I chose a link from Crossfit New England as my article/source:
http://crossfitnewengland.com/
One of the changes I made within the last 6 months that I believe has helped to improve my performance was to start supplementing with protein post WOD. Based on Laura Acchione’s input, I use SFH whey because it has the shortest ingredient list and, near as I can tell, is derived completely from real food sources. My biggest apprehension leading up to this point was that I don’t want to fill my body with chemicals and toxins. After all, one of the best things about the paleo diet (or paleo lifestyle, as Laura likes to say) is knowing exactly what you’re eating: no more unintelligible words on labels. Food.
I knew that people took shakes post WOD but I didn’t understand why. That’s when Laura explained to me that there’s a window of time post WOD, around 30 minutes, that your muscles are like sponges, ready to “soak up” nutrients to replenish the damage done while WODing. If you don’t eat during that window you miss an important opportunity to aid in that rebuilding and recovery process. She also suggested that I pair that with a carbohydrate source, like berries or sweet potatoes, to help restore glycogen levels. Those that have seen me post-WOD know that my carbohydrate sources is almost always raisins.
What I never considered until reading this article was varying the amounts of protein or carbohydrates depending on the nature of the workout. It stands to reason that going short (Fran) or going long (Murph) in a workout would lead to different demands on your energy storage. Similarly going heavy and going light would have different effects on your muscles. I also never considered skipping the carbohydrates if the workout was not metabolic in nature (i.e. 5×3 Deadift the author mentions). I also will begin varying up the source of carbohydrates to non fruit sources as well. According to the author, your body has to do more work to convert fructose into a usable source for your body. The glucose in sweet potatoes is converted more quickly which means faster digestion, absorption, and recovery.