Carbohydrates and Fat for Training and Recovery Every athlete wants to be able to maximize their performance and the way they can do that is by providing the body with sources of exercise fuel which include body fat and carbohydrate stores. It is important for an athlete to intake carbohydrates both before and after a workout to promote recovery. According to the article, there are a few guidelines for post-exercise glycogen recovery: carbohydrates contribute about 60-70 percent of the total energy intake, the average amount of carbohydrate intake after a high intense exercise should average about 50 grams per every two hours. There is considered to be two different kinds of glycogen in the muscle, proglycogen and macroglycogen. During the first phase of recoverey, proglycogen is formed from the gathering of glucose units to glycogenin. During the second phase of recovery, macroglycogen is the main storage of glycogen and it has greater amoutns of glucose to glycogenin.
The total daily intake of carbohydrates might be lower for some athletes depending on if their training programs are challenging enough. Carbohydrate intake may be useful for some people in the case of muscle damage if they have increased their daily amount of carb intake. The timing of carbohydrate is very important because it is known that the highest rates of muscle glycogen storage is most likely to occur within the first hour or so after an intense exercise routine. The study found that an individual must consume carbohydrates immediately after exercise otherwise this leads to very low rates of glycogen restoration. Other studies have found that whether an individual consumes large meals or several hourly snacks the restoration of muscle glycogen is going to be the same. It is more important for an athlete to meet the total required amount of carbohydrates than focusing on the pattern in which they consume the carbs. The article discusses the type of carbohydrate intake and it is suggested that carbohydrates sources with high glycemic index would be most beneficial to post-exercise refueling. Athletes should ingest more glucose and sucrose which will enhance the rates of muscle glycogen recovery rather than a low glycemic index such as fructose. Excessively large amounts of protein and fat in an individual’s diet are not recommended because it has the chance of interfering with the glycogen storage by displacing carbohydrates with the athletes energy requirements. The intake of alcohol has an effect on the athletes glycogen resynthesis because it mainly interferes with the athlete’s ability, interest, or achieving the recommended amounts for proper glycogen restoration. General recommendations for an athlete can be suggested but ultimately it is the individual who needs to consider their specific total energy needs, training needs, and feedback from their training performance. It is valuable to concume nutrient rich carbohydrate foods along with other foods that have a good source of protein and other nutrients to help enhance the recovery process and maximize the glycogen recovery. If the individual’s exercise session is less than 8 hours, it is important for them to begin immediate carbohydrate intake to optimize the recovery time between sessions. During longer recovery periods that are about 24 hours, it is crucial for the athlete to organize a pattern of their timing