Taking vitamins after exercise may undo some of the beneficial effects of the workout, research suggests. Some advocate taking antioxidants like vitamin C and E to help protect the body from harmful chemical by-products it creates when breaking into a sweat. It is thought that antioxidant vitamins may be able to prevent damage to the body’s tissues called “oxidative stress” by eliminating the free radicals which are said to cause it. But a study at the University of Jena, have shown that free radicals may have a positive effect on the body by increasing its sensitivity to insulin – something that is lost in type 2 diabetes.
“It doesn’t mean that antioxidants like vitamin C and vitamin E are bad for us, it just means that sometimes we need to consider whether taking supplements is actually beneficial.
Mr. Bimble, very interesting. This reminds me of a strangely similar study I read a few years ago regarding “recovery” drinks/foods used after strenuous workouts. Unfortunately all the details and science are lost to me now, but the basic premise was as follows: All of the lactic acid related pain that many runners try so diligently to minimize after a run is actually the stimulus that tells the body to ramp-up mitochondria production. Hence, letting the body deal “naturally” with the post-exercise stress builds more/better muscle mass. The biology logic behind this is that when the body is “hurting”, it prepares itself to handle the workout next time with less pain. Anyway, giving the body food for building muscle is good, but trying to minimize the ache is bad, supposedly.