Carbohydrate Loading Diet

People who exercise more will have different diets to those who do not exercise. Carbohydrates are very important for athletes as it provides fuel. Carbohydrate is stored as glycogen in the liver and muscles, and released when needed during exercise. It is easily broken down to provide energy. The other source of energy is fat, but this cannot be converted into energy as quickly as glycogen.

The concept of energy intake and expenditure refers to the amount of calories per day that an individual consumes, and is the chemical energy in foods which can be metabolized to produce energy available to the body. As stated before energy is obtained from the foods we eat and is used to support an individual’s Basal Metabolic Rate, energy is measured in calories or joules as both units are very small they are multiplied by 1,000 and referred to as kilocalories. Different foods provide us with different amounts of energy, and the potential fuel sources available to exercising muscles are fats – 1 gram fat =9.0kcal = 23kJ,

... If carbohydrate in the diet is restricted, a person's ability to exercise is compromised because there is not enough glycogen kept in storage to fuel the body.The three main nutrients used for energy are carbohydrates, protein, and fats, with carbohydrates being the most important source. Your body can also use protein and fats for energy when carbs have been depleted. When you eat, your body breaks down nutrients into smaller components and absorbs them to use as fuel. If your feeling drowsy or really tired during the day you might have low iron or low on nutrition.

As we eat protein, fat and carbohydrates, as the main energy source, carbohydrates or glucose (simple sugar) break down into complex molecules. We need steady supply of glucose in between meals and at times like doing extensive workouts, there is an elevated demand for

Carbs is short for carbohydrates, these are known as standard sugars and are made up of groups of carbon, helium, and oxygen atoms (Tutorial on How to Name Carbohydrates 1). These are used by the body for a stable source of energy by being released into the bloodstream at a slow rate. The amount of carbs and athlete eat has a great impact on how well he or she performs on a consistent basis. This also ties into what sport they play, how active outside of said sport they are, what position they play, and how intensely they play. For example a six year old pleasing soccer in their backyard once a week would need less carbs than and Olympic track and field athlete. Fifty to sixty percent of an athletes daily meals should be solely cabs if they're trying to maintain a low carb diet. For a high carb diet a healthy amount of carbs should be from fifty to fifty to eighty-five percent. This might be an extreme amount to some people because their body could not be used to this level of carbohydrate intake on a regular basis. Carbs can come from a nearly infinite number of foods, they can come from beans, greens, potatoes, tomatoes, among many

Exercise is a much needed aspect of people's lives and is involved in a variety of outlets. One major outlet would be sports. Sports, in general, produce valuable results for a person, some more than others. Cross country is an immensely beneficial sport due to the physical endurance developed, the mental toughness gained, and the lessons of teamwork received. Part of building a strong, athletic body is to have physical endurance.

Nutritional factors that can cause fatigue include depletion of glycogen stores, low blood-glucose levels, dehydration, low blood-sodium levels and gastrointestinal upset (Hargreaves, 2001). Eating strategies should be undertaken to avoid or reduce the impact of these problems. (Asker, 2011) states that the effect of high-CHO intake in a diet increases muscle glycogen and in-turn reduces the risk of chronic carbohydrate depletion which can lead to poor performance outcomes in a single session and sub-optimal training adaptations in the long term. Therefore, implementing a CHO loading strategy based on training and sporting requirements will assist in performance and reduce the risk of fatiguing. Fat also provides the main fuel source for long duration, low to moderate intensity exercise, such as marathons. It is also a contributor in helping access stored glycogen during high intensity exercise. Daily refuelling allows competition nutritional strategies to be practised and refined and is a crucial strategy to enhance performance and recovery during training and event

Runners should eat mainly carbs because they are the main fuel, and is the first thing that is burned during a run. There are two types of carbs: simple carbs, which give you quick shots of energy, and complex carbs, which gives you a steady amount of energy for a long period of time. Fruit and candy are examples of simple carbs, and bread and grains are examples of complex carbs. If runners do not eat enough carbs, they will run out of energy when they run, and eventually hit the “wall,” a period in runner where the runner has no energy. Although everyone should have carbs, runners should have more carbs in their diet than non-runners because they need more energy. Protein is important because it rebuilds and repairs muscles. Good proteins

Therefore, nutritional strategies to increase body carbohydrate stores or carbohydrate availability are considered to be potentially beneficial for maintaining or improving performance capabilities”(Nutrition Bytes, (1)). In this way, choosing to follow the standard American diet which is low in carbohydrates and high in protein and fats is contradictory to the blood sugar stability our bodies are designed to function off of. “'Carb loading', short for carbohydrate loading, is a strategy used by athletes to maximize endurance during physical exercise. By consuming large amounts of carbohydrate-rich foods, individuals can increase energy reserves and improve performance (Nutrition Bytes, 3(1))”. In the grandiosity of this example, carb loading reinforces my hypothesis of how carbohydrates based diets is the most efficient source of dietary component to combat fatigue. For this reason, I now plan to continue a life that focuses on an abundance of carbohydrates from sugar, starches, and fibers as I have never felt so awake in my

Immediate ingestion of carbohydrate is important because insulin sensitivity causes the muscle cell membranes to be more permeable to glucose within 45 minutes post-exercise. This results in faster rates of glycogen storage and provides the body with enough

In this metabolic study, eight men and eight women, whom were competitive, healthy cyclists were selected. This crossover study was conducted on four separate days, each time the participants were told to do light exercise the previous day and eat a typical prerace meal one to two hours prior to the experiment. At random each was given one of three carbohydrate supplements (sports

Nutrition is one of the most important factors in athletic performance. It provides athletes with the energy to perform their best in practice and in games. Nutrition is important in all sports, but it is especially relevant for endurance athletes who participate in sports such as running, swimming, and cycling. Regular moderate intensity physical activity has significant benefits for health. For example, it can reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, colon and breast cancer, and depression (Lee, 2005).

What is carbohydrate loading? Carbohydrate loading, also known as carbo loading, is when the body is depleted of carbs and then overloading the body with carbs at one time. To carbohydrate load the body must be depleted of carbs for a few days. Doing this tricks your body into thinking that there is a problem with your glycogen stores. Glycogen is a form of carbohydrate that is stored in the liver and muscle cells. It is used when you exercise. It eventually runs out and your performance levels drop as fatigue sets in. for the next two or three days, after depleting your body of carbs, you overload on carbs because your body will store more glycogen because it still thinks there is an issue

Carbohydrate loading is a strategy used by some of the athletes. This strategy is aimed at increasing the amount of fuel that is kept at their muscles to enable them to improve their performance by enduring events. Carbohydrate loading is achieved through the continuous eating of high-carbohydrates meals while reducing the level of activities. Carbohydrate loading is mostly beneficial for enduring athletes such as swimmers, cyclists, and marathon runners. Other athletes do not require carbohydrate loading since it is possible for them to get their calories from carbohydrates (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2015). To understand more about carbohydrates loading, this excerpt will examine how it works.

Carbohydrate loading is a strategy commonly followed by many athletes before an endurance competition to increase muscle glycogen storage (Benrdat, 2012, p. 163). The general technique is to gradually increase carbohydrate and fluid intake each day, beginning the week before competition, while exercise is tapered downward (2012, p. 163). This reasonable, safe strategy maximizes glycogen storage (2012,