Nick68 says:

Interesting. Does anyone know what exactly what glucosamine does for the knees? Medically speaking that is.

 olafd says:

hi nick68,

glucosamine is afaik a building block of cartilage. it's usually not found in foodstuff and the idea is to supply the body some to either help it rebuild or at least stop erosion of cartilage (mostly in the knees).

if you want to know more, google will find you tons of information or ask your doc.

 andresd says:

hi nick68 and olafd,
I need some advice on suplement drinks. I started running longer dinstances (1 to 1.5 hours) and after each long run I feel weak and really hungry all day. I've seen different recovery drinks out there that give protein and carbs, which ones do you recommend?

thanks,
.a

 Nick68 says:

Hi andresd ,

I’m not much for sport drinks myself. So am afraid that I can’t help you there. But I’m sure there are some good ones out there.
Personally I prefer to make my own recovery drinks. My favorite is quite simple. I take some Whey protein (Chocolate flavor) and mix it with some milk and through in some Oatmeal. After a workout this usually keeps me going for a very long time. And if you pour it in bowl and ad some sliced bananas in it you have a super breakfast.   

But if this is to chewy for you can try some take Whey protein (Vanilla flavor), milk, strawberries and
possible a banana and throw it in the blender. It is very refreshing on a hot day. And it gets you going again.

Btw. as you may have guessed I’m on occasions lifting weights as well as runs so I take for granted that everyone has same Whey protein standing around. But that may not always be the case I guess

 Nick68 says:

Thanks for the input olafd.

I actually already started out by trying to get some information by Google the name glucosamine.
But since I a mostly found a load of pages that was selling the stuff and explaining how great it was I got a little skeptical. It seems to be a real big business (turns out I’m not the only one with two bad knees).

After some more “Investigation” I found out that in Sweden it more classified as drug than a diet supplement.
Which is good thing since you are then able to but the stuff at the local pharmacy.
So I guess I take a trip to the pharmacy. I soon as I have read the list of all the side effects one more time (they seems quit nasty…)

 andresd says:

Nick68, thanks for the tips.

I think that I just need a good source of protein. What can you say of soy vs. whey?

.a

ps. about glucosamine, i've heard it really helps even though its a bit pricy.

 olafd says:

hi andresd,

when i'm tired after a long run i usually need water an apple and a banana plus a bit of cool down rest - that usually gets me back up on my feet.

 Nick68 says:

Hi andresd

If you feeling weak and hungry after a long run I think, as olafd suggest, you are going to need carbs as well as protein.
2/3 carbs and 1/3 protein is usually a good mix. And if you have both fruits and oatmeal you will get both fast carbs witch will get you going right a way and slow garbs that will have you going for a long time.    
When it comes to protein supplements I personally use whey protein since is supposed to be best when it comes to recreate muscles (so they say). But soy protein is a little cheaper though.

Thanks for the input glucosamine. I think I will try that. It would be great to be able to run when I feel like it and not only when my stupid knees allows me to.