Prep: 10 minutes           Cook:  3-5 hours crockpot       Serves    8-10

Chicken soup is the staple when it comes to recovering from a cold or flu.  I make the traditional recipe with a little Asian twist.  By adding fresh grated ginger root the taste is enhanced along with the immune boosting power.  This recipe calls for the addition of cabbage, onions, and carrots, but do not be afraid to toss in squash, potatoes or leeks.  The whole idea is to maximize the amount of phytochemicals  available in a single meal.

Hydration with soup is very effective due to the presence of potassium from the vegetables, and sodium, which are essential electrolytes.  I like to make a large batch, and then freeze some of it for quick recovery meals.

Ingredients:

1 (2-3 pound) whole chicken, or cut-up; remove skin

2 tsp. grated fresh ginger (put through a garlic press for quick prep)
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It is frustrating to have a great day training and then wake up the next morning too sore to workout again.  Many athletes avoid using NSAIDS because of the potential risk of bleeding, ulcers and kidney damage.  Natural anti-inflammatory supplements are regularly marketed as safer and effective, but do they really work?  The jury is still out, with some researchers getting positive results, and others not.  If you do chose to use a natural food based anti-inflammatory supplements, here are some guidelines. 

1)  Take a supplement that contains a mixture of ingredients. The concurrent ingestion of flavonoids increases their effectiveness.  2)  Use the supplement consistently for at least 2 weeks.  Popping a natural supplement the day of a race is not likely to be effective.  To date, two of the supplements that have shown effectiveness include black currant berries containing 240 mg anthocyanins, or and a combination of quercetin mixed with isoquercetin, EGCG, fish oil, vitamin C, and niacin.

I admit it. I wear my heart rate monitor and check the calorie count for my workout as much as I follow heart rate.  Seeing the calorie burn keeps me motivated to keep cranking up hills and staying on pace.   Research has proven without question that carbohydrate feeds during endurance exercise improve time to exhaustion and decrease muscle breakdown.  But all that extra sugar can take away from overall calorie expenditure.  Over a 1 hour ride, 24 oz of a typical 6% carbohydrate sport drink will add 150 calories, and it is all sugar.  Recently researchers at the University of Texas tested a new formulation of sport drink in female athletes and found that a protein plus mixed-carb supplement could improve performance despite containing 50 percent less carbohydrate.  The protein plus carb blend was also 30 percent lower in calories, and important consideration for many athletes.   Better performance, less sugar, and more calorie burn.  That’s my kind of sport drink.

Aerobic exercise is associated with an increase in the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) that occur when metabolic rate is elevated. When the production of ROS is increased, the body’s natural internal antioxidant defense system kicks in to counteract harmful effects of exercise stress.  Read More

Don’t overlook the convenience of keeping canned food in your cupboard as a way to improve your diet. I like this fast recovery Tomato Italian soup because it is packed with antioxidants, and low in calories.   Spring for the extra cost of organic, pre-seasoned crushed tomatoes to insure low added sugars, and maximum flavor.    Spices are essential to raise antioxidant content, and don’t be afraid to add a little extra to suite your taste.

¾ cup organic, crushed tomatoes seasoned with Italian spices

½ cup chicken broth

Optional: fresh ground pepper

Optional: top with 2 Tbsp. fresh grated parmesan cheese
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A high intensity workout at maximum effort, for 60 minutes burns up about 15 cal/min or 900 calories.  Subtract from exercise calories, the calories you would have burned sitting for an hour, about 100.  Exercise caloric expenditure would be an additional 800 calories over resting rate of 1500 calories for the average woman, making her total requirement 2300 calories for the day.   For males, average resting caloric needs are between 1800 – 2000 calories.  To calculate a more accurate value for resting calories use the Harris- Benedict equation.

Working hard does not mean you can down as much food as you want.  Just two pieces of a large cheese pizza and a 16 ounce soda totals up to 755 calories, 21 g protein, 15 g of fat, and 136 g of carbohydrate. 

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Research has shown consistently that carbohydrate is essential after exercise to replace glycogen stores in the muscle.  While general guidelines state carbohydrate should be >50% of an athletes’ diet, translating this recommendation to specific amounts of food is not that simple.  For an individual athlete, carbohydrate recommendations should be based on body weight, exercise intensity and volume (or duration).  During general training, a carbohydrate intake of 5-7 g /kg is ideal, for endurance training aim for 7-10 g/kg.

Recent research has shown that when carbohydrate intake following exercise is insufficient, then addition of small amounts of protein can be beneficial.  Good carbohydrate sources: rice (wild, brown, or white) average of 22 grams carbohydrate per ½ cup serving, 2-4 g protein, 1 g fat; egg noodles, 20 g carbohydrate per ½ cup, 4 g protein, 1.1 g fat.  Snack foods such as M &M cookies (Subway) have 30 g of carbohydrate, 4 g protein, and an additional 15 grams of fat.

 Doing squats is a great way to strengthen the gluts and hamstrings.  These muscles oppose the often over-used, and tightened hip flexors that fire when running or cycling.  

To test whether carbohydrate or branch-chain amino acids (BCAA) are effective in reducing the muscle soreness that occurs after the eccentric movement used during squats, researchers provided a drink with one or the other to untrained females and had them do 7 sets of 20 squats, resting 3 minutes in-between.  Delayed onset muscles soreness (DOMS) showed a peak at days 2 and 3 after the trial for both test drinks,  but the level was higher in the carbohydrate only group.  

 The  benefits of BCAA are seen at relatively low doses, 100 mg/kg body weight.  If you weigh a 154 pounds, that is about 70 kg.  Supplementation with 7 grams of BCAA prior to lifting may be sufficient to reduce muscle soreness and allow for faster recovery, based on these study results.

RECOVERY CHICKEN SOUP                                                     Makes 8 servings   

Prep 10 minutes                                                                      Crockpot 3-5 hours

 Chicken soup is perfect for a recovery meal, replacing fluid and electrolytes.  Using a crockpot allows the flavors to meld together while you go out and train.  Don’t be afraid to add different vegetables, use frozen if no fresh are available.  Barilla PLUS® pasta adds 360 mg of omega-3 fats to the recipe, as well as extra protein.

 1 (2-3 pound) bone-in chicken; remove skin

3 stalks celery with leaves, chopped

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             I find many athletes fail to see gains from high intensity sprints and strength workouts because they experience muscle soreness, limiting exercise.

The key to remodeling muscle and recovery lies in timing the intake and amount of the master amino acid: leucine.

How much leucine at a meal is enough?  Although no studies have been done on humans, researchers have used data from rats to estimate requirements.

Per Meal Leucine Recommendations by Body Weight: 

             Rich food sources of leucine are eggs , animal protein (fish, beef, poultry), and milk.  The USDA provides a complete listing of food sources of the leucine content.  It is important to recognize that heavier athletes may find it difficult to get enough leucine at a meal without using careful planning.