This summer’s World Cup showed us how hot and humid conditions add to the demanding nature of competition. In order to survive each match, athletes, coaches and trainers need to commit to tried-and-true hydration practices. But what athletes do to recover between matches is important too.
No doubt sports drinks work to prevent dehydration when athletes are hot and sweaty. Their magic ingredient, electrolytes, is the cost of entry for any new, innovative product in the sports drink category. Milk and high-quality milk proteins are becoming synonymous with recovery nutrition for sports, much like electrolytes are for rehydration.
Recovery can mean different things to athletes and those responsible for their care. I like to define recovery as achieving a state of equal or enhanced readiness for the next training session or competition. Nutrition has a big part to play in accomplishing readiness, and developing sports science literature in healthy young men indicates the consumption of milk shortly after resistance exercise helps ready muscles by facilitating rebuilding and growth.
Research studies have also indicated chocolate milk can be an effective recovery aid after exercise by contributing fluid and electrolytes for rehydration, carbohydrates to refuel muscles, and protein for muscle rebuilding. In fact, compared to a simple carbohydrate solution, fat-free chocolate milk consumed after an initial exercise bout improved endurance performance in young male runners during a subsequent exercise bout several hours later.
To top it off, research has indicated there is something truly unique about dairy proteins such as whey. When compared to a plant-based protein like soy, whey provides for greater muscle-building benefits in the post-exercise period.
All the effects I described have been documented during the early hours after an exercise bout. While it’s important to “jump start” muscle recovery with protein nutrition as soon as possible after training or a competition, continued intake of high-quality proteins in meals and snacks leading up to the next event is essential for facilitating a full recovery. In addition to milk, this is where other low-fat and fat-free dairy products such as cheese and yogurts—also good sources of high-quality protein—can play a role.
Dairy products can easily and credibly be positioned as performance food for athletes, and I think we in the industry should be talking about and positioning dairy in this way. I hope you join me in this effort.
Source: Dairy Research Institite
