Carbohydrate Confusion

January 1, 2008

Bread

Q: Mike, In the December Muscle and Fitness magazine mentions that the best carbs before workouts are slow-digesting (page 162) citing a 2007 study from the National Taiwan College of Physical Education which found that when eight male runners ran to exhaustion after eating a meal of slow-digesting carbs (Kellogg’s All-Bran cereal, fat-free milk, peaches, apples and apple juice), they ran for more than seven minutes longer than when they ate a meal of fast-digesting carbs (Kellogg’s Corn Flakes, fat-free milk, white bread, jam, a glucose drink and water) beforehand.

So I’m confused as to what type of carbs to take before a workout!

A: Good question. This is a good example of paying attention to what you are really looking at. If you were to only be able to eat before you workout and then go running to exhaustion then a slower digesting carb would be a better option (as the study shows) because it will provide a more steady stream of sugar to your body. Faster acting carbs will spike insulin levels, which in turn causes blood sugar levels to greatly decrease - causing decreased performance.

But if you are training with weights and can sip on your shake throughout your workout then liquid/fast acting carbs and protein are a good choice because you will be giving your body a constant stream (due to the continued sipping) of glucose while at the same time spiking insulin levels (which helps prevent muscle breakdown).

So stick with the liquid carbs and protein before/during/after your training.

Written by Mike Roussell · Filed Under Ask Mike

Mike Roussell is a nationally renowned nutritionist and the president of the Naked Nutrition Network. He is currently a doctoral candidate in nutrition at Pennsylvania State University.

Comments

One Response to “Carbohydrate Confusion”

Steve W on June 18th, 2008 9:08 pm

Okay, now I’m a bit confused. I’ve been reading Alwyn, you, and others, including Mike Boyle claim there’s no need to do cardio for more than 30 minutes. However, today I read that you’re now recommending 30 minute cardio to get “warp” speed fat loss. So instead of the previously recommended 12-20 minutes of interval cardio, it’s now somehow better to take that up to 30 minutes? I’m not in the mood to purchase another book that simply tells me the exact opposite of what the last book stated, so can you clear this up?

Thanks.

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