Health and Fitness

Recover with a Beer.

It sounds to good to be true, but beer really can be a training aid. After a hard session on the bike your body will be depleted of crucial vitamins, electrolytes that aid hydration and carbohydrates. These are what you want in your post ride drink, as well as supplying protein to help your muscles recover and yes you can get all that from a beer. Carbs are there in the form of sugars, a dash of electrolytes in the plant based nutrients used to make beer, ie : hops, yeast and barley.

These will also supply some of the nutrients and vitamins that you need, however the proteins are incomplete which makes them less than ideal and the real killer of course is the alcohol content. Alcohol can inhibit muscle recovery and it also has a diuretic effect, lessening the all important qualities of your post-ride drink. A beer as a reward after a hard ride isn't as bad for you as you may have previously thought. Take it easy though and make sure that you drink plenty of water as well and then you are able to sup away on your favourite brew largely guilt free. If you drink alcohol free beer because you need to drive home after a ride then you definitely will get all the benefits without the alcoholic side effects.