Post Workout Drinks

Just wanted to know how some of you make your post workout drink (ingrediants?)if not using a pre-mixed drink from one of the supplement companies?

Not to be an ass, but just buy Surge. The way it is formulated and flavored is teriffic. Whey Hydrosolate is extremely bitter(I learned this the hard way making my own stuff) and to make the homebrew mixture is going to cost more than Surge. You do not need the full three scoops to make it work. I use 1.5 scoops watered down, and I weigh 245 Lbs. I slam that and 400mgs of ALA post-workout, and can feel it kick in approx. 15 minutes after ingestion. Give this a try, I know you will like the results. -The Starkdog

I really like Surge, though it can be a bit on the pricey side with all of the other supplements I use. When not on Surge, I use about 50 grams of whey, and separately, I mix up some fruit punch Kool Aid, which is darned cheap when bought in bulk. To these two drinks, I add 10-15 grams of creatine, and a similar amount of glutamine.

Here’s what I use…

Whey Protien

1/2 cup instant oats

2 heaping tbs of frutose

** 1 teaspoon of fat free/sugar free jello pudding mix. (Vanilla, bananna, choc., white choc, etc.)

1 cup cold water + a little ice.

Sometimes I add in a little peanut butter. The pudding is the key and it allows you to use all different flavors. Try it’s great!

Grainger, why are you using fructose? Haven’t you been reading this website? :slight_smile:


Anyway, I would love to buy Surge. I really would, but I’m sorry, the shit’s just too expensive. I’m sure Biotest does their best with the quality of the ingredients, and I wouldn’t want them to adulterate the formula to bring the price down, but when you weigh 220, and have need for a recovery drink sometimes two to three times per day, that brings me into the $9 to $13/day range for recovery drinks. Yeah, it tastes nasty, but just buying the hydrolysate and adding maltodextrin and dextrose comes out cheaper.

Is $28 too much for Surge or Relentless? Sounds like a damn good deal to me. And you can get that price and lower at certain places online.

They both work great and taste great. Can’t beat that. Not to mention it is formulated exactly as needed.

Okay, Boss, so you can’t afford Surge. Here’s another idea for you.
Get some blue Powerade powder (Powerade uses maltodextrine = good). Get some vanilla flavored whey protein powder, preferably in isolate form for it’s quick digestion. Calculate the amount of each to add to your drink based on John Berardi’s recommendation of .4g/kg of bodyweight for protein and .8g/kg for carbs. Add both to a container, add about 5 grams of creatine, a little glutamine if you want, some ice cold water, shake it up and voila - a homemade PWO drink!

Tastes great and works wonders.

Great carb source in the oatmeal, Grainger, but I stick to the malto because it’s digested faster and gets to where it’s supposed to be going more quickly.

In Jason’s case, yes, even $28 per container may be too much because he uses two-to-three servings each day because of his training.

But for someone training 3-5 days a week and weighing 200lbs or less, it’s quite affordable.

Jason, you need post-workout nutrition 2-3 times per day?! Wow, what do you do? You fight right? Do you use it after sparring?

I train with weights 4 times per week so Surge is not that expensive for me. I tried the homemade stuff and the taste is just too nasty. I’d gladly pay a little more per drink to have it taste good AND get the perfect formula.

I have a friend who only used it on days when he trains big muscle groups like legs and chest/back. Still helps him and stretches the dollar a bit. Neither of us use it after cardio.

Braswell - where do you buy the pure hydrosylate?

As for me, I just mix some whey protein with 1/2 cup pure maltodextrin (bought in bulk) and 1 tbsp honey (when I’m bulking).

Someday I will use Surge, but right now money is just too tight. I can barely afford my Grow.

someone mentioned that they do not use surge after cardio. I do cardio after my weight training, so is it better to take the PWD after lifting but before cardio or does it matter?

What’s wrong with whey protein concentrate?

Is there any statistically significant difference between hydrolysate and other forms of whey?

Well, yesterday, I lifted weights at lunch. At 6pm, I shadowboxed for three rounds, sparred three rounds, hit the heavy bag for six and the double-end bag for two, and followed up with some calisthenics. I figured that “earned” me a shake. Later that evening, I did eight sets of power snatches and 30 min of steady state cardio, which, according to Berardi’s recs warranted another. That’s not everyday, but I probably average two per day.


Granted, the difference isn’t much. Even if I use only the best hydrolysate from protein factory, the price per pound is around $12 for my formula. The best Surge price I can find is dpsnutrition, which, after shipping, sells it for about $15 per pound. However, if I’m using a pound every three to four days, you can see the difference adds up quickly.


To be honest, I’ve been teetering on buying Surge and just using it for the harder workouts. Currently, though, the available portion of my supplement budget is going toward 4-AD.

Grainger, do you use this shake post-workout? Either Surge or whey and some carbs like maltodextrin will allow your body to get a quick protein/carb boost. Fiber, fructose, complex carbs- keep these for other meals. Fiber in the oatmeal will slow down digestion and that’s not what you want after a workout.

mamann- Sorry to be picky, but powdered Powerade doesn’t contain Maltodextrin (=glucose polymers). It contains sucrose (glucose + fructose) and dextrose (2xglucose).


From the majority consensus, it’s probably wise to steer clear of fructose, and this is 1/2 of what the sucrose is providing. The dextrose is certainly a quick muscle glycogen replenisher (although apparently not as efficient as Maltodextrin).


Bottom line? You get what you pay for, as mentioned above in previous posts. And I know, beggars can’t be choosers. However, if Surge is not economically feasible,I would try to find a 1arily maltodextrin/dextrose combo for the carbs component of the post-workout drink. SRS

A fellow boxer? what’s happening my man. Bro, I also have two training sessions every day and after both I also requiere post workout nutrition. Here is my list of supplements:

Post-weights - 10oz. grape juice, 1 scoop Whey concentrate, hydro blend
Post boxing - 8oz. milk, 1 scoop MRP shake (12g CHO, 14g PRO, 1g FAT).

It’s worked great for me so far, so why change it right? try it and see if something like this works for you. I also use the blue powerade as someone in a thread above mentioned for post weights.

Da Boxer

Just to let everyone know, I broke down and ordered Surge after Nate Dogg directed me to the special at vitaplus. So, I caved.

Sammy, Isolate just contains a higher percentage of protien/more concentrated. It has been “isolated.”

Everybody is pushing surge…but it is kinda pricey…all supplements are pricey (not just a knock at Biotest)

I just bought some maltodextrin in bulk…dirt cheap! I picked up 40 lbs of maltodextrin for $92 dollars. At 1 cup of malto per workout shake this will last me an entire year!!

I mix 1 cup of malto in 16 ounces of juice with two scoops of whey protein(I’m sure you already have some whey protein)…it does the trick…and tastes good!

I just drink whey. Everyone seems to drink so LITTLE protein. I have 40 in the morning with breakfast, and 40 in the afternoon. If its after a workout, i kick the 40 in the afternoon to 60.