Jumping on the workout fueling bandwagon, I’ve been ingesting homemade recovery drinks for the last month+ following hard workouts on the MV plan (2:1:1 maltodextrin/ fructose/ whey protein). I’ve also been kickstarting 5am workouts with a few gulps of maple syrup along with a big cup of black coffee.
The good news: I feel very good both on the bike & in post ride recovery. Somewhat concerning is my recent blood work glucose level nudged into “pre-diabetic” territory. A follow up test retreated my number just shy of the danger zone.
Looking back at a handful of blood work results over the past decade my number is as high as its ever been and about 10% above my previous average.
Surprisingly I have heard nothing about blood glucose levels in conjunction with carb workout fueling. It sounds like a logical but negative side effect that would warrant attention
If there has been weight gain alongside the increased workout fueling, this is an expected (and not ideal) outcome. Calorie reduction elsewhere is advisable. Consider not exceeding these amounts. Table of Intra-workout Carb Needs Per Hour of Training
I have experience working with hundreds of athletes newly implementing very high sugar fueling strategies, and have found zero who were moved into prediabetes independently by using high-carb intra-workout fueling.
Exceptions include:
Weight gain.
Very low training volume.
Protein consumption below 0.4g per pound of body weight per day.
TBH… I’ve only seen it happen in scenario 3, above, but could see it happening in scenarios 1 & 2.
FYI: It’s not at all necessary to maximize rate of glycogen storage by way of malto+fruc post-exercise if you’re training once per day. I would not use a mix like that any time other than during training. Probably much more healthy and satiating, and at least minimally less likely to cause sugar regulation issues if you stick with more nutritious carb sources than malto+fruc post-training.
I’m on a deficit the last few months and lost 4 pounds. During this period i fueled all of my work (Endurance rides and Treshold or above ) with 75G of carbs per hour and it felt amazing! (SSB MV+)
Loosing weight AND gaining strength is a fine balance. But fueling the work is very important.
Hi, is this specific to that question (high blood glucose) or a more general recommendation?
If the latter, I thought one of the primary purposes of a post wko recovery shake (CHO + PRO (of whatever ratio … that’s another pit of confusion for me on this topic!) was the speed at which you can recover the calorie deficit from the wko and start the signalling / recovery process?
eg: “The current research suggests that consuming between 1.0 – 1.2g of carbohydrates/ kg of total body weight/ hour is optimal for muscle glycogen replenishment in a short window of recovery.” * [ref: TR blog]
Or do you include a recovery shake during cool down / immediately after as still being “during training”?
eg 1200 cal wko:
800 cal ingested (drink & gels) during the intervals
400 cal ingested (with 20g PRO) in recovery shake during cool down / immediately after
Mostly general, but also very specific to the elevated blood glucose concern.
That is the purpose… but it’s actually not that necessary for one-a-day training, especially if you’re fueling well during training. And I’m about as pro-sugar pro-carb pro-glycogen replenishment as a person can get!
No.
This will work nicely for glycogen repletion. It will not be the most satiating and probably not quite as healthy long-term as choosing more fibrous and nutritious carb sources. It’s not necessary to absolutely maximize glycogen storage rates post-workout unless you have another workout happening very soon, or unless there was substantial depletion (ie. a long fairly hard ride). Total magnitude of glycogen storage can be maximized over the course of the day, without maximizing initial glycogen repletion rate.
I personally do a bit of a mix of sugar (or malto+fruc, if you don’t like the idea of sucrose), alongside fruit, milk and whey, or any other protein… mostly because I like the taste and like to drink things other than sugar syrup… which I promote during training for sure!
Nutrient timing and digestion/absorption rates matter to a much lesser extent when training is only one-a-day. Making the post-workout shake purely an optimal blend for maximizing glycogen resynthesis isn’t necessary and the tradeoffs are:
More kcal coming from fluid sources = lower satiety.
More sugar consumption, perhaps in excess of glycogen depletion. May or may not be problematic.
Lack of fiber and micronutrients (health focus) from a greater % of kcal for the day.
I’m all for:
Absolutely maximizing / optimizing carbs/sugar intake during training.
Maximizing glycogen repletion rates post-training when the next training bout is same-day and requires high glycogen.
Maximizing glycogen repletion rates post-training when a person has ZERO issues with weight and is at optimal body composition, and has perfect blood sugar regulation, and no issues with satiety, ever.
Otherwise: I’d just generally target “high enough” glycogen repletion rates and rest assured that adequate daily carb intake 'round the clock will satisfy the rest. It will.
I am only using maltodextrin for fueling but as far as i understood i can use it about 50-60 gr for an hour. So i want to increase that number but i confused a little bit. My question is about dextrose. If i buy dextrose and combine it with maltodextrin, will it be good solution for fueling?
I dont know about types of carb and thats why i wonder malto and dextrose are different carbs right? So combing them will be better for fueling?
I am 76kgs with 1.88 cm heights so i am kind of big rider and i guess 50-60 gr carb is low for me so i wanted to ask this question.
I just want to mention that since I’ve started fueling EVERYTHING I’ve felt so much better throughout the day. Just last night I managed to take on 120g of carbs during Pettit. Next time I’m going to try 130g. I seem to have a freakish ability to consume carbs without GI distress so I’m going to see just how far I can take it and find the limits of this pretty big genetic advantage I seem to have.
Maltodextrin is just strung-together dextrose. Thus, both dextrose and maltodextrin contribute to the saturation of your gut’s glucose transporter channels.
Pair maltodextrin with fructose instead.
Or use less maltodextrin and some sucrose. Sucrose is a disaccharide (2 sugar units combined) of 1 glucose and 1 fructose, FYI.
Should I load the calories BEFORE the wo (say consume about 600 c) or split between pre workout and during the wo (say eat 300c and then consume 300 during the wo).
I’m assuming you’re using C & c interchangeably to mean kcal right?
If so, then 800kcal ride probably means you should be eating somewhere between 200-350g of carbs over the course of the day, depending on goals, activity level, etc.
Regardless, answer depends on duration of workout.
If you burn 800kcal over the course of a 2-hr ride, you’d be better off having a higher percentage of your day’s carbs intra-workout, than if you were to burn 800kcal in under an hour. Could have a very light breakfast and do most of the fueling intra-ride.
If you’re hammering the power and workout duration is shorter, it makes more sense to put a good chunk of your carbs pre-workout and post-workout, and not bother targeting anywhere near the upper tolerable limits of carb consumption during training.
Exercise duration is a primary driver for carb consumption rates.
I was wondering if there is a way of telling if the carbohydrates that are taken in on the bike are also absorbed and not just flushed through. Over time I’ve changed my on-bike nutrition from 2 gels and a bottle of carb/electrolyte per hour to a DIY drink mix with 90gr of carbs (50gr glucose, 40gr fructose) an hour, and recently started taking in a 22gr gel per hour in addition, mainly with a ‘more = better’ mindset. So theoretically I’m on 112gr carbs per hour, which, in my mind, is not something I’m likely able to absorb given how average of an athlete I am. I don’t have any stomach issues or distress, but of course, IF it’s likely not absorbed, I’d rather save the money and carry less with me on the bike. My weekend rides are around 3-4 hours + 30-60min runs right after (due to 70.3 training). Nothing too crazy, so maybe it’s not long enough to cause any real stomach distress, even though it might be too many carbs.
Just being curious - If it’s not causing problems, then don’t change it? Any thoughts? Thanks!
Athleticism has nothing to do with your ability to absorb carbs. Height, genetics and past exposure to high carbs probably has most to do with it. The best indicator is GI distress. If you’ve got no GI distress, they’re being absorbed.
Never hurts to try 80g/hr and see if you feel just as good at the end of the workout and after training. If you do 80g/hr and feel weaker, more fatigued, etc, it doesn’t mean you’re “too reliant” on carbs. It just means you benefit from more. Very common. Folks who’ve never tried 90-130g/hr just often never find out that they could feel better with higher fuel intake rates.