The influence of a high carbohydrate intake during recovery from prolonged, constant-pace running.

Abstract

The present study examined the influence of ingesting 3.0 g CHO . kg-1 body mass . 2 hr-1 after prolonged exercise on recovery and running capacity 4 hr later. Nine men and 8 women completed two trials in a counterbalanced design. Each trial consisted of a 90-min run on a level treadmill at 70% VO2 max (R1) followed by 4 hr recovery (REC) and a further exhaustive run at 70% VO2 max (R2). During REC, subjects ingested either two feedings of a 6.9% glucosepolymer (GP) solution (D trial) or two feedings of a 19.3% GP solution (C trial). There were no differences in mean (+/- SE) R2 run times between the C and D trials or between the male and female subjects. More stable blood glucose concentrations were maintained during REC in the C trial, such that blood glucose was elevated in the C trial in comparison with the D trial after 210 min of REC. It was concluded that increasing postexercise carbohydrate intake from 1.0 to 3.0 g CHO . kg-1 body mass . 2 hr-1 does not improve endurance capacity 1 hr later.