Every now and then major scientific discoveries are made in the realm of athletic health and performance. Recovery nutrition is without a doubt one of the most recent and unbelievable advancements in sports science, but it is often neglected and misunderstood.

The biggest benefit of recovery nutrition comes from immediate post-workout consumption of liquid carbohydrates and proteins. Numerous university studies have shown benefits including speeding glycogen replenishment, reducing muscle damage, inflammation and muscle soreness, and decreasing the likelihood of injuries and illness. The ability of an athlete to stay healthy and consistently perform at peak levels is highly limited by the degree of recovery between training sessions. Here are some of the results of recent research:

• Distance runners who consume recovery drinks post-workout vs. carbohydrate beverages only consistently report less muscle soreness.
• Trained cyclists who consume recovery drinks vs. traditional sports drink show reduced post-workout amounts of the enzymes CK and LDH, biomarkers of muscle damage and breakdown.
• Non endurance athletes involved in resistance training show a 300% increase in protein synthesis when they consume a recovery drink immediately after exercise vs. those who consume the same drink 3 hours later. So not only is a recovery drink crucial, drinking it immediately after exercise is just as important.

Even more exciting, is the recent research done on marine recruits using a recovery drink over 54 days of basic training. The investigators report that, “Compared to placebo and control groups, the protein supplemented group had an average of 33% fewer total medical visits, 28% fewer visits due to bacterial/viral infections, 37% fewer visits due to muscle/joint problems, and 83% fewer visits due to heat exhaustion.” Essentially, marines who consumed a post workout recovery drink made faster muscle recovery, and were overall healthier than their counterparts.

According to Paul Goldberg, MS, RD, “The bottom line is that proper recovery nutrition has the potential to make a tremendous difference. Athletes who are serious about their performance should consume a recovery drink after every workout, practice, and competition. If you do so, you will be rewarded with less muscle damage, faster glycogen replenishment, improved performance in subsequent exercise, greater strength gains, and fewer injuries.”

All of the research is available online through great resources like Fluid School (http://livefluid.com/school.php), and PubMed (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez/). As a trainer and coach who cares about my athletes, I’ve always told them their workout aren’t finished until they have performed a proper cool-down with stretching and/or self massage. Now it’s time to extend the definition of a complete workout to include immediate post-cool-down nutrition.

About the author:

Richard is a graduate of California Polytechnic State University, B.S. Kinesiology, with an emphasis in exercise science and nutritional biochemistry. While completing his degree, Richard took an active role in progressive exercise physiology research for wheelchair users. He competed in collegiate track and field and still plays competitive soccer. He is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist by the National Strength and Conditioning Association, and a Certified Personal Trainer by the American Council on Exercise. He specializes in the physical training and rehabilitation of collegiate and professional athletes. He is also the Co-Founder of Fluid (http://www.livefluid.com/), a recovery nutrition specific company.