Low FODMAP Recovery Smoothie

Low FODMAP Recovery Smoothie

I am a sports enthusiast and live a very active lifestyle, enjoying gym sessions most week-day mornings and adventuring outdoors on the weekends. Nutritionally, the most important thing after doing strenuous exercise is to appropriately and adequately refuel. It always amazes me how much effort everyone puts into their training regime but nothing into their nutrition regime. In order to achieve your desired goals these two regimes must be matched!!

As most of us would know strenuous exercise depletes our stores of vital nutrients and water.  In order to compensate for this loss and achieve our desired adaptations we must eat and/or drink in an attempt to refuel, rehydrate as well as repair/build and attenuate inflammation. Appropriate recovery nutrition should address all of these factors. When on a low FODMAP diet your choices undoubtedly become more limited but it doesn’t meet that you can’t create an appropriate and delicious recovery nutrition option.

With any recovery nutrition the main nutrients of concern include: carbohydrate (refuel your depleted stores), protein (repair and build muscle) and electrolytes (i.e. sodium, potassium, calcium and magnesium to rehydrate). A perfect recovery nutrition option that you will see most athletes’ consuming after a training session is flavoured milk as it provides all your recovery needs. Yet, when on a low FODMAP diet this can be difficult 1. Flavoured milk contains lactose (if you are lactose intolerant) and 2. The sweeteners added may not be FODMAP friendly; this doesn’t mean however that you can’t make your own.

Give this recipe a whirl.

Pineapple and Banana Recovery Smoothie Recipe:

1 cup lactose free milk

2 tbs lactose free milk powder (or whey protein isolate-vanilla flavour works well however check for any high FODMAP sweeteners ending in –ol!)

0.5 cup pineapple

0.5 medium banana

Ice cubes

 

And blend!!

Adequate recovery is vital to ensure that you repair and achieve your desired adaptations. Don’t forget about how you eat for the rest of your day though! Just because you have had this drink doesn’t mean that you are recovered. Adaptation will continue for up to 72 hours! Make sure that you a consuming protein at each meal and snack and periodise your carbohydrate around your training. More on this in future blog posts 🙂