Nutrition for Peak Recovery
by John
Eliot, Ph.D.
zone3
One of the factors that significantly influences recovery—how steep the
slope of the curve, and therefore how much of an overshoot (image a hose
pointing into the air and then adjusting the pressure of the water)—is the
fuel the body has available to it. If the right volume and combination of
nutrients are available, the body will sling back with tremendous force.
If not, both the benefit from training will be dampened, and lengthen the
time it takes before training can be resumed will be lengthened.
To take full advantage of nutrition’s impact on the overshoot, fuel has
to be on hand when the body starts to recover. And, using a little common
sense, you can’t immediately get fuel to your muscles, organs, and brain
by eating—unless you’re going to tote an IV bag around. Digestion just
plain takes time.
The most influential period in recovery happens in the first hour
post-training. At that point, your muscles need glycogen and amino acids,
your liver needs hepatic sugar, and you must have a host of co-factors
such as insulin. But take amino acids, for instance. Their source is
protein and it takes about 3 hours to digest protein. If you wait until
after training to provide these nutrients, your timing will be off by
200%. Certainly not peak performance!
So what can you do? Pay strict attention to pre-training fuel intake.
Here are four basic guidelines that are critical for all athletes
follow:
(1) Eat a well balanced, healthy meal about 3 hours prior to
conditioning. This includes a full serving of low-glycemic index
carbohydrates such as fruits, legumes, whole grains, and non-fat milk,
along with a full serving of high quality, lean protein (servings are
dictated by weight, level of fitness, metabolism, gender, and type of
sport).
(2) Drink plenty of water throughout the day. For many sports, this
requirement is upward of 100 ounces every 24 hours!
(3) Take in a liquid form of carbohydrate (5-10% carbohydrate by
solution) immediately before training commences. The company Twin Lab
makes a good product for this, called Hydra Fuel.
(4) Down an exercise recovery drink right after finishing your
conditioning (or as soon as your stomach will tolerate one). The best
recovery drinks are scientifically designed to provide the right balance
and forms of carbohydrates and protein. Check out Twin Lab’s OptiFuel
2.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
JOHN F. ELIOT, PH.D., is an award winning professor of management,
psychology, and human performance. He holds faculty appointments at Rice
University and the SMU Cox School of Business Leadership Center. He is a
co-founder of the Milestone Group, a consulting firm providing training to
business executives, professional athletes, physicians, and corporations.
Dr. Eliot’s clients have included: SAP, XEROX, Disney, Adidas, the United
States Olympic Committee, the National Champion Rice Owl's baseball team,
and the Mayo Clinic. Dr. Eliot’s cutting edge work has been featured on
ABC, MSNBC, CBS, ESPN, Fox Sports, NPR, and highlighted in the Harvard
Business Review, Wall Street Journal, New York Daily News, Entrepreneur,
LA Times, the Washington Post, USA Today, and the New York Times. Dr.
Eliot serves on numerous advisory boards including the National Center for
Human Performance and the Center for Performing Arts Medicine. His latest
book is Overachievement: The New Model for Exceptional Performance. For
more information, visit Dr. Eliot’s site at http://www.overachievement.com/
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