Moderate carb intake outperforms high carb intake‼️
More may not always be better.
Recommended but Not High Carbohydrate Dose Improves Performance After Heavy- but Not Moderate-Intensity Exercise in Recreationally Trained Participants
Study Details
This new study investigated whether carb intake during different steady state
exercise intensities improved subsequent time-trial performance 🔍
🚴♂️ 12 trained males completed nine separate bouts of cycling exercise
Moderate (120 min at 90% of GET), high-intensity (90 min at Δ20%) and higher-intensity (60 min at Δ80%) maximal metabolic steady state exercise fuelling with either…
1️⃣ Placebo
2️⃣ 40 g/hr
3️⃣ 90 g/hr
Each condition was followed by 4km time-trials to assess performance ⏱️
Key Findings
🏆 Time-trial performance was only improved in the 40 g/hr condition vs placebo at high-intensity
❌ But not at any other exercise intensity (low or higher) or vs 90 g/hr
Conclusion
For recreationally trained individuals, 40 g/hr may suffice to enhance performance during endurance exercise 🥤
This also makes sense from a practical perspective for recreational athletes, you’d likely not need 90 g/hr and it may increase risk of GI issues ✅
Higher isn’t always better. But any sensible individual will tell you that.
Reference
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42018708/
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