Tart Cherry: All That?

Tart Cherry

All it takes is a quick search online for health and fitness foods for recovery and there are endless articles, social media posts, ideas, and sales stating that one item will be THE one that changes everything for you. Now, is that really true, honestly probably not. But there are a few that get so much attention that they merit some coverage and conversation to evaluate what they could do. Trying to cover all of these in one article would actually produce a novel, so for this one we’ll focus on one of the more asked about recovery items. Tart cherries, whether it is the cherries themselves or tart cherry juice is one recovery food item that I get asked about all the time.

It sounds so great. It’s as simple as drinking some juice once or twice a day and recovery is boosted? I mean why wouldn’t someone do this. But this is just too big of a simplification. Yes, tart cherry does have many antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compounds (Vitale, et al., 2017). Which have been shown to aide in the recovery process to quicken the removal of inflammation and to help the athlete feel ready for the next bout of exercise or competition. As was mentioned in the previous article, inflammation removal can be both good and bad. Remember, recovery is all about the desired results not just the method itself. Tart cherry juice has been shown to have a positive impact on perceived pain and accelerating strength as well as endurance recovery post-exercise according to Vital et al. (2017). As far as a recovery food item, there are many great measures on tart cherry products, especially regarding inflammation recovery.

The thing that must be considered, not just with tart cherry products but with any potential recovery food item, is the goals of the season the athlete is in. If reducing inflammation is the main focus of that time, then it appears that tart cherry can be beneficial. However, if the goal is adaptation or building then it may be not be optimal (Vitale et al., 2017). It’s all about consuming food and/pr supplements that aid in the athlete’s goals. If its adaptation then the inflammation reduction use of tart cherry may could hinder the desired changes but if it’s all about getting ready and feeling better for an upcoming competition, then it may be helpful.

If it sounds like a tart cherry product may be beneficial in reaching your or your athlete’s goals, looking into how, when, and why to take it is important. Vital et al. (2017) demonstrated that consuming 8-12 oz of tart cherry juice, once or twice a day can bring upon the desired recovery changes. So, it doesn’t take too much of a juice product to achieve the inflammation recovery results as long as it is consistent and done over time. Just like most things, a one and done approach or an infrequent consumption will not be as helpful or beneficial.

In the end, tart cherry products are a viable recovery option if the athlete is in a season that is focused on recovery and faster return to competition or repeat sessions. However, if in a season of adaptation and building, it may not be the helpful in achieving these goals. Just with any recovery product, its all about goals and if tart cherry doesn’t fit your goals at this moment, there may be a more beneficial food out there for you.

-Tyler Grisdale, MS, CSCS, RSCC, FRCms, TPI

References

Vitale, K., Hueglin, S., Broad, E., Tart Cherry Juice in Athletes: A Literature Review and Commentary, Current Sports Medicine Reports: 7/8 2017 – Volume 16 – Issue 4 – p 230-239

doi: 10.1249/JSR.0000000000000385