Over the last few years I’ve watched my road biker husband drink all sorts of weird, powdered concoctions in the name of “recovery.” I called them his performance-enhancing drugs, which isn’t that funny given all the recent scandals about doping in professional bike racing. But my point was, what’s wrong with regular food to meet even a competitive athlete’s needs?
After realizing the importance of proper nutrition after starting my triathlon training, and how difficult it was to get it right, I was on the verge of giving in and trying one of the yucky-looking protein shakes. Then I read a new study on how chocolate milk bested several sports drinks for helping athletes recover from strenuous exercise. Apparently, it has the correct ratio of carbohydrates to protein to help refuel overworked muscles.
The study (partially funded by the dairy industry) was published in the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism. In the study, nine male cyclists rode until their muscles were depleted of energy, then rested and biked again until exhaustion. During the four-hour rest period, the cyclists drank low-fat chocolate milk, Gatorade, or Endurox R4, a sports-recovery drink. During the second round of exercise, the cyclists who drank the chocolate milk were able to bike about 50% longer than those who drank Endurox, and about as long as those who drank the Gatorade.
Although the study was small, that was good enough for me. Bring on the chocolate milk. My husband is now drinking chocolate milk, too. Along with that I’ve learned that eating a lot of lean protein is important in training. But what about the actual race? Common wisdom is, of course, to drink a lot of fluids, but in longer races, carbohydrate-laden snacks are important to keep the furnace burning.
The triathlon I’ll be participating in will take probably two hours. That is long enough that I’ll want to have some nutrition along the way to keep my energy up. A lot of athletes “eat” the energy gels in those little packets, but they gross me out. The texture, taste, everything, so those are out of the question for me.
I started to research what other options there were. Oh, happy surprise when I found out candy is a favorite of many long-distance athletes. And the number-one choice? Jelly beans! I love jelly beans! And I can eat them in the name of fitness! Jelly Belly even makes special “sports beans” that have electrolytes, B vitamins and vitamin C. Other options are bananas, crackers, plain boiled potatoes and energy bars.
So sports nutrition doesn’t have to come in a fancy package as powders or gels. And the most important aspect is to eat what works best for you. Don’t try anything new during a race. Make sure you have tried out on-the-go snacks to make sure they don’t upset your stomach, and practice good, general nutrition during training, making sure to get enough protein. And after the race, reward yourself with a tall, cold glass of chocolate milk!