Endurance Athlete Nutrition | Carbohydrates

Today we look at some of the most recent scientific reviews relating to nutrition guidelines for healthy adult endurance athletes. We specifically take a look at carbohydrates 1) during day-to-day training, 2) pre-competition (carbohydrate loading), and 3) in-race feeding. Future nutrition videos will discuss the scientific evidence on topics such as recommended intakes for protein, fat, water, electrolytes, probiotics, caffeine, micronutrients, and so on. There are also plans to make videos on other styles of diets, such as low-carbohydrate high-fat diets for endurance performance, that are growing in popularity in the recent few years.

At the end of the video, a summary paragraph and table are provided.

Disclaimers:
To Know Sport is not a doctor or a medical professional. Before starting any new diet and/or exercise program please check with your doctor. Use of this information (in the video) is strictly at your own risk. Any recommendations made are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. The content in the video is for educational and informational purposes regarding the scientific evidence base on exercise and nutritional topics for healthy adults. To Know Sport will not assume any liability for direct or indirect losses or damages that may result from the use of information contained in this video including but not limited to economic loss, injury, illness, or death. Science is frequently based on average results, therefore due to person-to-person variability, individual results are not guaranteed and may vary.

References
2019 Nutrition Review
Vitale, K. and Getzin, A., 2019. Nutrition and supplement update for the endurance athlete: Review and recommendations. Nutrients, 11(6), p.1289.

2018 ISSN Review
Kerksick, C.M., Wilborn, C.D., Roberts, M.D., Smith-Ryan, A., Kleiner, S.M., Jäger, R., Collins, R., Cooke, M., Davis, J.N., Galvan, E. and Greenwood, M., 2018. ISSN exercise & sports nutrition review update: research & recommendations. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 15(1), p.38.

[tomaszrudnicki]

Thanks a lot fot this content. I'm tired of seeing half naked 20 year old guys with sixpacks and tattoos telling you about them expirience in nutrition. I prefer information wich is based on studies made by someone who understands facts and spends a huge time of his live on studying it. This king of knowledge is nowdays difficult to find between multi-milion viewers nonsense chanels. Keep doing what You do.

[Surfeit]

Top stuff. Thanks for taking the time and effort to make these videos. It's a shame people disagreeing with you feel the need to be so brash, because there could be some great discussion. YT comments section clearly isn't the place for that!

[JackBegotti]

definetly the best channel out here on yt

[gadmas]

Very helpfull!! Great to see your channel blow up like this, 2021 is your year!!

[ketoscience]

Good video. No mention of ketogenic diets for endurance athletes as advocated by Jeff Volek and Tim Noakes, both of whom conducted research on the effect of low carbohydrate diets on endurance performance on marathoners. What does the scientific literature say about endurance athletes choosing a high carbohydrate diet over a low carbohydrate diet?

The recommendation to eat 6 grams of carbohydrates per kilogram of bodyweight is actually extremely vague. Eating 300 grams of carbohydrates worth of bagels is not the same thing as adding 300 grams carbohydrates worth of glucose in water. And what about the problem of fructose malabsorption and insulin resistance? Fructose is a carbohydrate that is metabolized by the liver instead of the muscles so at face value it seems like a bad idea to eat any carbohydrate rich food that contains fructose or sucrose (which is broken down into equal parts glucose and fructose). Are you going to do a follow up video on the quality of carbohydrates needed for endurance performance and how different carbohydrates lead to different outcomes?

I also think it would really helped clarify things about glycogen storage in the liver and muscles. Can glycogen stores actually be increased and how does that happen? If endurance athletes develop more intramuscular triglycerides doesn't that mean that in the process of doing so there is no increase in the maximum amount of glycogen their bodies can store in their muscles and liver? Is there a limit to glycogen storage in the human body?

And what about micronutrients? I don't understand why both in the nutrition space and the exercise space on YouTube no one ever discusses the micronutrient needs of endurance athletes? E.g. do endurance athletes need more iron and calcium in their diets than people engaging moderate amounts of exercise or no exercise at all?

There is also the fact that carbohydrates come with anti-nutrients such as oxalates, dietary fiber etc. Wouldn't it make more sense to drink water filled with glucose and salt than to eat carbohydrate rich foods in order to avoid consuming anti-nutrients and making one insulin resistance, which would lead to fat gain overtime (maybe a decade) and an overall worse athletic performance (unless you are genetically different).

[seancullen]

For long distance, a training goal should also be to train your fat burning system and thus, it is beneficial to go into long training runs already slightly carb depleted (eg long run in the morning without breakfast). This has the effect of pushing you closer to the wall ie total carb depletion (but not over it obviously) with the same amount of time and effort than you would get if you went into the run fully carbed up. The net effect of this is that your fat burning system is forced to become more efficient over time and will thus take some of the load of the finite carb supply during races, allowing you to run faster and farther on the same carb load as your fat system is providing a higher percentage of your energy needs. Obviously in a race you would go in carbed up and take gels mid race. The carb depletion rationale should only be used during training.

[AW-ljhl]

Hi.
Some comments below point out that the science is beginning to change. That is completely correct. I appreciate the video expounds one common position, but good endurance athletes burn more fat. Changing your metabolic energy source means a lower carb intake and lower insulin levels. If anybody is interested have a look at the lectures ‘low carb Denver’ or ‘low carb down under’. There is an ongoing debate about which is critical; fructose metabolism (present in refined sugar) vs total carbs so the message is not fully clarified. It is good science and I personally (as a physician) would no longer advocate high carb intakes for amateur athletes. It is completely contrary to the last few decades of nutritional advice but is driven by physicians, physiologists and metabolomics. It has been studied as we try to explain the physiology of ‘metabolic syndrome’ in the sick.

[oscarsandoval]

Since brain consumes most calories how would you adjust this recommendation if at all for mental work, assuming person is in good shape and exercises daily

[And-rcyy]

Would love to know if the recommendation would be to eat actual high carbohydrate food. Or to use a carbohydrate powder mix.

[carriemeng]

Looking forward to the next video on protein!

[pabloll]

Gracias por la información. Fue de mucha utilidad.

[sharafmedo]

I’m on a low carb diet with intermittent fasting

[alifahren]

This is actual body weight or ideal body weight?

[getthebagtoday]

Are you supposed to eat during the exercise?

[dsingh]

Thanks for such a informative video, connecting science to practice

[seancullen]

Hey man, could be interesting for you to do a video on the 'central governor' hypothesis. Very interesting.

[lawrence]

Hey, thanks for your superb content, well structured and relatively easy to grasp. Would in the near future consider making comparable videos on strength training as well? Also possibly on how those factors (strenght, endurence etc) play together and how to keep them balanced when aiming for the goal of being a more general athlete. One last suggestion would be something rather concerned with video quality in general, i think that you should consider turning down the volume of the (otherwise very pleasant) music in the background by some degrees, as it makes for some weird kind of distraction by sort of fiddling with your voice, at least to my mind. maybe it could also help to choose a more neutral and minimal background sound.
Thanks for all your efforts!

[miodoh]

For carb loading, how to avoid that carb will be converted to fat instead of glycogen?

[MichaelLoweAttorney]

Very few serious endurance athletes are deficient in carbs. Just take a look at all the port-a-potties at your next marathon.

There are many endurance athletes who are eating a protein deficient diet.

[AW-ljhl]

Re my comment below. Carb loading is fine but I am wary of high carb reliance during training programs. Although the science is still unfolding. Interestingly we have seen elite athletes get diabetes whilst training (eg Steve Redgrave rower) possibly as a result of a massive calorie requirements plugged by carbs. Very unphysiological.