Please briefly explain "recovery" food/meals.

I met the strength and conditioning for the Universtity of Georgia Bulldogs football team last week.  FYI they are #1 in the nation!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!GO DAWGS

Back to the topic....we started talking about all sorts of training including Triathlons.  This guy was good......he knew just about everything you would ever need to know about nutrition, supplements etc.

I saw some bottes of Gatorade branded protein based recovery drinks in the cooler.  I had never seen Gatorade protein drinks so I asked him about them......Long story short he told me nothing beats Chocolate Milk.  I was really surprised by this answer.  He went into specifics about carb to protein ratios etc., but in the end he said it is one of if not the best recovery drinks after a workout.  The bonus.....its pretty inexpensive. 

You usually have a two hour window to get the nutrients in your body, so keep that in mind.

4:1 carbs to protein is a commonly cited 'ideal' ratio.  Some recovery drinks have more or less this ratio.  Chocolate milk is very close to this.  Some of the energy bars have it.  You can also mix a smoothie with fruit, yoghurt, and if necessary protein powder (whey-based is said to be superior).

You should get some of those calories within the first 30 minutes after exercise.  You have around 2 hours to replace your glycogen stores most effectively -- or so 'they' say -- so you don't have to cram it all in during the first 30 minutes.  Your body absorbs it only so quickly anyway.

Sounds like it!! Hey, I'll try anything ~ well almost anything ~ once!

What is it about Chocolate milk that makes it so good?

What about all that sugar?

Any particular type?  Just regular choc. milk or are we talking about light choc. milk or soy choc. milk?  If one is being sugar and carb conscious, either trying to lose weight or not spike blood-sugar levels and limit total sugar and carb consumption in general, is choc. milk still a good choice?

Nov. 1st James!

We always have at least 3 half gallons of Chocolate Soy Milk on hand and for longer workouts mix with Recoverite for a post-training smoothie.

I found taking some extra protein post-workout also helped me a LOT with soreness, to the point of making it not noticeable unless I've gone really hard. I know about the recommended 4:1 ratios and chocolate milk and whatnot, but what works best for me is a half-scoop of Muscle Milk (which I use mostly because it tastes really good) in soy milk after a 45+ minute workout, and two scoops of it after a 90+ min workout. It's a lot of calories but I have a problem with eating after a workout in hot weather (I live in the desert), and I'm really not a calorie counter anyway - you can use soy/whey powder if you are and you won't take the big caloric hit. I used to just drink chocolate soy milk and I've definitely noticed a big difference... I suppose every body's different.

On a related note, if you're feeling tired and sluggish, I'd also check the iron levels in your diet. I was going through this a while ago and it turned out my iron levels were low - I went back to taking a multivitamin.

I suppose it should be said here that males should be cautious about supplementing with iron.   Most doctors do not recommend multivitamin with iron (for males).  (Females can overdo it too, but it is less commonly a problem for females.)

There is no magic to it other than you want to get in a combination of carbos and some protein within an hour or so after your workout.  Approximately 3:1 is what you are looking for.  A simple bowl of pasta works great for that.  If you prefer liquids, chocolate milk is great as already mentioned.  And hydrate.  Simple water will work for that.  Not some syrupy sports drink.

As to why you were sluggish?  Didn't you say that was one of your longest workouts you've done???  No matter what you are going to be a little bit beat after you have pushed yourself to new limits.  Congrats on surviving the longer distances!

If I could do a slight hijack of this thread and talk a little more about a workout "recovery" meal or nutrition ... vs.... a "post workout" meal ....

Are these different or the same?  In other words, when people talk about chocolate milk or some other drink/food with a 3:1 carbs to protein ratio .... are they talking about a "snack" or just something to take ... that needs to be consumed sometime between the 30 minute to 1 hour mark after a hard workout?

Or, are they talking about getting your meal (be it breakfast if an early morning workout, or dinner if talking about an evening workout), after that hard workout?

I think I may be hampering myself by not getting any/enough/proper nutrition within that magic 30-60 minute window.  I can't really eat much before a workout - makes my stomach hurt, cramps,, sluggish, etc ... but after my workout .... I always do about 15-20 minutes of stretching, and since I'm usuall at the YMCA I go shower off for a few minutes, then hit the jacuzzi 15-20 minutes, then even on my non-swimming days I'll jump into the pool for a few minutes (if for nothing else to cool off), or another cold shower, then back to the jacuzzi ... then maybe the steam room or sauna and then a final shower.

Then I usually stop by the grocery store on the way home to pick up whatever I'm going to eat, and by the time I actually eat dinner it has been about 90 minutes or more since I stopped strenous exercise.

Are you all suggesting that one needs to have a protein shake, choc. milk, or gatorade, etc ... soon after the workout ... and then still eat dinner later on?

If so, then I need to figure out what I can take with me that won't go bad or doesn't have to stay cold, that I can take after the strenous part of my workout is over.  Choc. mile probably won't make the list, and I'm leary of protein shakes now cause I'm worried there may be some extra stuff in there I don't know about.

I had a kidney failure scare a few weeks back cause some protein and other stuff I was taking had Creatine in it and I was unknowingly overdosing on the stuff - got very sick over it.

Anyhow - Any suggestions about good stuff to take post workout and then good stuff as a late dinner would be good info to have.

Here's what I do:

After I finish, I shower, change, and go eat lunch or breakfast (I run in the mornings and/or lunch time).  I drink some water with the meal (breakfast is coffee).

Long runs, I'll probably wait longer, as I'm generally more interested in fluids than food.  So I drink some water, glass of milk, whatever.  I've even done *gasp* root beer.  Then I go eat pizza or something later.  There is usually beer involved as well.

Most of the time, I don't think there's much need to worry about a recovery meal.  It's an easy workout, it's not too terribly long, and I'll be good to go based on what I eat throughout the day for the next workout. 

Mine:

1 scoop HEED per 1/2 hour of working out (2 scoops per half hour swim) 1 hour or less before going to it.

2 scoops of Recoverite immediately after workout, while I'm still actively sweating is best.

If I'm not going to eat real food for a couple hours, another 2 scoops of Recoverite about 1 or 1.5 hours after the first.

I haven't had to deal with limp inducing soreness since I started doing this and it's made me a much happier person  

Yes, I like the Hammer Nutrition stuff.

Got a question, and I hope it's ok if I post this here instead of starting a new thread.

First, I appreciate the useful advice above.  Lots of informed people around here - I wasn't aware of the 4:1 recover drink concept.  But now I've got another question related to this advice . . .

Is it a good/bad idea to incorporate protein sources into workouts that are multiple hours long?  For example, if I ride two hours at fairly high intesity followed by a one hour run, should I be feeding myself something with a 4:1 ratio during my ride?  Or should I wait until I'm done to start with the 4:1 magic potion?  I usually just stick with water and simple carbs during a workout.

Thanks - Rob.

EnduroDad - you may find that protein during your workout causes problems.  Protein & fats are slow to digest & draw blood away from your muscles & into your gut.  Also, because they are slow to digest, they can cause bloating & gastric distention during workouts...not so comfortable & fun when you're trying to run, bike or swim.

FYI - I was messing around yesterday after my a-little-longer-than-usual-workout (caved into pressure from DH to run out the door to the LBS) & didn't do my typical shake.

Today - pain! Very unusual for me.

Recover well everyone.

That makes a lot of sense.  Thanks.