Surprising, right?
Usually, when we think of chocolate milk, we think of children grabbing the sugary drink in the lunch line at school much to the dismay of their parents. Not many people picture a bottle of the sweet moo-juice tossed into the gym bag of the muscle-bound endurance athlete as a recovery drink. Research, however, tells us that chocolate milk is the best choice to refuel after your toughest workouts. Director of the Human Performance laboratory at Indiana University Physiologist Joel Stager’s latest study, published in January’sInternational Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, names chocolate milk as the optimum choice for after a long workout.
I see between 24 and 32 grams of sugar, and only 8 or 9 grams of protein (per cup) when I look at the nutritional information. Not sure how Choco Milk can be beneficial unless there is some scientific or medical data to the contrary.
I, being an accountant, had to generate a spreadsheet to compare the numbers. I did Gatorade G2 “Recover”, PET Whole milk, PET 1% White, PET Chocolate, PET Low Fat Choco, Progenex Vanilla Protein and Progenex Choco Protein. On an even serving scale of 12oz the low fat choco does give you the most protein AND carbs so maybe it’s a “bang for your buck” sort of thing of maximizing the two. I suppose it really depends on what you’re after in your post-workout meal.
Where does a chocolate bar fall on your spreadsheet? That, I’d be down with.
Whitney, its right beside beer on the spreadsheet.
mmmmmmmmmmm beer.
They have chocolate beer I believe. I know there is a chocolate wine.
I’ve heard about this before, the benefits of chocolate milk after a workout. I usually do a half/half mix of milk and water in my post-workout protein shake. Any thoughts on if this is good/bad/indifferent? Does the mixture have any negative effects on the digestion of the protein?? Obviously as a post-workout shake you want the protein to be absorbed as fast as possible. Plus, it also helps the sweet tooth!
Ok, I’m convinced this could work out in my favor. If chocolate milk is good after a work out, then a chocolate oreo milkshake with oreo must be better.
chocolate milk is a runners “ideal” post run recovery drink. Low fat of course. You can even buy “rockin recovery” in the individual containers at Harris Teeter. 20 grams of protein in 1 lowfat bottle of chocolate milk. I drink it every saturday after my long run.
Ellie – you would love the chocolate milk post run
I’m with Ellie.