Table 3.
Summary of studies exploring the effects of post-exercise CHO food ingestion on performance.
| Study | Subjects | Exercise Test | Treatments | Timing | Performance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Murdoch et al. [71] | 8 highly trained male triathletes (run V̇O2max: 68.1 ± 5.4 mL·kg−1·min−1 and bike V̇O2max: 67.1 ± 2.6 mL·kg−1·min−1) | 90 min run (R1) followed by 90 min of cycling, both at 70% V̇O2max. Thereafter, workloads increased by ~5% V̇O2max until exhaustion (R2) |
SL: Slurry of three bananas with water SO: Three solid bananas with water PL: Artificially sweetened, flavoured, and coloured drink |
During 20 min rest period between two bouts | ↑SL vs. PL ↑SO vs. PL |
| Stevenson et al. [70] | 9 male recreational athletes (V̇O2max: 62.1 ± 2.2 mL·kg−1·min−1) | Running for 90 min at 70% V̇O2max (R1), after an overnight fast, running to exhaustion at V̇O2max (R2) | 72% CHO, 11% fat, 17% protein) GI = 35 |
During 24 h recovery | ↑LGI vs. HGI: during R2 |
| Wong et al. [22] | 7 endurance-trained male runners (V̇O2max: 61.0 ± 5.7 mL·kg−1·min−1) | Running at 70% V̇O2max on a level treadmill for 90 min (R1), followed by a 4 h recovery and a further exhaustive run at the same speed (R2) |
HGI: [100 g baked potato, 55 g tomato sauce, 75 g white bread, 50 g low fat, processed cheese, 50 g watermelon, 150 g 7 up] LGI: [65 g cooked macaroni, 30 g apple slices, 30 g canned chick-peas, 50 g low-fat cheese slice, 150 g fruit-flavoured yogurt, 250 mL apple juice] |
20 min after R1 (4 h recovery period) |
↑HGI vs. LGI |
| Cramer et al. [73] | Eleven recreationally active males (V̇O2max: 4.2 ± 0.4 mL·kg−1·min−1, 309 ± 32 Wmax) |
90 min glycogen depletion ride included a 10 min warm-up at 55%Wmax followed by a series of 10 intervals (2 min at 80% Wmax followed by 4 min at 50%Wmax). After the interval series, participants completed 8 min at 60% Wmax, followed by a final 12 min at 50%Wmax 20 km cycling TT |
SS: Gatorade, Kit’s Organic, Cliff Shot Bloks, Cytomax, Power Bar Recovery, and Power Bar Energy Chews (1.54 ± 0.27 g·kg−1 CHO, 0.24 ± 0.04 g·kg−1 fat, and 0.18 ± 0.03 g·kg−1 protein) FF: Hotcakes, Hash brown, orange juice, hamburgers, Coke, and Fries (1.54 ± 0.27 g·kg−1 CHO, 0.24 ± 0.04 g·kg−1 fat, and 0.18 ± 0.03 g·kg−1 protein) |
0 and 2 h post-exercise (total 4 h recovery) |
↔SS vs. FF 20 km TT |
| Ahmad et al. [59] | 10 male recreational runners (V̇O2max: 51.7 ± 4.1 mL·kg−1·min−1) |
A glycogen depletion phase: 65% V̇O2max run in the heat (R1), 2 h recovery, 20 min running TT (R2) | Honey drink (HD) or plain water with an amount equivalent to 150% of body weight loss in 3 boluses (60%, 50%, and 40% subsequently) Honey dosage: 6.8% CHO |
During the 2 h rehydration phase, subjects drank either plain water or honey drink (HD), equivalent to 150% of the body at 0, 30, and 60 min | ↑HD vs. PL in R2 |
| Vlahoyiannis et al. [81] | 10 recreationally trained males | Morning CMJ test, a VRT and a 5 km cycling TT |
HGI (109): jasmine and vegetables, supplying approximately 2 g·kg−1 CHO LGI (52): parboiled rice vegetables, supplying approximately 2 g·kg−1 CHO |
Immediately post-exercise |
↔HGI vs. LGI: 5 km TT, VRT and CMJ |
| Flynn et al. [72] | 8 males (V̇O2peak: 56.7 ± 4.2 mL·kg−1·min−1) and 8 females (V̇O2peak: 46.5 ± 6.6 mL·kg−1·min−1) | 90 min cycling glycogen depletion trial, rested for 4 h, 20 km cycling TT | SS: 1.6 g·kg−1 BM CHO sport supplement P: 1.6 g·kg−1 BM CHO potato-based food |
0 and 2 h post-exercise (total 4 h recovery) |
↔P vs. SS 20 km TT |
CHO carbohydrate, VO2max maximal oxygen consumption, V̇O2peak peak oxygen consumption, CMJ countermovement jump, TT time-trial, VRT visual reaction test, Wmax Maximal power output, FF fast food, SS sport supplements.