Carbohydrate–protein ingestion during recovery from prolonged exercise in man

Evidence supports that the ingestion of carbohydrate solutions in the post-exercise period can facilitate the restoration of exercise capacity both through providing the fluid necessary for rehydration and through stimulating carbohydrate storage. The accrual of this evidence has now established many components of the optimal carbohydrate feeding strategy during recovery and further progress has been sought through investigating the potential influence of other macronutrients. Specifically, combined ingestion of protein and carbohydrate may promote a more rapid re-synthesis of endogenous glycogen stores than when either nutrient is ingested in isolation. This possibility has led to speculation that ingestion of a mixed carbohydrate-protein solution (CHO–PRO) might restore the capacity for physical exercise more completely during a short-term recovery than when a matched quantity of carbohydrate alone is ingested. However, evidence in support of this hypothesis is not yet available and the present series of studies will therefore attempt to directly examine the effects of CHO–PRO ingestion on recovery of exercise capacity. [Continues.]