It's not usually regarded as a sports drink but the humble glass of milk may be just the answer for an extra boost after a daily workout.
Although experts are divided over whether milk outperforms sports drinks, the benefits of milk in helping athletes recover after training are being increasingly accepted by nutritionists and sports bodies here and around the world.
High Performance Sport New Zealand, a body helping elite athletes, says in a story on their website (8 top reasons athletes include milk in their day) milk is "bursting with nutrition" and can be used for athletes as a sports food in a range of exercise options.
The Australian Sports Commission, in their fact sheet on recovery nutrition on their website, says drinking flavoured milk is one way athletes can rehydrate after exercise - and help meet refuelling and muscle repair needs. The commission lists other dairy products - including yoghurt and cheese - as among foods contributing high quality protein for athletes in the crucial first hour after exercise.
In Britain a 2010 research study led by Emma Cockburn, a senior lecturer in sport and physiology at Middlesex University, found people who drink milk after training were able to exercise longer in their next session than people who had sports drinks or water.
Cockburn, who ran the research while in her previous post lecturing in sports coaching at Northumbria University, says damage caused by exercise leads to a breakdown of the protein structures in the muscles.
"If athletes drink milk right after training, then by the time it is digested the milk's nutrients are ready to be absorbed by the muscles that have been hurt."
In their review, Dietary protein for athletes: From requirements to optimum adaptation, Canadian researchers Stuart Phillips and Luc Van Loon also told the International Olympic Committee conference on nutrition in sport in Switzerland of milk's restorative properties for sportspeople.
"An economical, practical, and efficacious beverage for athletes to consume after exercise is milk, particularly flavoured milk that contains added simple sugar," they said, as reported in the Journal of Sports Sciences in 2011. "For the athlete who suffers from lactose maldigestion, there are a number of practical options such as pre-treated lactose reduced milk. This beverage provides fluid that is better retained than water and isotonic sport drinks, carbohydrate to restore muscle glycogen, and high quality proteins to repair and facilitate adaptive changes in protein synthesis."
Fonterra's General Manager Nutrition, Angela Rowan, says such research clearly outlines milk's usefulness after exercise: "It helps with rehydration because it contains water and also contains carbohydrates important for recovering muscles and energy stores.
"Muscle is made up of protein and while you're exercising you're breaking down some of that protein which needs to be replenished. Dairy contains high quality protein with the right amount of amino acids to help stimulate muscle growth," she says.
A glass of milk contains many nutrients including calcium, protein, B vitamins, vitamin A, phosphorus, zinc and magnesium: "These nutrients don't often come packaged together in a single food, so milk is a rich source of a wide range of nutrients," she says.
Aaron Fanning, Senior Research Scientist at Fonterra, says our bodies need amino acids, the building blocks of protein. They support growth and development during childhood, help sports performance and recovery, as well as maintaining muscle mass as we age.
"These essential amino acids can only be supplied through protein in our diet. Dairy is one source of protein and contains all nine essential amino acids our bodies can't make on their own. This means it can be readily used by the body for repair and growth," he says.
"Muscle is essential for every-day physical activity and helps maintain our health throughout different life stages. While muscle mass makes up to 30 to 40 per cent of bodyweight in a healthy young person, muscle mass declines by as much as 27 per cent from middle age."
Dairy contains two types of protein - whey and casein. Whey is absorbed quickly for use by muscles and helps speedy recovery immediately after an event; casein digests more slowly, providing the body with a steady stream of protein, helping with long-term muscle recovery.