Mango Ginger Turmeric Recovery Smoothie

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This mango ginger turmeric recovery smoothie is the perfect post workout meal and will help with muscle recovery. Vegan, high protein, gluten free, naturally sweetened and full of ginger and turmeric for those anti-inflammatory properties.

Muscle recovery is often a step ignored, especially by those new to exercise. We spend so much time researching what to eat pre-workout and the best way to exercise but often ignore what to do after we leave the gym. I am going to give you my top 5 key steps to muscle recovery. No more T-Rex arms and crawling up the stairs!

Stretching and foam rolling. This is one of the easiest yet most overlooked ways to reduce soreness in muscles and help active muscle recovery. Stretching the muscles after a workout can help lengthen out muscles. Foam rolling can help release the knots that form during exercise in the muscle and fascia (connective tissue). Rolling out the knots can help prevent muscle imbalances from developing which can lead to long term problems in the body.

Adequate water intake. Your body isn’t going to feel 100% without adequate water. Water helps distribute nutrients and also is the way your body removes toxins and waste from your cells and body. Muscles in a dehydrated body cannot adequately recover. Dehydration can cause light headaches and fogginess making your next workout less effective.

Protein and healthy carbs. Fueling your muscles for recovery is a critical step to muscle recovery. During exercise your body will use the stored energy (in the form of glycogen) from your muscles. Because of this, post workout is an optimal time for carbohydrate intake. Depending on the exercise you are doing, your body is likely in need of protein to help synthesize muscle rebuilding and recovery. Not eating adequate protein after weight training is a common reason many clients experience muscle soreness. Eating fat in your post workout meal may slow down the delivery of protein and carbs to your muscles and is therefore not a focus in your post workout meal. Some great options for protein and healthy carbs include protein shakes with a banana, smoothies like this mango ginger Turmeric recovery smoothie or yogurt and berries like Silk Dairy-Free Yogurt Alternatives with defrosted frozen organic berries.

Turmeric and ginger. Turmeric has a compound called curcumin that is a powerful antioxidant and has anti-inflammatory properties. Turmeric has been studied as a way to naturally reduce joint pain and inflammation throughout the body. To get the amount of turmeric that has been shown to be beneficial, it is suggested a daily supplement is taken as ingesting that much turmeric from food daily would be difficult. I like to add turmeric to my smoothies and breakfast veggie scrambles as a way to get more turmeric in my day. Ginger has been shown to be effective against exercise induced muscle soreness. It’s also been studied as a way to help reduce joint pain, stiffness and reduce the progression of muscle pain. Ginger can easily be added to smoothies, stir-fry dishes, or baked goods.

Rest days. Although many people think that more is better, when it comes to muscle recovery, rest is actually beneficial. You can practice rest days or you can attend somewhere like Burn Boot Camp Lakeway (the gym I own) where we build the daily protocol with muscle recovery in mind. Instead of full body workouts everyday, weight training is broken down into different muscle groups and spread throughout the week to help muscles recover. Also we build in a rest day on Sundays and encourage active rest – leisure walking, yoga, meal prepping and playing with the kids. Without proper rest, your muscles will not recover to 100% and therefore your next training day will be less than ideal.

Muscle soreness and pain after exercise is often hard to cope with. Many people turn to over the counter medicines like NSAID’s (like ibuprofen). However, what people don’t understand is that inflammation is actually part of the healing process and taking anti-inflammatory medications can actually hinder the repair and recovery process. Instead of taking drugs, it’s been shown that using food as medicine is the best option.

Like I mentioned above, protein is a great way to make sure your muscles have what they need to recover. A protein shake is often recommended by trainers since they are easy to make and can be absorbed quickly by the body. Other great options include egg whites and yogurt like Silk Dairy-Free Yogurt Alternatives. Silk Dairy-Free Yogurt has 6 grams of protein, is non-gmo, organic and gluten free and makes an easy on the go option if you don’t love shakes or don’t have time to make a smoothie or eggs. Pick some up today at your local Walmart!

I love smoothies though. They are a great way to get in protein, healthy carbs, and incorporate those anti-inflammatory spices like turmeric and ginger. I use Silk Coconutmilk in my smoothies. Dave has a nut allergy so coconut milk goes quickly in our house. I like the unsweeteend coconut milk, it’s low in calories and with no added sugar, it’s the perfect base for my smoothies! Silk Coconutmilk is only 80 calories a cup and has 50% more calcium than milk! It’s also amazing in coffee, and is a great way to replace cream if you are trying to go dairy free. I use it everyday!

What about you?

• What are your favorite tips for muscle recovery?
• Do you have a favorite post workout smoothie?
• Have you tried Silk Coconutmilk yet?