Today’s question is about using Wendy’s Chili for a post-ride recovery meal…

Hi Levi,
First I’d like to thank you for all of your great advice that you put out there for us. I have found some really helpful tips, like the Queen Helene cocoa butter.

I was wondering what you think of Wendy’s chili for a recovery meal after a 2 hr. XC mt. bike ride at 85% effort?

Pre ride- I eat a bowl of oatmeal w/ banana ,drink a FRS energy drink, take 300 mg beta alanine and drink water during the ride (about 1.5 bottles) (incase you needed that info to determine dietary needs post ride)

Many thanks and keep up the great job!!

Wendy Darling

Hey Wendy,

Thanks for the kind words, glad to have you on board!

Let me start by saying that chili is one of those foods that never appealed to me. If you stopped me on the street and asked me what was in chili, I’d probably say it’s tomato soup with beans in it. That would be my best guess! So I can’t really speak from experience, but I looked at the Wendy’s menu to see what’s up…

From the Wendy’s Menu

Here are the main Nutrition Facts I pulled up:

Nutrition Facts

Calories 310
Total Fat 9g
Saturated Fat 3.5g
Cholesterol 60mg
Sodium 1330mg
Carbohydrates 31g
Fiber 10g
Sugars 10g
Protein 26g

And the chili ingredients:

Ingredients:

Large Chili
Water, Chili Base (tomatoes, salt, citric acid, calcium chloride), Ground Beef, Vegetable Mix (onions, celery, green peppers), Chili Beans (beans, water, sugar, corn syrup, salt, natural flavorings, onion powder, calcium chloride), Kidney Beans (kidney beans, water, sugar, corn syrup, salt, natural flavorings, onion powder, calcium chloride, disodium EDTA [preservative]), Chili Seasoning (sugar, salt, modified corn starch, chili pepper, onion powder, spices, dextrose, garlic powder, citric acid, disodium inosinate & guanylate, xanthan gum, autolyzed yeast extract, soybean oil, caramel color, extractives of paprika, malic acid, red 40, natural and artificial flavor, silicon dioxide [anticaking agent]).

Hot Chili seasoning
Water, Corn Syrup, Salt, Distilled Vinegar, Natural Flavors, Xanthan Gum, Caramel Color.

Saltine Crackers
Enriched Flour (wheat flour, niacinamide, reduced iron, thiamin mononitrate [vitamin B1], riboflavin [vitamin B2], folic acid), Soybean Oil (contains TBHQ for freshness), Salt, Contains 2% or less of: Corn Syrup, Leavening (baking soda, yeast), Soy Lecithin. CONTAINS: SOY, WHEAT

Cheddar Cheese, shredded
Cultured Pasteurized Milk, Salt, Enzymes, Artificial Color, Potato Starch and Powdered Cellulose (to prevent caking), Natamycin (natural mold inhibitor). CONTAINS: MILK.

Chili Analysis

The first thing that popped into my mind is that it’s probably loaded with salt and preservatives (fast food is notorious for this.) Sure enough, it is. For a large chili, there’s 1330mg sodium. I could cut you some slack since you’re out there sweating and only drinking water, but still, that’s a lot of sodium. Think about it this way – if you drank 1.5 bottles of Accelerade during the ride and then had a bottle of Endurox R4 as your recovery drink, that is around 600-700mg sodium total!

And then looking through the ingredients, there are quite a few preservatives and colorings in there. Not that sports drinks are any better, but I gotta point it out for general health reasons.

Next up, calories. 310 calories. That’s good. Right around 300 is usually a good choice post-ride.

Now, 31g carbs, 26g protein, and 9g fat. This is more like a well-balanced meal than a post-ride recovery meal. That can still work just fine, unless you are in the middle of a stage race or something. Like if you were doing tough, 2 hour XC rides every day, I’d be worried about getting more carbs in your recovery meal. But on a more realistic training schedule, you can probably replenish your glycogen stores thanks to your normal meals, especially if you eat oatmeal.

In the end, chili doesn’t follow the standard recovery meal protocol, but I think it would be a suitable recovery meal for some people, just not for everyone. If you like it, and it likes you, try it out. Just watch your energy levels. If your training load increases and your energy levels are decreasing, try more post-ride carbs. Preferably something with less fiber, too.

This chili would probably be a pretty good post-workout meal for the off-season, but definitely not my top choice for a high-carb recovery meal during regular training. And you can make your own decision on the sodium and preservatives issue.

Anyone else try Wendy’s chili? Or maybe make your own chili for post-ride meals?

One of the first cycling nutrition books I read was R4 Optimal Muscle Performance and Recovery by Ed Burke. It covered various topics about muscle soreness and recovery and was rather interesting.

It also focused a lot of attention on a certain ratio of protein and carbohydrates which would best refuel your muscles and reduce recovery time. And sure enough, there was a newly launched product out there that used this system! (But we’ll get to that later…)

Remember, back in 2003, all this protein/carb recovery drink business was fairly new. Athletes mostly just drank sports drinks and ate food later in the day to recover. These days, everyone wants a dedicated recovery drink within the “recovery interval” for the best recovery time.

Like I said though, the book was rather interesting. If you’re not at all familiar with muscle recovery, you might want to read some chapters from this book. It will get you thinking because it does have some good insights about general muscle exertion and the recovery process.

You just have to extract that useful data from the rest of the stuff that is about the “R4 sales pitch” … err, the “R4 system.” In hindsight, I can see the book is kind of a sales pitch in disguise.

It mentions Accelerade and Endurox R4 drinks often, as Endorox R4 is based on the R4 recovery ideas in the book. It’s not too awful, but it does make you question whether the book came out to share useful information or to convince you to buy a certain product.

My final verdict is…

Back in 2003, this was a good book to read for more details on muscle recovery in general, and specifically, the protein/carb nutrient mix. However, the topic has been explored so much since this book came out in 2003 that you don’t really need to read it. You’ve probably heard enough from articles online and in cycling magazines.

Just read the sales pitch for Endurox R4 and you’ll pick up most of the info that was in this book.

Buy online: www.Amazon.com

If you are on an important training and racing schedule, keeping your muscles loose at all times is important. Recovery rides work great for this purpose, but sometimes you just can’t ride. You might be on a plane, driving, have a nagging injury that needs rested, etc.

So, consider these alternatives that may help keep your muscles loose so they’re ready for your next ride:

1. Pain relieving gels (such as Mineral ice)

I use this on recovery days to keep my muscles from getting stiff and sore. Then I can ride the next day like normal. (Without mineral ice, it seems to take me longer to warm up.)

Also, Topricin and other balms may work for you.

2. Panty hose (actually compression stockings)

Compression stockings (which are basically a fancy version of panty hose) are good for sitting at the office or during long plane rides. The tight fabric stimulates blood flow through your legs, giving them nutrients and fresh oxygen and flushing out waste products.

3. The Stick (or Muscle Trac)

The Stick is the self-massage thing you roll on your legs. Or use a Muscle Trac. Or a foam roller, if you have floor space.

4. Massage

The real thing, from a spa or professional masseuse. It might not fit into your schedule or budget very often, but it’s nice!

Your muscles will feel very supple afterward.

5. Hot and/or cold baths

Alternate hot and cold baths, do an ice bath, or try a sea salt bath. Whatever theory you subscribe to, some sort of bath usually makes you feel better.

Today I’ll address sore muscles, a problem that every athlete will encounter on an ongoing basis…

My quads have been REALLY sore the last couple of days (skiing today didn’t help). What is the best way to get rid of sour muscles. I tried the hot bath. Coach said don’t ice them, but another person said use ice then heat. What is the best way in your opinion to get rid of sore muscles?

Thanks,
Sore Sam

Hi Sam,

The best way to get rid of sore muscles is to rest. Complete rest (such as lying in bed with your legs comfortably elevated) is the only method guaranteed to work.

But you can try other things to help the process along…

When you’re dealing with sore muscles, there are two main things to consider (after rest, that is.)

First, you need to keep your blood flowing to deliver fresh oxygen and nutrients to your muscles as well as flush out any metabolic byproducts of exercise. Recovery rides are key for this.

Ice and heat, as well as massage, are just some more ways to stimulate circulation so that your blood keeps delivering fresh nutrients to your legs. Everyone will say something different about what they think is best. For what it’s worth, the alternating hot/cold method feels best to me.

My favorite way to apply the hot/cold method is with a shower that has a flexible hose on the nozzle. You can hit your legs with hot water for a while and then switch to cold. I don’t time it, but maybe a minute of each temperature for a total of 10 minutes.

Or, the more complicated way… pair a hot bath tub with ice packs, or an ice bath with a heating pad. In this case I’d do 5-10 minutes cold, then 5-10 minutes hot.

Another method that’s gaining in popularity is the use of compression stockings. These improve circulation in your legs, and the best part is, they require no effort on your part!

And, don’t forget my list of essentials for recovery.

Second, make sure you are taking in nutrients. Make sure you’re consuming protein (and all essential amino acids) that will help rebuild your muscles. Along with antioxidants via fruits and vegetables, of course.

You could try fish oil like Recoup|90 since it’s supposed to speed recovery and decrease muscle soreness. Fish oil is great, so you should be taking some anyway. Look for a quality fish oil; Barlean’s and Carlson’s are good options at a reasonable price.

Also, black cherry juice is a natural anti-inflammatory. A couple doses of that could help ease your sore muscles a little bit.

I’d choose those natural methods over drugs like Ibuprofen or Naproxen, but many people do choose Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs) to alleviate muscle soreness.

To sum up, here are a variety of things to try:

• Rest
• Recovery ride
• Alternating hot/cold shower
• Massage
• Compression stockings
• Eat healthy food
• Take fish oil pills
• Take black cherry juice
• Ibuprofen

In the end, it’s about balancing your training and rest periods. You need a training plan that has you working hard enough to improve, then resting long enough to recover for your next hard workout.

If you have sore legs but need them fresh for a race…

My legs have been really sore lately. For example, today during my team ride, my legs felt terrible. I was getting passed by 6 year olds. I didn’t feel tired at all and I wasn’t bonking, but my legs just wouldn’t work since they were so sore. There not injured just really sore. I have a race this weekend, and need the best legs possible. Any tips on quad/calve recovery?? I heard ice bath??????

Thanks,
Recovering Reggie

Hi Reggie,

This is a very easy question to answer, although you might not like what I have to say…

There is one simple thing you can do to speed your recovery – rest.

That’s the real key to recovery for sore muscles. They need rest so they can repair themselves after the strenuous training you have done preparing for the races.

This is the hardest concept to grasp for all recreational cyclists and new racers looking to improve fast. People train too much and rest too little!

But once you can convince yourself to try training less and resting more, you’ll realize it works!

Now, as far as ice baths, heat, massage, etc. go, they are all interesting ideas and they may make you feel good, but there’s no scientific evidence they do anything to speed recovery.

Such activities certainly have a place during a recovery period, of course, but don’t expect a miracle cure at the last minute. Even with fish oil and Omega-3 supplements which I have found to be awesome, it still takes time to reap the rewards.

What you need to focus on is living a low-stress lifestyle and eating a healthy diet, and making rest/recovery activities a part of each day.

Without that healthy lifestyle, recovery will be hampered. But no matter how healthy you are, there’s no substitute for rest.