(NAPS)—As 24 teams from around the globe prepare to face off in the biggest tournament in women’s soccer, one of the most recognizable names on the U.S. team is sharing a secret of her success.
Defender Kelley O’Hara credits her ability to achieve success to hard work and to a focus on recovery that involves what some may consider a surprising beverage—chocolate milk.
Recovery Is Key
(NAPS)—As 24 teams from around the globe prepare to face off in the biggest tournament in women’s soccer, one of the most recognizable names on the U.S. team is sharing a secret of her success.
Defender Kelley O’Hara credits her ability to achieve success to hard work and to a focus on recovery that involves what some may consider a surprising beverage—chocolate milk.
Recovery Is Key
It’s said that soccer players run more during a single match—an average of seven miles—than athletes in any other mainstream sport. With back-to-back games in a tournament, the world’s best soccer players have to be able to bounce back and be ready for the next match.
Low-fat chocolate milk has high-quality protein that can build lean muscle and nutrients to help muscles recover after strenuous physical activity—such as soccer. That’s why it’s become a key element of many players’ recovery regimens—a practice backed by more than 20 scientific studies that have appeared in the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism and other journals.
“There’s a specific window of time after strenuous practices that’s key to replenishing the body with what it’s lost,” said Jay Cooney, Kelley O’Hara’s former college assistant coach. “For Kelley and other athletes whom I’ve coached over the years, chocolate milk’s a great recovery choice as it has high-quality protein and nutrients, and it’s backed by science. No one needed to be asked twice to drink it because everyone loves chocolate milk!”
O’Hara played all 570 minutes of the six matches in the tournament in London in 2012, where she and other American players won a gold medal.
“What you do on the field can only be a positive if you take care of what you need to off the field and that means recovery and refueling,” said O’Hara. “I first started drinking chocolate milk to refuel in college when Coach Cooney said there were studies that proved that chocolate milk was great for recovery, so after practice we would get out two big gallons and drink it together as a team.”
She now joins a team of elite athletes who make chocolate milk their recovery drink of choice, including professional basketball player Kevin Love and Ironman Triathlon Champions Mirinda Carfrae, Craig Alexander and Luke McKenzie.
Built With Science
A growing number of athletes from a wide range of sports—such as soccer, basketball, running, cycling and swimming—are learning about the benefits of recovering after strenuous exercise with high-quality protein, the type that’s found in low-fat chocolate milk.
As part of a regular recovery routine, drinking chocolate milk can be an excellent way to help athletes rebuild, reshape and repair muscles.
To learn more about the science behind the recovery benefits of low-fat chocolate milk, and to watch exclusive behind-the-scenes videos, visit the website at www.BuiltWithChocolateMilk.com.
