so glad you found the post helpful! And yes, ALDI is awesome. It’s about a 20 minute drive for me but I will happily travel a little further to save so much money.
Great post! I love these tips and will definitely be trying some of these after my next long run. Chocolate milk is definitely my favorite post-run meal and I really look forward to it if I’ve had a hard run!
Another vote for chocolate milk! Definitely a fan favorite here 🙂
Great post Chrissy!! I had been hearing so many runners rave about chocolate milk after a run. I will definitely have to try that! Your baby is so, so adorable!!
All of these meals look delicious. Love the yogurt parfait!! Thanks for sharing all of this great info!
Thanks Natalie! And thank you for the baby compliments – I totally have to control myself to not put cute little pictures of him in every single post. 😉
A very well written post. The meal ideas are super cool. Chocolate milk is my favourite too.
Glad you liked the meal ideas Priya!
We drink alot of chocolate milk and protein shakes in our house =) That avocado wrap looks delicious I need to add that into our rotation.
I hope you give the wrap a try! I would’ve added other veggies to it too – especially spinach – but we were at the tail end of our CSA & grocery shopping week so we were running a bit low.
What a great informational read! They say you learn something new everyday… adn here is my something new! 🙂
Yay, glad my post could be your something new Rachel!
Wow this is a great post! WIll definitely be pinning to save for later. I’m the worst with recovery meals or shakes…really need to plan better because I know how important it is especially during marathon training.
I know – planning ahead can be so tough sometimes! When that happens to me, I focus on things that might be easy to grab quickly – chocolate milk, a few hardboiled eggs and a few pieces of fruit, or maybe some overnight oats made with milk or greek yogurt.
All of those look great. I usually run in the morning and so I have breakfast – eggs and whole wheat toast. On weekends, I love an egg + cheese sandwich on those sandwich thins, with tomato and avocado.
Great suggestions for post-run breakfast options! Breakfast foods are totally my favorite meal of the day so I love these ideas.
Those recovery meals/snacks all look so great! I am going to have to try the rice and beans with avocado. Sounds like the perfect thing post long run or ride!
I hope you’ll give it a try! Super easy to throw together in just a few minutes, and tastes delish.