This perfect post-workout meal delivers 38g of protein and it only takes 10 minutes to prep

A nutritious post-workout meal is the perfect way to kickstart your recovery, but often the last thing you want to do after a tiring training session is spend a long time cooking. 

We asked Centr trainer Ingrid Clay for her go-to lazy meal, and she came up with the goods: a veggie baked sweet potato chili that takes minutes to prepare and delivers all the nutrients you need.

“My post-workout meal always includes protein, but also carbs,” she tells Fit&Well.

“I think people forget that, after a workout, you do need to refuel the body, just like you need to fuel the body before your workout. 

“This meal is so easy and it has everything I need. It has the carbs, it has the veggies, which are always important, and it has the protein too.”

Take a look at the Centr recipe below, which takes just 10 minutes to throw together and a further 45 minutes of baking time to finish. 

Sweet potato chili recipe

Ingredients

• Three medium-sized sweet potatoes
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tin of black beans
• 1 tin of lentils
• 1⁄2 a cup of frozen peas or sweetcorn
• 1 tin of diced tomatoes
• 1⁄2 red onion chopped
• 1 capsicum, preferably green
• 1 cup vegetable stock
• 1 garlic clove
• 2 tsp Mexican spice mix (a mix of ground cumin, paprika & chili)
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 5oz Greek yogurt (or dairy-free alternative)

Instructions 

1. Preheat an oven to 400°f and line a baking tray with baking paper 
2. Peel and cube the sweet potatoes, then toss them in olive oil, add to the baking tray and bake for 15-20 minutes 
3. Put the baked sweet potato cubes in a large bowl and add all of the remaining ingredients except the yogurt 
4. Place the resulting mixture in a baking tray, cover with foil and bake for a further 20-25 minutes
5. Remove from the oven and serve with the Greek yogurt

You can choose to stick to this recipe, or go off-piste like Clay, who likes to mix things up with her own plant-based touches and flourishes.

For example, sometimes she’ll bake the sweet potatoes before hollowing out the skins and using the fluffy center to make a mixture with tofu and veggies. She then spoons this back into the skins, creating “a little boat to carry it all”, then bakes it again to finish.

“I’ll hollow it out, put all the goodies in there, put the tofu in there, put the veggies in there, and it’s just perfect. Sometimes if I don’t do tofu I’ll do legumes, and I add beans a lot as well.” 

Clay's approach to mindful eating

NASM-certified personal trainer Clay is now the HIIT/HIRT expert for Chris Hemsworth’s fitness app Centr. She is also a former bodybuilder, and has previously kept closer tabs on her diet.

However, she says she now takes a more intuitive, mindful approach to eating.

“I tell people, ‘I eat when I’m hungry’,” she says. “I think sometimes we eat a lot out of boredom or for the sake of eating, so I eat when I’m hungry and I stop eating when I’m no longer hungry, not when I’m full.

“I think that’s a big difference too. Mindfulness comes into play there. Stopping eating when you’re not hungry is different to stopping eating when you’re full.”

She also recommends taking some time and focusing on your food, rather than eating meals in front of a screen or while you’re distracted.

“Eating while you watch TV is probably one of the most mindless forms of eating, because you’re not really focused on what you’re eating and how it tastes,” Clay explains. “You’re missing the cues that’ll tell you that ‘hey, I’m full’.”

If you’re looking for more healthy recipe inspiration, why not try these two quick breakfast ideas which you can prepare the night before? Or, if it’s something sweet to eat on the go you’re after, take a look at these eight-ingredient protein bites.