Post-Workout Recovery Shake

The mistake in most post-workout shakes is protein only. If you just trained hard you also emptied muscle glycogen, and refilling that takes carbohydrate at roughly three to one against protein. This lands near 100g of carbs to 29g of protein, with sodium and potassium from coconut water and salt to replace what you sweated out.

Ingredients

• 1 cup coconut water, cold
• 1/2 cup tart cherry juice
• 1 medium banana, frozen
• 1 scoop (30 g) unflavored or vanilla whey protein isolate
• 1/4 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 3 or 4 ice cubes

Instructions

1. Blend the dry oats by themselves for 20 seconds until powdery, which keeps the shake from turning to wet sand at the bottom of the bottle.
2. Add the coconut water, cherry juice, honey, and salt and blend 10 seconds.
3. Add the protein isolate and blend on low for 10 seconds. Whey goes in before the frozen banana, never after.
4. Add the frozen banana and ice and blend on high for 30 seconds until it is smooth and pourable rather than thick. A recovery shake should be easy to drink quickly.
5. Drink it within 30 to 60 minutes of finishing your session. If you train away from home, blend it ahead and freeze it solid in a bottle, and it will be slushy and cold by the time you rack the last set.

Tips

• Do not skip the salt. A hard session can cost 800 to 1,500mg of sodium, and 1/4 teaspoon puts back around 575mg. It also stops the shake from tasting flat.
• Tart cherry juice is not only flavor. It has the best evidence of any common supplement for reducing soreness after hard training, and it doubles as fast carbohydrate here.
• If you are training for size rather than endurance, swap the coconut water for whole milk. You give up a little of the fast carb effect and gain 150 calories plus 8g of protein.

FAQ

Do I really need carbs after lifting?

For a normal lifting session, protein matters more and carbs are optional. For endurance work, two-a-days, or anything over 90 minutes, carbohydrate is what actually restores glycogen before your next session.

Is the anabolic window real?

Not as narrow as it was sold. Total daily protein matters most, but if you train fasted or train again within eight hours, getting protein and carbs in soon after genuinely helps.

Can I just drink chocolate milk instead?

Chocolate milk is a legitimate recovery drink at roughly a three to one carb to protein ratio. This shake does the same job with more total protein and added electrolytes.

Why unflavored protein powder?

Vanilla works too, but cherry and coconut water are already doing the flavoring. A strong chocolate or dessert-flavored powder fights the fruit and tastes muddy.

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