Women’s Health Nutrition: Best Foods for Muscle Recovery

Are you feeling fatigued? Sluggish? Slow? SORE? Are you being honest with yourself about that? This could be a potential indicator of poor recovery. In this blog post I will be sharing with you TWO whole foods and compounds which may improve recovery time, quercitin and cherries!

Antioxidants: Quercetin

Some of the best sources of antioxidants can be found in apples and citrus fruits. What is so beneficial about these? These two foods along with organic tomatoes, organic peppers, almonds, and olive oil are an excellent source of a compound called quercetin. In a recent study, cyclists were supplemented with a quercetin and EGCG blend for two weeks before 3 days of 3 hour intense exercise sessions. This study found that in comparison to the control and quercetin group, these cyclists exhibited significant anti-inflammatory protection.1 Why is this important? More protection from antioxidants can decrease muscle tissue damage and improve recovery time. 

In another recent single blind controlled study, female athletes supplemented with 500 mg quercetin for one week demonstrated a reduction in lactic acid levels and improved running times. 2

There are several inflammatory proteins that are elevated after intense exercise such as TNF alpha, IL-6 and C-reactive protein. Each can be responsible for disease progression and impact athletic performance, which I will allude to in a bit with another important food. There has been much debate about the antioxidant timing, yet a lot of these studies are linking it to high ingestion of vitamin C. During exercise, we NEED oxidation for our muscle to function properly and our mitochondria to produce energy. In fact, these are the byproducts of “cellular respiration.” Therefore, too high of an intake of antioxidants, particularly in supplemental form may not be beneficial during exercise as this can blunt the effects of the immune system and dampen the function of the mitochondria. 

So what do we do? Include a diet that is RICH in color. We can still use the power of this whole food nutrition and have sources of antioxidants in our drinks with electrolytes ( I will get to the latter at another time. ) Now, if you are running for longer periods of time, such as in an ultramarathon, you may benefit from a little antioxidant in your drink as low antioxidant status can impair sodium and potassium pumps and calcium channels from functioning properly and lead to early onset fatigue. For most of us as endurance athletes, adding this in as a juice in my water along with some salt and possibly amino acids.  

Antioxidant Powders

What is another strategy I used to increase my antioxidant status? Taking in extra antioxidants in powder form. Personally, I used Juice Plus Fruit, Veggie and Berry capsules. I immediately noticed a difference in my mental clarity and my energy upon first taking them. I have them to fall back on if I know my body had an intense day of training. These are fresh from the vine, picked at their peak, organic foods dehydrated and placed into capsules. There are plenty of studies that back their antioxidant protection, but I have a personal story. I have had to go off them two times for 3 months at a time. In that time, my inflammatory markers increased on my lab tests and I was not recovering as well from my workouts. Coincidence? I think not. 

If you would like more information on Juice Plus or to add this to your dietary routine, please check out this website.

Juice Plus

This leads me to one of my favorite sources of antioxidants. 

Cherries

These are one of my FAVORITE recovery foods. In fact, I usually use this along with collagen peptides or protein powder right after my long events, such as those lasting more than 90 minutes.  A recent study was recently published on rugby players supplemented with cherry concentrate for 10 days. At Day 8, after intense exercise and muscle fatigue, there was a 91% recovery rate in muscle strength 24 hours later as compared to 85% with placebo. There was also less damage done to the muscles from the oxidative stress generated by intense exercise.3 

The latter claim was also demonstrated in another recent study. Subjects were administered 480 mL tart cherry juice over the course of 12 weeks. This study demonstrated significant decreases in inflammatory proteins C-Reactive Protein and malondialdehyde, the former commonly elevated after intense workouts while the latter in individuals experiencing joint pain.4,5

Cherries are also a good source quick sugars and carbohydrates. In fact, cherries do not only contain fructose, but a combination of fructose and sucrose. In a 100 g sample of sweet cherries, the total sugar is 14.2g, 8.1g as glucose, 6.2 g fructose, 0.2 grams sucrose, 1.3 g maltose. Three are simple sugars as one is a disaccharide, or two sugars put together.5 In fact, combining sugars can decrease GI distress as they all need different transporters to be absorbed. This increases oxidation rates of these carbohydrates, meaning they are immediately used for fuel and prevent their accumulation which can lead to bloat and other GI issues.7 

If you want to see a great chart of fructose to glucose and other sugars, here is  an EXCELLENT chart!

https://thepaleodiet.com/fruits-and-sugars  

What are some great ways to incorporate both of them? Add some tart cherry juice to your recovery shake or add a serving contain 60g sugar to 1 liter of water (6% solution) with some salt (about ¼ tsp) in water with some other goodies to help fuel your workouts. Personally, I love LMNT which content 1000 mg sodium, 400 mg potassium and 200 mg magnesium which can further help with prevention of cramping. 

Want to know more about recovering and refueling properly? Check out my FREE Ebook “Best Foods For Female Athletes For Athletic Performance.”

Best Foods For Female Athletes For Athletic Performance

References:

1. Nieman DC, Henson DA, Maxwell KR, Williams AS, McAnulty SR, Jin F, Shanely RA, Lines TC. Effects of quercetin and EGCG on mitochondrial biogenesis and immunity. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2009 Jul;41(7):1467-75. doi: 10.1249/MSS.0b013e318199491f. PMID: 19516153.

2. Akkaya, B., & Salici, O. (2021). Investigation of the Effects of Quercetin and Resveratrol Consumption on Lactic Acid Levels and Running Performance of Elite Adolescent Athletics Distance Runners. PROGRESS IN NUTRITION. 23. 2012.

3. Craig, I. Functional Sports Drinks: We are witnessing a giant shift in the way we think about performance products. Functional Sports Medicine. April 2011

4. Chai SC, Davis K, Zhang Z, Zha L, Kirschner KF. Effects of Tart Cherry Juice on Biomarkers of Inflammation and Oxidative Stress in Older Adults. Nutrients. 2019;11(2):228. Published 2019 Jan 22. doi:10.3390/nu11020228

5. Kalavacherla US, Ishaq M, Rao UR, Sachindranath A, Hepsiba T. Malondialdehyde as a sensitive marker of inflammation in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. J Assoc Physicians India. 1994 Oct;42(10):775-6. PMID: 7876045.

6. Mead, I.How much sugar is in your fruit? The Paleo Diet Website. 2022. https://thepaleodiet.com/fruits-and-sugars. Accessed March 2, 2023. 

7. de Oliveira EP, Burini RC. Carbohydrate-dependent, exercise-induced gastrointestinal distress. Nutrients. 2014 Oct 13;6(10):4191-9. doi: 10.3390/nu6104191. PMID: 25314645; PMCID: PMC4210913.