You might already know you need to replenish your carbs after exercise but that is only half the story …
Often after doing a very hard session the first thing people want to do is to grab the Lucozade or any other sugary drinks to just replenish the carbohydrates and sugars and hopefully restore depleted glycogen stores. Research has shown you need to consume carbohydrates within 30 minutes of exercise for optimum recovery, this is recommended by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), the International Olympics committee (IOC) and the International Society for Sports Nutrition (ISSN). You then need to make sure this is repeated every two hours, for four to six hours after exercise.
However, I say put the Lucozade to one side and actually opt for chocolate milk! This is because there is a mix of carbohydrates and protein in chocolate milk. Research has shown that consuming carbohydrates AND protein during the early phases of recovery has a positive impact on subsequent exercise performance. This means it is especially beneficial for athletes who are involved in multiple training sessions, or on consecutive days, such as long distance athletes or those marathon training.
But this doesn’t mean you need to be taking those well marketed and very expensive protein shakes! You actually need more carbohydrates to allow for better protein absorption and when you have better protein absorption you have got better protein re-synthesis. The ISSN recommends that the carbohydrate and protein ratio should be 3 or 4 carbohydrates to 1 protein. (3-4:1, CHO:PRO). These ratios have been shown to increase glycogen resynthesis and improve performance. This can also be helped by the ingestion of essential amino acids and this addition of protein to carbohydrates will increase strength and enhanced body composition during chronic resistance training as well. So, for those that are doing strength training go for the chocolate milk but don’t go for too much protein. This is because too much protein does not promote muscle protein synthesis but can lead to protein oxidation – which is the opposite of what you actually want to do!
The next time you’ve done a hard strength training session or a really hard running session my advice is go to the milk section and try to find the milkshake that has the correct carbohydrate to protein ratio (no more than 4:1!), though that might require some maths skills!
REFERENCES:
Beelen, M., Burke, L. M., Gibala, M. J., & Van Loon, L. J. (2010). Nutritional strategies to promote postexercise recovery. International journal of sport nutrition and exercise metabolism, 20(6), 515-532.
Kerksick, C. M., Arent, S., Schoenfeld, B. J., Stout, J. R., Campbell, B., Wilborn, C. D., … & Antonio, J. (2017). International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: nutrient timing. Journal of the international society of sports nutrition, 14, 1-21.
Phillips, S. M., & Van Loon, L. J. (2013). Dietary protein for athletes: from requirements to optimum adaptation. Food, Nutrition and Sports Performance III, 29-38.
Potgieter, S. (2013). Sport nutrition: A review of the latest guidelines for exercise and sport nutrition from the American College of Sport Nutrition, the International Olympic Committee and the International Society for Sports Nutrition. South African journal of clinical nutrition, 26(1), 6-16.
Pritchett, K. L., Pritchett, R. C., & Bishop, P. (2011). Nutritional strategies for post-exercise recovery: a review. South African Journal of Sports Medicine, 23(1), 20-25.
Slater, G., & Phillips, S. M. (2013). Nutrition guidelines for strength sports: sprinting, weightlifting, throwing events, and bodybuilding. In Food, Nutrition and Sports Performance III (pp. 67-77). Routledge.
