Recover and regenerate - fueling after hockey

Last Updated: February 13, 2009 11:10 AM  

Jennifer Gibson Minor Menu

The scenario: Your team is in the midseason and is training for an upcoming tournament.  You notice that some athletes seem to be losing their legs and steam as the weeks go by. There seems to be a downward trend in performance and a few of the players have been getting sick and injured.

This scenario is all too common and a coaches worst nightmare. Athletes should be peaking and getting better over the season! Part of this problem may lie in improper recovery and regeneration after practice.

Recovering and regenerating the body after hockey is essential for a consistent performance as well as reducing player injury and illness. Post-hockey recovery nutrition and hydration performs the following functions:

1. Replenishes fluids and muscle glycogen lost during training
2. Provides protein for muscular repair and rebuilding
3. Helps to curb the drop in the immune system that is seen in the hours post exercise
4. Helps prevent over eating in the meals following hockey
5. Body is fresh and recovered to handle the next training session

Timing of Recovery Fueling

For junior athletes training once a day, recovery food and fluids should be consumed within 30 minutes of completing exercise.  This timeframe is a critical window for enhanced recovery as blood flow to the muscles is greater and muscle cells are more insulin-sensitive.  This post-hockey nutrition should be followed by a regular meal or another snack within 2 hours.

Meet your Recovery Ratios

It's a simple equation! Recovery Nutrition = Carbs + Protein + Fluids

• Aim for 1g carbohydrate per kg of body weight. Pack carbohydrate-rich foods that can be and brought with you to the arena. Breads, granola bars, crackers, rice, pasta, cereal, fruits & vegetables all work.
• Add 8-10g of protein which can come from lean meats, peanut butter, chocolate milk, yogurt, 1 cup milk, cottage cheese or eggs
• Aim for approx 500-1000ml fluid. Its best to estimate your sweat rate for this. See my previous post for how to do this.
• Liquid meals such as smoothies and meal replacement shake work well if athletes have a decreased appetite after training.
• AVOID alcohol (if athletes are of drinking age). Studies have shown that it can actually impair muscle recovery if consumed after exercise.

Chocolate milk/soy milk is the ultimate recovery food. It has everything the body needs for recovery - fluids, protein, carbs and it tastes great!  

An example of a recovery shcedule for a 100lb (100 x o.45 = 45 kg) hockey player.

Timing	Food & Amount	Carb (g)	Protein (g)	Fluids (ml)
Within 30 minutes post-workout (goal ~45g carb)	750 ml water PBJ sandwich: 1.5 tbsp jam 2 sl. whole wheat bread 2 tbsp peanut butter	0 19 24 6	0 0 4 9	750ml
	Totals:	49 g	13 g	750ml
1 hour later at a meal (goal ~45g minimum carb)	Deli turkey 6" sub sandwich Chocolate milk (250ml) water (250ml)	40 27	16 8	250ml 250ml
	Totals:	67 g	24 g	500ml

Top 10 recovery foods for hockey

Do the math for your personal needs and then pack the right recovery snacks for your next game/practice.

Food	Serving size	Calories(kcal)	Carb(g)	Protein(g)	Fat(g)
1% chocolate milk	2 cups	320	54	16	6
Low fat fruit yogurt	175g	150	26	6	2
Peanut butter and jam sandwich	1	334	49	13	14
Bananas	1 large	109	28	1.2	0.6
Gatorade	591ml bottle	150	37	0	0
Clif Bar	1 bar (69g)	250	44	10	3.7
Sunrype Fruit leather bar(thicker bar)	1 bar(40g)	135	34	0.5	0.4
Kashi Granola bar	1 bar			7
Fruit smoothie (Island Farms)	1 bottle (250 ml)	270	49	7	5
Meal replacement drink - Boosh	1 can(227)	240	41	10	4

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