Great news! Indulge in chocolate milk!

And blame it on research! Whenever I read something that's too good to be true I tend to bring out my sceptical self... However, when I saw that chocolate milk is shown to be the best post-exercise recovery drink out there, I decided it was better to try it out before reading the documentation! If I haven't seen the effects yet, it must be because I haven't had enough ;).

Four articles published in Medicine & Science in Sports and Exercise show that chocolate milk offer a recovery advantage to help repair and rebuild muscles, compared to specially designed carbohydrate sports drinks.

It is good for:

• Building Muscle - make muscles better able to repair and rebuild
• Replenishing Muscle "Fuel" - replacing muscle fuel (glycogen)
• Maintaining Lean Muscle - decrease muscle breakdown
• Subsequent Exercise Performance

Chocolate milk consists of a combination of carbohydrates and proteins, and the ratio is beneficial for post exercise recovery. Also, in terms of rehydration, milk offers a fluid that includes potassium, calcium and magnesium.

Source: Medical News Today

1. Lunn WR, Colletto MR, Karfonta KE, Anderson JM, Pasiakos SM, Ferrando AA, Wolfe RR, Rodriguez NR. Chocolate milk consumption following endurance exercise affects skeletal muscle protein fractional synthetic rate and intracellular signaling. Medicine & Science in Sports and Exercise. 2010;42:S48.
2. Karfonta KE, Lunn WR, Colletto MR, Anderson JM, Rodriguez NR. Chocolate milk enhances glycogen replenishment after endurance exercise in moderately trained males. Medicine & Science in Sports and Exercise. 2010;42:S64.
   
3. Colletto MR, Lunn W, Karfonta K, Anderson J, Rogriguez N. Effects of chocolate milk consumption on leucine kinetics during recovery from endurance exercise. Medicine & Science in Sports and Exercise. 2010;42:S126.
   
4. Ferguson-Stegall L, McCleave E, Doerner PG, Ding Z, Dessard B, Kammer L, Wang B, Liu Y, Ivy J. Effects of chocolate milk supplementation on recovery from cycling exercise and subsequent time trial performance. Medicine & Science in Sports and Exercise. 2010;42:S536.