I love drinking milk. If I could drink whole milk all the time, I would. But have you seen how many calories are in only one cup of milk? One cup of whole milk has 150 calories. That’s a lot of calories—good calories, but calories nonetheless.

When I went on my calorie-counting diet, I stopped drinking as much milk. While I love it, and I know it’s great for me, it was just one more bunch of calories I had to add up.

After reading an article from WebMD, you better believe that I will be buying a couple of gallons ASAP.

WebMD reported on a study that showed that when women drink milk after weight lifting, they actually lose more fat. You thought energy drinks were the best thing to chug after a hard weight lifting workout? Wrong.

Two big glasses of milk is better.

Canadian researchers from McMaster University ran an extensive study on the affects of milk on exercise results. For three months, women who had never before done resistance training were put to the test. One group of women drank 17 ounces of skim milk. The comparison group was offered a similar-looking substance that was actually an energy drink.

The research found that women who drank two larges glasses of milk after their strengthening workouts gained more muscle mass while losing more fat. McMaster University professor Stuart M. Phillips, PhD, stated, “We expected the gains in muscle mass to be greater, but the size of the fat loss surprised us.”

Go, milk!

Milk is also a great source of calcium, which increases bone density- an important issue as women age.  Bonus? Strength training increases bone density, too.  I told you they were a good pair.

And what about the guys? A previous study involving males showed the same results. The men gained muscle and lost fat after working out and then drinking milk.

At this point, researchers are unsure as to why and how this is caused, but they are working on finding the root cause.

For now, I say: get your milk on! (But don’t forget to factor your milk’s calories into your daily intake.)

(Image Source: sci-eng)