Drink Milk To Gain Muscle And Lose Fat After Your Workout
Milk may be the ideal drink to help you gain muscle and burn fat after a workout. That’s true for both athletes and recreational exercisers.
As published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, a study at McMaster University examined the post-workout effects of drinking 2 cups of skim milk vs. a soy beverage with the same amount of protein and energy vs. a carbohydrate drink (like a sports drink) with about the same amount of energy.
The researchers followed 3 groups of men from 18 to 30 years old. These 56 men engaged in rigorous weightlifting 5 days a week over a 12-week period.
When the study was over, the researchers discovered that the milk drinking group had lost almost twice as much fat (2 pounds) as the carbohydrate drinking group (1 pound).
The soy drinkers lost no fat.
In addition, the milk drinkers gained 40% more muscle (2.5 pounds) than the soy drinkers and 63% more muscle (3.3 pounds) than the carbohydrate drinkers.
The researchers concluded that milk is the ideal post-workout drink.
The study was funded by grants from the Canadian Institutes for Health Research and the U.S. National Dairy Council.
Technorati Tags: milk, gain muscle, lose fat, workout, diet, exercise
August 10th, 2007 at 2:25 am
For the past 8 months of my work out. I had milk (chocolate flavored but low in fats). I love milk and thought it was one reason I was not loosing fast enough. But now after reading this article I get the real reason why i lost more than my brother did. I drank milk while he drank soymilk. Well, thanks for this awesome article. Im starting to love milk even more.
Darren
working out to the limit
but having a hard time loosing alitle bit of fat at the tummy region—–HELP!!!
August 10th, 2007 at 10:14 am
I always thought it was best to drink sports drinks after a workout to replace all the nutrients and stuff you sweated out. I never thought of drinking milk after a workout. Thanks for the tip.
August 10th, 2007 at 11:16 am
Interesting. I gotta go buy some milk.
August 10th, 2007 at 12:31 pm
I love milk, and drink at least 2 cups a day.
August 10th, 2007 at 3:04 pm
I’ve never liked milk, but I’m going to start drinking it after this.
August 10th, 2007 at 3:27 pm
Wow! This is amazing how much fat you can lose with milk next to the alternatives. I never thought about drinking milk after a workout, either. I always drink water.
August 10th, 2007 at 4:58 pm
Count me in as one of the people who thought milk made you gain weight. I’ve been drinking soy milk because I thought it was healthier for you.
August 10th, 2007 at 9:24 pm
But does it work for people who don’t work out with weights?
August 11th, 2007 at 3:27 pm
Rita,
The researchers say it works for recreational exercisers, too.
August 11th, 2007 at 8:34 pm
Thats awesome information! I will have to start drinking it after my Saturday morning work outs!
August 14th, 2007 at 10:43 am
It’s a study funded by the U.S. National Dairy Council, that should in itself raise a red flag for skeptics.
January 13th, 2008 at 5:46 am
Please note that they drank SKIM milk, not full-fat milk, so don’t go rushing off to buy milk and hope to lose weight, you need skim milk as it has no fat.
June 10th, 2008 at 7:09 pm
Lol, some studies say milk helps you lose weight and some say milk makes you gain weight. While many of the pro-milk studies were conducted or funded by partial groups (aka, the milk industry), that alone doesn’t mean the studies are wrong. But be skeptical. The fact that unbiased scientists find milk to make people gain weight render the verdict on milk undetermined. It’s undetermined whether milk makes you gain weight or lose it.
I wonder if any studies could be done with babies that would reveal anything since babies naturally drink milk and adults don’t. Babies are fat after all, and as they grow, they build muscle and lose fat. Does the milk help them retain fat, or help them burn fat and turn it into muscle, or none of the above?
p.s. Sports drinks are primarily corn syrup water and are not good for you. You can’t go wrong with good old fashioned water. That’s the healthiest.