Thinking Nutrition

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Beyond soreness: the keys to smarter recovery nutrition Sep 15, 2026

Show notes

If you've ever necked a protein shake the second you walk out of the gym to start building new muscle, taken on extra carbohydrate to help refuel muscles, or reached for a supplement promoted for its anti-inflammatory benefits the day after leg day because you're limping down the stairs, then you're following standard advice about exercise recovery and adaptation. But a new scientific review has pulled together research on exercise recovery nutrition, and it's arguing that there could be some benefit in thinking about things a little differently. The simple premise is that recovery nutrition should match the next athletic demand, rather than simply minimising soreness. In this episode, I walk you through what is termed "recovery-adaptation coupling", and outline what it could mean for how you eat around your training and recovery and what types of supplements could be worth considering.

Links referred to in the podcast

Nutritional strategies for recovery–adaptation coupling after exercise https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13468400
AIS Sports Supplement Framework https://www.ausport.gov.au/ais/nutrition/supplements

Episode transcript
To access the full episode transcript, go to the following link and select the individual podcast episode and then click on the ‘Transcript’ tab https://thinkingnutrition.buzzsprout.com

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Tea, L‑theanine and a calmer mind Jun 02, 2026

Show notes

After water, tea is the most popular drink in the world. We turn to it for comfort, for a break in the day, and increasingly, for its claimed mood‑calming powers. Scroll through social media and you’ll find no shortage of claims that tea, or more so one of its bioactive compounds called L‑theanine, are a natural answer to stress and anxiety. In this podcast episode, I take a closer look at those claims through the lens of a new review that pulled together clinical trials on green tea, its key bioactive compounds, and mood with a particular focus on L‑theanine and anxiety.

Links referred to in the podcast

Thinking Nutrition podcast episode 12 on tea and health https://thinkingnutrition.buzzsprout.com/808853/episodes/3156961-drink-tea-and-carry-on
Systematic review on tea and its effects on mood https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40722728

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How berries help build a better brain Mar 17, 2026

Show notes

One of the best guides to food variety is colour. And for colour, there’s a group of natural plant chemicals called anthocyanins that are getting a lot of attention for their potential benefits on the brain. Anthocyanins are the pigments that give red, purple, and blue plants their rich colouring – they literally put the ‘blue’ into blueberries. A few years back on this podcast, I took you through the science of anthocyanins and brain health. In this episode, I’m revisiting that story with new research. In this episode, I’ll unpack what this new research review found, how it fits with what we already know about anthocyanins and the brain, and what it all means for your shopping basket and your long-term cognitive health.

Links referred to in the podcast

Podcast episode 81 on berries and brain health https://thinkingnutrition.buzzsprout.com/808853/episodes/9099255-blue-is-the-new-black-berries-anthocyanins-and-your-brain-health
Systematic review on anthocyanins and cognitive function 2025 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41351717

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Pickle juice for muscle cramps: effective remedy or sports myth? Feb 03, 2026

Show notes

If you’ve ever been stopped dead in your tracks during exercise by a muscle cramp, you know you’ll try almost anything to make it stop. There have been countless theories and remedies put forward to explain and treat a dreaded muscle cramp, but science still has a bit of catching up to do. But there is one particular treatment that has been gaining traction by athletes as a secret weapon to treat cramps. And it is one that sounds more like a pregnancy craving than a sports supplement: it is pickle juice. Is this just another passing fad, or is there actual science behind downing a shot of pickle brine to uncramp a muscle? In this podcast episode, I’ll cut through the noise to look at the evidence and the surprising mechanism of how it may work and spoiler alert: it has nothing to do with electrolytes.

Links referred to in the podcast

Pickle juice ingestion in electrically induced muscle cramps https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19997012
AIS fact sheet on pickle juice https://www.ausport.gov.au/ais/nutrition/supplements/group_b/tastants/transient-receptor-potential-channel-agonists

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Mushroom power: can fungi give athletes an edge? Dec 09, 2025

Show notes

Athletes are always on the lookout for a new sports supplement that could give them an edge. And there certainly are some sports supplements that deliver on their promises: creatine and caffeine are two clear examples. But a new supplement is starting to gain traction for its performance benefits: and that’s the humble mushroom. There's now emerging science suggesting that certain functional mushrooms, particularly the varieties of Cordyceps and reishi (also known as Ganoderma lucidum), may offer genuine benefits for endurance, recovery and immune function in athletes. In this podcast, I unpack the research behind these fungal supplements to see what's real, what's hype and whether these mushrooms deserve a spot in your supplement arsenal.

Links referred to in the podcast

Review of the effect of mushroom supplementation on performance in athletes https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/nutrition/articles/10.3389/fnut.2025.1670416/full

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Beet that: why athletes are turning to beetroot juice Oct 14, 2025

Show notes

If hearing that athletes are downing shots of beetroot juice to improve their performance makes you exclaim: “What sorcery is this?”, you’re not alone. But this isn’t just another passing fad - there’s some solid science showing that the nitrates found in beetroot juice can boost sports performance. From improving blood flow to enhancing muscle efficiency, beetroot juice has gained traction among endurance athletes and sprinters alike. In this podcast episode, I take a dive into what the research says about this vibrant supplement, its likely benefits, and what it might mean for your performance goals.

Links referred to in the podcast

IOC consensus statement on dietary supplements and the high-performance athlete https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/52/7/439
Review of beetroot juice and physical performance https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40573069
Sports Dietitians Australia www.sportsdietitians.com.au

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Spice science: exploring cinnamon’s role in blood sugar control Aug 26, 2025

Show notes

Cinnamon is a spice that has been used around the world for thousands of years. In addition to its use as a culinary ingredient, cinnamon contains bioactive compounds that have attracted attention for their potential health effects. One of these effects is how it can influence blood sugar levels which could have relevance for people with diabetes. In this podcast episode, I’ll look at what the clinical trials have to say on how cinnamon may help people with diabetes to keep their blood sugar levels under better control.

Links referred to in the podcast

Review of cinnamon supplementation on metabolic markers in people with T2DM https://academic.oup.com/nutritionreviews/article-abstract/83/2/249/7699031

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Powering cellular energy and healthy ageing: behind the hype of NAD, NMN and NR supplements Jul 22, 2025

Show notes

Have you heard any of the buzz about NAD supplements? NAD is a molecule found in nearly every cell and sits at the heart of energy production and DNA repair. Our levels of NAD though can decline with age which has led to the idea that this could be one cause of many age-related diseases, chronic inflammation and cognitive decline. Enter the idea of boosting NAD levels by supplementing with NAD itself or its precursors called NMN and NR. A surface level reading of this topic will soon bring someone across all sorts of claims about benefits including extending lifespan, improving metabolic health and many more. In this podcast episode, I explain what these NAD family of molecules are and critique the clinical evidence to see how it stacks up in front of the health claims.

Links referred to in the podcast

Review of effect of NR supplementation in humans https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adi4862
Review of NMN and NR supplementation on muscle mass and function https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12022230

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Beyond exercise: creatine’s growing role in brain, bone and women’s health Jun 17, 2025

Show notes

Creatine is one of the most well-researched and effective sports nutrition supplements for improving exercise performance. But that isn’t what I’m going to talk about in this podcast episode. Instead, I want to give the spotlight to creatine’s new moment in the sun thanks to evolving research linking it to improving brain and bone health. And then tying all this together, I’ll profile why it may just be one supplement that women could especially benefit from over men during their reproductive lifespan and beyond.

Links referred to in the podcast

Systematic review of creatine supplementation and cognitive function 2018 https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6093191
Systematic review of creatine supplementation and cognitive function 2022 https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9999677
Systematic review of creatine supplementation and cognitive function 2024 https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11275561
Clinical trial of creatine supplementation and CBT in the treatment of depression https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39488067
Review of creatine supplementation and its applications for brain health https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10721691
Dr Darren Candow on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/dr.darrencandow
Clinical trial of creatine supplementation on bone health in post-menopausal women https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10487398
Creatine supplementation in women’s health: A lifespan perspective https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7998865

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Plant-based protein: can it match animal protein for athletic performance? May 27, 2025

Show notes

Adopting a plant-based diet is a trend that continues to grow in popularity. However, for people focused on muscle growth and strength due to their athletic pursuits, there may be concerns about whether their muscle development and sports performance are being compromised by eating predominantly protein from plant foods. In this podcast episode, I’ll explore the fundamental differences between animal and plant-based proteins, discuss the primary supplements available for each type, and review recent research on the effect of these different protein sources on muscle growth, strength and physical performance.

Links referred to in the podcast

Systematic review of animal vs plant protein on muscle mass, strength and physical performance https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39813010

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