A sports recovery drink is a special beverage that can be consumed after an intense physical activity has been completed such as rugby. It helps to replace fluids, electrolytes, glycogen, and energy lost as a result of the sport while also assisting with muscle protein synthesis to prevent muscle breakdown.

Sports drinks which are usually high in carbohydrate are mostly beneficial for use in situations where one is exercising or playing sport for more than 90 minutes, this is because your glycogen stores (when fully stocked) can generally sustain exercise for this amount of time. The sports drink will help replenish these stores.
In addition, electrolytes help to maintain normal bodily functions such as hydration and fluid balance which aids homeostasis. [1]
Some recovery drinks will contain protein, this is required to help repair muscle damage sustained during play.

When to take a Recovery Drink?
Sports recovery drink is a beverage consumed after sport or exercise. The purpose of this drink is to replenish fluids, carbohydrates, electrolytes, and protein.

The most important thing about recovering from exercise is hydration and electrolyte balance. It’s good to drink fluids before you start exercising and as soon as you finish training. You should also drink during your workout if it’s hot outside (or even in a stuffy gymnasium) or if your workout lasts for more than an hour.

Electrolytes are minerals in your body that help maintain the chemical balance in various cells and help with muscle movement such as contraction of the heart muscle; they include calcium, potassium, sodium, magnesium, and chloride. [2]

A sports recovery drink is designed to help you recover from injury and refuel your body with the nutrients it needs to recover.

Carbohydrates are one of the most important part of a sports drink because they replenish glycogen stores, which provide energy for muscles and brain cells. Protein is another important component of a good sports drink because it helps repair muscle tissue.
Electrolytes such as sodium are also necessary to maintain hydration levels in the body.

Players in rugby need all these components to stay healthy and strong during a game, without proper recovery it will take longer to feel fit enough for training during the week which can then have a knock-on effect for the next fixture.

Benefits of Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates are the main source of energy for our body, and we need them to perform physical activities. [3]

Further research saw that eating a breakfast with more carbohydrates can help with children's cognitive function. [4]

Some of the benefits of including carbs in your diet are that they boost your mood, energy levels, and brain function.
Therefore, it is important to include carbs in your day to maintain a healthy lifestyle. If you are carbohydrate deficient, your body cannot operate effectively.

Carbohydrates for Recovery
Carbohydrates are very important for the recovery process as they replenish energy to the body. The ideal number of carbohydrates that should be consumed for optimal recovery is 4-6 grams per kilogram of body weight, although this can reach as much as 10-12g for those involved in extremely high intensity exercise. [5]

Carbohydrates are essential for optimal recovery following exercise. They provide the body with energy, which is required to support the muscles and other tissues that have been depleted during a training session.

Carbohydrates should be consumed as soon as possible after exercise, ideally within 60 minutes of finishing your workout. It's important to note that not all carbs are created equal. Carbohydrates are an essential part of a healthy diet. However, not all carbohydrates are created equal. The best carbohydrates for muscle recovery are those that provide glucose such as fruits and yogurt (low glycaemic) which has been shown to have a positive effect on the body's ability to recover after strenuous exercise. [6]

Refined sugars and grains will not provide the benefits that your body needs to recover from a workout. Instead, you should turn to foods like sweet potatoes and oatmeal to get carbohydrates from healthier sources.

Benefits of Protein

Protein in the diet is an important part of any diet. It has many benefits and can help you retain more lean muscle tissue while on a weight loss plan whereby you are restricting your calorie intake. [7]

Protein is a nutrient that is essential for life and growth, and it can be found in both plants and animals. This section will discuss the importance of protein to your diet, as well as its benefits.

Protein for Recovery

Protein is important for muscle recovery, strength, and hypertrophy. Protein provides the building blocks of muscle. Without protein, muscles cannot grow and repair themselves after a workout. If this happens the muscle will deteriorate, and you suffer from muscle catabolism - muscle waste. [8]

Amino acids are the building blocks of protein. The body can manufacture some amino acids but nine essential amino acids cannot be manufactured by the body and must be supplied through foods (meat is a good source) or supplements.

Proteins are classified into three categories depending on their sources: dairy, plant-based and meat/animal-based proteins. Dairy proteins include whey protein, casein protein, eggs, soybean, and rice milk; plant-protein includes hemp seed protein and quinoa; meat-based proteins include beef steak, chicken breast, pork chops and fish fillet.

A good guide for protein daily protein consumption is 1.62g per kilogram of bodyweight. Although athletes in high impact or strength and power-based sports may benefit from 2g per kilogram daily. [9]

Research shows that those rugby players with more lean muscle mass are less susceptible to injury that those with higher fat mass.

Hydration

We simply need water to survive, and our survival rate is much lower without water than it is without food. For instance, it is generally considered that a person can live without water for up to 3 days whereas we may be able to live without food (if there’s water available) for up to 60 days.

Water has a significant role within the body. It helps regulate temperature, carries nutrients to every cell in the body and carries oxygen to the organs. It’s also key to help the body absorb those vitamin, minerals, acids, carbohydrates, and other nutrients your body needs to effectively operate. [10]

Importantly for athletes, water helps lubricate joints while protecting the spinal cord and other important and sensitive tissues.

Hydration for Recovery

Excess heat and exercise cause the body to lose fluid through sweat and vapour which can lead to dehydration. This will reduce mental and physical performance alongside a reduced ability to regulate body temperature which can lead to serious events such as a stroke.

By rehydrating with you can help recover your aerobic capacity, increase muscle power, and reduce exercise-induced muscle damage. Dehydration occurs when the fluid loss exceeds the fluid intake. Even just 1-2% dehydration of bodyweight can lead to impaired physiological function and, dehydration in general can result in cramps, fatigue, and exhaustion. [11] It is therefore imperative that fluid is consumed before, during and after exercise.

Electrolytes

Electrolytes control the movement of nutrients within your body whilst also taking waste from the cells. They have a responsibility to ensure the nerves and important organs within the body operate effectively and in a controlled manner.

You may have heard of some electrolytes such as magnesium and sodium. Most of your electrolytes are provided by foods and drinks. They are found in your blood, urine, bodily fluids and tissues, the amount of fluid that you consume can directly affect your electrolyte imbalance, if this is the case you may experience muscle spasms, twitching, convulsions, a reduced ability of your blood clotting, and in severe cases you may go into a coma or cardiac arrest. [12]

Electrolytes and Recovery

Electrolytes are lost through sweat and urine, so if you are very active or the weather is warm, you are at risk of losing too much fluid and electrolytes causing an imbalance.

However, sweat rates (the amount of sweat lost during sport and exercise) are a highly personalised matter. Person A may sweat considerably more than person B whilst performing similar tasks.

Once thing in common is that everyone needs to replenish a greater volume than what they lost through sweat and urine. If you are eating after exercise water can be a suitable fluid, if food isn’t being consumed then fluid containing sodium and potassium plus carbohydrate (this can help the uptake of sodium and water) is essential otherwise exercise performance will be impaired. [13]

What shall I drink after Sport?

Most people may think of grabbing a sugary drink after sport, this has its benefits, sugar is a carbohydrate and often they feel thirst quenching.
However, popular ‘energy’ drinks may fulfil the carbohydrate aspect but fall way too short on the other essential requirements for recovery such as protein and the electrolytes, some of these popular beverages apparently ‘give you wings’, what this means is that they contain caffeine.

However, caffeine is a diuretic which causes you to urinate more and prevent adequate hydration. Other well-known brands often found sponsoring extreme or motorsports in large cans are also prone to causing you to lose fluids, too, without containing the much-needed electrolytes. You are best avoiding these types of drinks for exercise related hydration.

Water is a popular option, and for good reason. Water is great for maintaining hydration, generally. Yet, for sports recovery it isn’t the optimal choice post exercise. This is because plain water increased the rate of urine and doesn’t create a positive fluid balance due to the lack of electrolytes. [14]

So where shall we turn?

Milk. Yes, humble milk that is often not given to much thought expect for cereal or adding to tea and coffees.

However, a study published in 2014 found that milk-based drinks are superior to traditional sports beverages at providing proper rehydration. This is because milk-based drinks contain protein, carbohydrates, calories, and electrolytes in greater amounts. [15]

If you don’t like the flavour of normal milk, try different flavours. You can also benefit from soy milk, and best of all, milk is considerably cheaper than traditional sports beverages found on the shelves.

References:

[1] https://journals.physiology.org/doi/pdf/10.1152/ajpregu.00246.2014
[2] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7854827
[3] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8116550/
[4] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4863264/
[5] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S076515970400053X
[6] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16286667/
[7] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5421125/
[8] https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s41110-016-0022-x
[9] https://jissn.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12970-018-0215-1
[10] https://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/healthy_eating/water-and-healthier-drinks.html
[11] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4207053/
[12] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4712283
[13] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9232555/
[14] https://sites.marjon.ac.uk/msquibb/2018/04/15/the-importance-of-hydration-rehydration-rugby/
[15] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25315686/