by John A. Hawley and Jill J. Leckey
Abstract:
A major goal of training to improve the performance of prolonged, continuous, endurance events lasting up to 3 h is to promote a range of physiological and metabolic adaptations that permit an athlete to work at both higher absolute and relative power outputs/speeds and delay the onset of fatigue (i.e., a decline in exercise intensity). To meet these goals, competitive endurance athletes undertake a prodigious volume of training, with a large proportion performed at intensities that are close to or faster than race pace and highly dependent on carbohydrate (CHO)-based fuels to sustain rates of muscle energy production [i.e., match rates of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) hydrolysis with rates of resynthesis]. Consequently, to sustain muscle energy reserves and meet the daily demands of training sessions, competitive athletes freely select CHO-rich diets. Despite renewed interest in high-fat, low-CHO diets for endurance sport, fat-rich diets do not improve training capacity or performance, but directly impair rates of muscle glycogenolysis and energy flux, limiting high-intensity ATP production. When highly trained athletes compete in endurance events lasting up to 3 h, CHO-, not fat-based fuels are the predominant fuel for the working muscles and CHO, not fat, availability becomes rate limiting for performance.
Reference:
Carbohydrate Dependence During Prolonged, Intense Endurance Exercise (John A. Hawley and Jill J. Leckey), In Sports Medicine (Auckland, N.Z.), volume 45 Suppl 1, 2015.
Bibtex Entry:
@article{hawley_carbohydrate_2015,
abstract = {A major goal of training to improve the performance of prolonged, continuous, endurance events lasting up to 3 h is to promote a range of physiological and metabolic adaptations that permit an athlete to work at both higher absolute and relative power outputs/speeds and delay the onset of fatigue (i.e., a decline in exercise intensity). To meet these goals, competitive endurance athletes undertake a prodigious volume of training, with a large proportion performed at intensities that are close to or faster than race pace and highly dependent on carbohydrate (CHO)-based fuels to sustain rates of muscle energy production [i.e., match rates of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) hydrolysis with rates of resynthesis]. Consequently, to sustain muscle energy reserves and meet the daily demands of training sessions, competitive athletes freely select CHO-rich diets. Despite renewed interest in high-fat, low-CHO diets for endurance sport, fat-rich diets do not improve training capacity or performance, but directly impair rates of muscle glycogenolysis and energy flux, limiting high-intensity ATP production. When highly trained athletes compete in endurance events lasting up to 3 h, CHO-, not fat-based fuels are the predominant fuel for the working muscles and CHO, not fat, availability becomes rate limiting for performance.},
author = {Hawley, John A. and Leckey, Jill J.},
date-modified = {2023-01-08 11:29:11 +0000},
doi = {10.1007/s40279-015-0400-1},
issn = {1179-2035},
journal = {Sports Medicine (Auckland, N.Z.)},
keywords = {Diet, High-Fat Diet, Carbohydrates, Exercise, Muscle, Athletic Performance,},
language = {eng},
month = nov,
pages = {S5--12},
pmcid = {PMC4672006},
pmid = {26553495},
title = {Carbohydrate {Dependence} {During} {Prolonged}, {Intense} {Endurance} {Exercise}},
volume = {45 Suppl 1},
year = {2015},
bdsk-url-1 = {https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-015-0400-1}}