Milk as a sports beverage. The first time I heard a professor talk about this while pursuing my degree in Dietetics and Nutrition, Fitness, and Health at Purdue  my first thought was, ‘Is this guy serious’? Well evidently my facial expression was simultaneously emulating my thought process because before I knew it, I was being called on to explain my raised eyebrows and wrinkled up nose. I explained that I had never heard of the concept and assumed that everyone drank water or a sports drink when exercising. Turns out I was half right. Do you remember the scene in the movie Anchorman when Will Ferrell is jogging down the sidewalk chugging milk, after which he utters (no pun intended) “Milk was a bad choice.”? You see milk, or more specifically, chocolate milk, is intended to be consumed when the exercise has been completed. Sure water is great during a jog, but if you want to replenish your body with what it needs the most after exercise, milk is the way to go. Now that I am a dietetic intern at the Dairy and Nutrition Council of Indiana, I have gotten a chance to learn more about why milk is a great post exercise beverage. I guess I will start off with the carbohydrate to protein ratio. You see, chocolate milk has the added sugar from the chocolate syrup which increases the carbohydrate content of the milk (strawberry milk does the trick too). Since flavored milk and white milk have the same amount of protein, this means that you get a carbohydrate to protein ratio of about 4:1. So what in the world does that mean? Well research shows that this combination is very effective in putting carbohydrate (energy) back into the muscle while also helping to repair it with the protein. And it doesn’t stop there. Milk also contains B-vitamins that help convert food to energy, electrolytes to help replace what was lost in sweat and breathing, as well as calcium and vitamin D to ensure strong bones. And if that wasn’t enough, it’s natural! How many sports drinks can you name that give you all of that? So the next time you go for a jog or hit the weights at the gym, remember to think before you drink… milk that is… and grab a bottle of chocolate, or strawberry if you prefer. And remember, milk does a body good!