Endurance athletes are always seeking ways to improve their performance on the bike or on the road. Being naturally competitive with themselves and others, these athletes are willing to try most things to shave off those few seconds on their time; whether it be taking new supplements or following a different diet plan. The ‘go-to’ supplement for athletes participating in endurance events would be energy gels and drinks to consume during exercise. These products are readily available for all, providing between 20 and 40g of carbohydrate per serving.
However, when competing in a long endurance race, the body will require more than just glycogen. Being able to tap into fat stores will help an athlete as they get towards the end of their race, allowing for a quick boost using the glycogen still in the body. A way of increasing reliance on fat as an energy source is to follow a high fat, low carbohydrate diet for a period prior to the event. Following this diet whilst training is considered to enhance your adaptations to endurance training, allowing you to use oxygen in the body more efficiently, subsequently improving performance.
Adaptations to this kind of diet occur at a cellular level within the muscle, and therefore it is debated whether these adaptations translate to improved performance. Studies have shown that high fat, low carbohydrate diets will increase the overall fat utilisation in the body, but these alterations have not consistently then resulted in the athlete being able to maintain a higher power output throughout their event – so is it worth it? Following a high fat diet does have its downfalls as well, being shown that athletes find exercise more strenuous than they do when following a high carbohydrate diet. Not being able to train as hard means less adaptations to exercise, leading you to question – does it actually benefit performance?
It is definitely an area that requires a lot more research. Following a high fat diet can be extremely hard, especially when trying to train as hard as you can. Personally, I’ll stick to my gels and sports drink whilst running my next marathon.