Your body uses carbs for energy and protein to rebuild muscle. After a run, you need to refuel with both. For optimal recovery, refuel as soon as possible, ideally within 2 hours.

The typical recommended ratio is 3:1 or 4:1 carb to protein but based on a recent meta-analysis (PMID 32826640), this is only good if the absolute amount is sufficient. Also, the study shows that the recommended amount of carbs and protein intake for optimal recovery depends on your body weight and amount of exercise that you did. The optimal amount recommended by the analysis is 0.9 grams/kg/hour for carbs and 0.3 grams/kg/hour for protein.

I’ve put together this handy dandy chart so you can have an idea of how much carbs and protein you need post-run based on your body weight and hours of exercise.

If you haven’t been fueling with this much carbs and protein post-run, be sure to increase gradually so your body can get used to it.

Is chocolate milk a good post-run fuel?

You may have heard that chocolate milk is a good post-run fuel because of its 4:1 carb to protein ratio. However, I have never been a big fan because I am lactose intolerance and depending on how much you weigh and how long you ran, you’d need to drink a lot of chocolate milk!

If you are a 65kg runner who ran 2 hours, you’d have to drink 5-6 cups of chocolate milk post-run to get enough carbs and protein for optimal recovery! That’s pretty gross. 🥴🤢🤮

While you might be able to train your gut to take in this much chocolate milk, it’s probably better to mix it in with other things. Here are some other ideas:

• Protein shake with a banana, frozen blueberries, and milk
• Peanut butter and jam sandwich
• Eggs and bagel
• Greek yogurt with nuts and fruit
• Protein bar

The main takeaway is to refuel with both carbs and protein after you run for optimal recovery. Be intentional with your post-run fueling strategy and continue to fuel throughout the day. Let me know what you like as your post-run fuel!