Acute modulation in dietary behavior following glycogen depletion and postexercise supplementation in trained cyclists

Abstract

We investigated the influence of immediate postexercise dietary supplementation on the subsequent food consumption pattern and endurance exercise performance in physically trained individuals. On 2 occasions, trained male cyclists performed a glycogen-depleting exercise bout followed by a 2-h nutritional supplementation period, 28 h of free-living recovery, and a subsequent 40-km cycling time trial. During the 2-h postexercise supplementation, the subjects consumed equal volumes of reduced-fat chocolate milk (CM) or a sports beverage (SB) in a single-blind, randomized design. Thereafter, the cyclists maintained a food log during the free-living recovery period. Dietary and exercise performance parameters were compared between the treatment beverage visits. No differences in total caloric and macronutrient intakes were detected between the CM and SB trials over the course of the free-living recovery. However, a significant interaction (treatment × time) was detected for caloric and macronutrient intakes during the early phase of free-living recovery, such that significantly larger proportions were consumed shortly after SB as compared with CM. No difference was observed in completion time of the 40-km cycling time trial (CM: 66.9 ± 4.1 vs SB: 66.9 ± 3.7 min). Hence, the cyclists achieved similar levels of recovery during the prolonged, free-living period despite the different acute, postexercise nutrient intake rates. We suggest that given adequate time, athletes appear to subconsciously modify their food consumption in response to varied postexercise supplementation such that subsequent-day exercise performance is equivalent.