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SUMMARY
ENDURANCE ATHLETES EXPEND REMARKABLE AMOUNTS OF ENERGY AND CHALLENGE THE RECOVERY PROCESSES OF THEIR BODIES. SCORES OF NUTRITIONAL SUPPLEMENTS ARE MARKETED FOR THEIR ABILITY TO IMPROVE ONE OR BOTH OF THESE PROCESSES. A LIMITED NUMBER OF THESE SUPPLEMENTS HAVE AN APPRECIABLE AMOUNT OF RESEARCH TO SUPPORT THEIR USE BY ENDURANCE ATHLETES. CARBOHYDRATE-ELECTROLYTE SOLUTIONS, CAFFEINE, AND ADDING PROTEIN TO CARBOHYDRATE SUPPLEMENTATION OR MEALS ARE 3 STRATEGIES THAT ARE SCIENTIFICALLY BACKED AND SHOULD BE CONSIDERED AS A TRAINING AID FOR THOSE ENDURANCE ATHLETES WHO COMPETE AND TRAIN ON A REGULAR BASIS.
KEY WORDS:
carbohydrate; caffeine; electrolyte; glycogen; performance; sport; exercise; recovery
(ProQuest: ... denotes formulae omitted.)
INTRODUCTION
Reports of athletes consuming specific foods, nutrients, or ingredients to optimize performance can be traced back Jor centuries. Endurance athletes, by virtue of training for their spotting competitions, can expect to burn lens of thousands of calories- It is estimated that a typical mule endurance athlete will expend approximately 1.000 kcal and a female 600-700 " kcal when completing an hour of activity at approximately 70% of their maximal oxygen uptake (i.e., ...) (59). With this remarkable demand for energy and a desire to adopt various training or nutritional strategies to maximize performance, the interest in nutritional supplements to aid in this process continues to be popular.
In a 2004 survey addressed to 207 collegiate athletes, many of who participated in endurance-oriented sports, only 11% of the respondents claimed to have never consumed a nutritional supplement (25). Their reasons for supplementing included a desire to increase health and energy levels and decrease the chance for injury. Although supplements that fulfill the aforementioned claims do exist, there are several supplements (albeit, individual ingredients or proprietary blends) which, to date, have not proven to be beneficial for endurance performance and/or recoveiy in laboratory settings (Table 1). Therefore, this review will attempt to discuss those nutritional supplements that have adequate scientific support tor their ability to impact endurance training and performance. Although other notable supplements have studies to support their consideration such as medium-chain triglycerides, phosphates, carnirine, or glycerol supplementation, the conclusions are equivocal. Currently, the literature surrounding carbohydrate-electrolyte solutions (sports drinks), caffeine, and ingestion of carbohydrate + protein during exercise and after exercise to facilitate performance and promote recovery is...