Study prescribes chocolate milk for athletes

newindpress.com ^ | February 26 2006

[grundle]

NEW YORK: Chocolate milk may be as good - or better - than common sports drinks like Gatorade or Endurox R4 at helping athletes recover from strenuous exercise, says a new study.

Intense endurance exercise reduces supply of stored glucose or glycogen, a key source of fuel for exercise, to the muscles.

To maximise glycogen replacement, sportsmen use to take a serving of carbohydrates within 30 minutes after a long and vigorous workout.

Common sports drinks such as Gatorade supply those carbohydrates, as well as fluids and electrolytes lost through sweat. More recent research suggests that adding protein to the mix may further hasten recovery, reported health portal WebMD.

The new study, published in the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism counter the notion that high-tech, expensive supplements are better than whole foods when it comes to athletic performance, it said.

A team of researchers led by Joel M. Stager of Indiana University found that milk contains key nutrients, such as calcium and vitamin D, in quantities that sports drinks can't match.

In the study, nine male cyclists rode until their muscles were depleted of energy, then rested four hours and biked again until exhaustion.

During the rest period, the cyclists drank low-fat chocolate milk, Gatorade, or another sports drinks Endurox R4. During a second round of exercise, the cyclists who drank the chocolate milk were able to bike about 50 percent longer than those who drank Endurox, and about as long as those who drank the Gatorade.

The findings suggest that chocolate milk has an optimal ratio of carbohydrates to protein to help refuel tired muscles, Stager said.

[Old Professer]

We now.

[coydog]

Casein was the first "plastic". They made buttons out of it.

[Coleus]

Casein, a Milk Protein

Casein, Wallpaper Paste

[Alia]

At swim meets, before heats, we'd all eat chocolate. After the race, we'd have a smaller amount of chocolate. Dittos, track meets. The trick is not to eat so much chocolate you destabilize your blood sugars. The combination of cocoa and sugars in the chocolate tends to focus the mind while the body is going through a surge as a result of ingesting cocoa; hence providing a surge "with stamina". FWIW, I disliked chocolate most all my life. I saw it as a natural "medicine", however, and used chocolate like, say, some people use herbs and supplements nowadays.

In the late 70s, the secret herb at colleges was a combination of gotu kola and gingko biloba -- for focusing the mind and energy stamina. Sugar was already being hit hard as "bad". Dittos, coffee. Didn't like the gotu/ginko -- left a bad taste in my mouth. So, I hung with quality coffee. :>