The National Athletic Trainers' Association And Gatorade Declare Today "National Recovery Day"

CHICAGO, July 11, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Athletic Trainers' Association (NATA) and The Gatorade Company have teamed up to declare today, July 11, 2012, a day when U.S. sports takes a break from competition, the first annual National Recovery Day. With high school athletes suffering two million injuries each year(1), National Recovery Day has been established to focus the attention of athletes on the importance of proper athletic recovery in order to continuously perform at their best.

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The Gatorade Sports Science Institute recommends the following fueling guidelines for proper athletic recovery:

1. Studies show that consuming about 20g of protein as soon as possible following training or competition, can help enhance the muscle recovery process.
2. To speed up your body's muscle recovery between games or practices, consume approximately 1/2 g of carbohydrate/pound of body weight* when the next workout is less than eight hours away.
3. Drink 16-24 ounces of fluid with sodium for each pound of body weight lost during exercise following a workout or game.

Athletes are constantly on the move from one workout to the next, and proper recovery is essential not only for rebuilding muscle but for sustaining strength. The focus on post-competition routines has been brought to the national stage leading up to and on National Recovery Day with professional athletes including the NY Yankees' Derek Jeter, Washington Redskins' Quarterback Robert Griffin III and Carolina Panthers' Quarterback Cam Newton discussing how proper athletic recovery has allowed them to evolve as an athlete and achieve success in their respective professional sports careers. As part of National Recovery Day, NATA and Gatorade are asking athletes and athletic trainers nationwide to share their recovery tips on Gatorade's Facebook and Twitter pages and NATA's Facebook and Twitter pages.

"How athletes treat their bodies is critical to their performance," said incoming NATA President Jim Thornton, MA, ATC, PES, CES. "How they prepare and recover physically and how they fuel their bodies before, during and after training or competition all make a difference.  We hope that National Recovery Day will serve as a reminder to athletes worldwide to do everything possible to set themselves up for athletic success."

"We are pleased to team with the National Athletic Trainers' Association on this effort to emphasize the importance of athletic recovery," said Asker Jeukendrup, global senior director, Gatorade Sports Science Institute. "By combining our areas of expertise, we are working to ensure athletes are aware that recovering well is the key to coming back a stronger and better athlete."

For more information on National Recovery Day, please visit www.nata.org or www.gatorade.com.

About Gatorade

The Gatorade Company, a division of PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP), provides sports performance innovations designed to meet the needs of athletes at all competitive levels and across a broad range of sports. Gatorade Thirst Quencher® is backed by more than 40 years of research and is scientifically formulated and athletically proven to quench thirst, replace fluids and electrolytes, and provide carbohydrate energy to enhance athletic performance. The company's product portfolio is built around the G Series™, a 1-2-3 approach to athlete nutrition and hydration before (Gatorade Prime 01™), during (Gatorade® Perform 02 and G2® Perform 02), and after (Gatorade Recover 03™) training or competition. For more information, please visit www.gatorade.com.

About PepsiCo

PepsiCo is a global food and beverage leader with net revenues of more than $65 billion and a product portfolio that includes 22 brands that generate more than $1 billion each in annual retail sales. Our main businesses – Quaker, Tropicana, Gatorade, Frito-Lay and Pepsi-Cola – make hundreds of enjoyable foods and beverages that are loved throughout the world. PepsiCo's people are united by our unique commitment to sustainable growth by investing in a healthier future for people and our planet, which we believe also means a more successful future for PepsiCo. We call this commitment Performance with Purpose: PepsiCo's promise to provide a wide range of foods and beverages for local tastes; to find innovative ways to minimize our impact on the environment by conserving energy and water and reducing packaging volume; to provide a great workplace for our associates; and to respect, support and invest in the local communities where we operate. For more information, please visit www.pepsico.com.

About National Athletic Trainers' Association (NATA) – Health Care for Life & Sport

Athletic trainers are health care professionals who specialize in the prevention, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation of injuries and sport-related illnesses. They prevent and treat chronic musculoskeletal injuries from sports, physical and occupational activity, and provide immediate care for acute injuries. Athletic trainers offer a continuum of care that is unparalleled in health care. The National Athletic Trainers' Association represents and supports 35,000 members of the athletic training profession. For more information, please visit www.nata.org.

(1) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

*amount can vary

SOURCE Gatorade