Recovery Juice...Yay or Nay?

Recovery juice...what's that? Well for starters its not really called recovery juice, that's just a name that I've given to a post workout drink that I believe helps me to recover more quickly.  But does it really? To be honest, I'm not 100% sure that it does or does not do what the bottle says it does.  All I know is that when I first started running I firstly, didn't run enough to ever need something like this and secondly I didn't even know it existed.  After I ran my first half marathon my legs were so sore that I couldn't run for five days after the event.  Of course with each race the recovery period became shorter and slightly less painful.  But I always struggled to run even as much as two or three days after a longer race.  I would argue that rest days are just as important as training, but when your weekly mileage isn't that high to begin with, you don't exactly want three rest and recovery days between each Sunday race! I admit that when someone suggested a drink to help the recovery process, I was very skeptical.  I don't like taking products that seem unnatural, especially if I'm not sure whats in them.  So I did some research on a particular brand and found that in fact many runners take a post workout drink to speed up their recovery.  Surely then it couldn't be that bad for me?  I started taking the product after training runs and didn't notice any negative effects, though I didn't see any real benefits either...until I ran my next half marathon.  For the first time after a longer race I was able to firstly, wear heels to work the very next day (!!) and secondly, go for a short recovery run the day after the race...without any discomfort! All because of my recovery juice??? I wasn't entirely convinced but I continued to sip my chocolate flavored, electrolite-filled drink after every run.  And somehow, sore legs became a thing of the past.  Some say it really is just all in your head, that this 'magic' recovery juice actually does nothing.  Others say it's just as good to drink an energade or eat a protein rich meal after a run...maybe so.  But for me, recovery juice works and I love it!