The Benefits of Carbohydrates for Athletes – Part 1
Today as part 1 of this 4-part series, we are going to briefly discuss a topic that has been plaguing athletes, coaches, trainers, and parents all over the world for years now. And that is whether or not you do, in fact, need carbohydrates to perform at a high level, among other things. The answer, as you will see shortly, is a resounding yes!
A VITAL ENERGY SOURCE IN SPORTS COMPETITION
No matter what type of extra-curricular activity you partake in, your body will be automatically required to acquire energy very rapidly from the eventual end product of carbohydrates, known as glucose. Before I go on, when you ingest any type of carbohydrate, digestion begins the moment the food enters your mouth, and perhaps before in anticipation of food consumption, as key enzymes which help break down the food are released from glands in the mouth.
From here, carbohydrates will travel down the digestive tract and, at some point, reach the small intestines. The small intestines then process the specific carbohydrate at specific sections along the organ, where the newly reduced glucose molecules are then released into the bloodstream for uptake into our body’s cells for eventual use.
They are then sent through the bloodstream without a transporter to structural locations that are in need of them, such as your brain, liver, nerves, and muscles, preferably. If the available glucose can’t be used immediately, then the glucose will either be stored directly in the muscles or the liver in the form of glycogen to be used later.
And just In case you were curious, our muscles can house approximately 500 grams of glucose, while the liver carries about 100 grams, although much of this will depend on several nutritional and training factors. Moreover, only the liver can release stored glycogen into our body’s systemic circulation through a detailed process called “Glycogenolysis,” which is just a fancy term for the liver’s ability to break down the stored glycogen into usable glucose for other muscles and tissues to use.
Unfortunately, skeletal muscles lack a specific enzyme called glucose-6-phosphatase and thus are unable to release stored glucose into the bloodstream for other active muscles and tissues to use. This is one of many potential reasons why if you’re active, you will need to supplement with more carbohydrates; since only the liver can provide this source of fuel with high-intensity efforts, its stores are extremely limited, as you just saw, and the production of energy from fats and proteins at intense efforts is naturally limited by the body. All of these outcomes will limit performance and trigger fatigue and exhaustion without question.
Once you have consumed carbohydrates and the body has done its job processing, then they are now available for you to use. And here is a diagram that outlines the pathway where most carbohydrates will be utilized during vigorous exercise; “Anaerobic Glycolysis.”
And I suppose this book wouldn’t be complete unless I quickly outlined all of the systems where our body processes energy. Before I do so, just realize that the outline is very basic, and there are several steps and reactions that occur naturally, but they aren’t very practical past a general understanding. Here they are for the sake of completeness:
Now you might be wondering to yourself, “I’ve heard that the protein we eat can also provide the energy we need during the same predictable exercise situations?” True, but unfortunately, we run the risk of using “internal” body protein stores needed for building all of our muscles and various tissues to support that effort. And why risk it? Furthermore, we could also be confiscating the protein we just ate to deliver energy for movement and function, when ideally, we would want to utilize the newfound protein for rebuilding and recovery purposes from hard training and daily work that was completed. It’s a no-brainer, folks.
Lastly, even though protein can supply energy, the availability of this potential outcome will be very limited, as I alluded to earlier. Depending on the duration and intensity of exercise and other factors such as glycogen stores and energy intake, amino acids can provide a few to approximately 10% of the total energy for sustained exercise.”1 As you can see, this is a huge restriction, so if you don’t have adequate carbohydrates, you are going to burn out sooner rather than later, as I mentioned before.
FUELING THE THYROID GLAND FOR MAXIMAL PERFORMANCE
The thyroid gland is a very complicated hormonal network that is responsible for energy production, increased oxygen uptake in the body, bone and tissue growth, CNS activation and maturation, Growth Hormone production, and more. 2,3 The best analogy I’ve heard for describing the Thyroid is to view this anatomical system as one of our available “power generators” for feeding high amounts of useful energy to working parts in the body. If you want to compete at the highest level, run your absolute fastest, jump and cut with ease, and showcase any other conceivable athletic feat, then you had better make damn sure you are eating carbohydrates to supply your thyroid power generator!
An unwanted reduction in the generator (thyroid) can inevitably and negatively affect the working parts in which it is structurally intertwined within the body. Historically, carbohydrates have routinely been proclaimed as the main type of fuel you should eat, along with a healthy quantity of overall calories, to help to ensure your body’s generator becomes or remains happy so that you can perform at your best. “Now, as it relates to carbohydrates, several food sources containing iodine, selenium, and vitamin A will be derived from carbohydrates, which may explain why carbohydrates help out the thyroid so much.”4
There are essentially 4 Thyroid hormones produced by the body. “There are two primary thyroid hormones which are T4 and T3; T2 also has some acute metabolic effects. The body releases both hormones in roughly an 80:20 ratio of T4:T3 from the thyroid gland; most T3 production occurs in other tissues via an enzyme called Type 2 Deiodinase (which removes one of the iodine molecules from T4 to produce T3); much of this occurs in the liver.”2 The other hormone that wasn’t mentioned is Thyroid Stimulating Hormone which is a precursor to T4, and there are some other ones as well.
Now that you have a basic understanding of the thyroid hormone system, I must mention that there currently exists a lot of debate surrounding thyroid functioning and whether or not total calorie intake or carbohydrates actually influence various functions of the Thyroid Gland.
The first party in the Thyroid debate are those who strongly advocate and support the inclusion of moderate to high amounts of carbohydrates into the standard diet, pretty much regardless of body type or activity level. There are several researchers and nutritional authorities on both sides of the argument. For example, Danforth et al. 1979 discussed several studies which examined different overfeeding approaches consisting of different combinations of fat, carbohydrates, and calories.
The common theme here was that only overfeeding with more calories and carbohydrates seemed to have an effect on T3 concentrations and energy expenditures, while fat didn’t require the body to elevate the thyroid and burn off extra calories since it wasn’t raising the metabolism as much. The thyroid gland also works in harmony with Insulin and helps improve both sensitivity and production of the hormone. 5 Lastly, Lyle McDonald, who is arguably one of the smartest nutritional minds on the planet, had this to say about the thyroid and its impact on muscle growth potential: “As a side note, this is one reason why low carbohydrate diets are not ideal for individuals wishing to gain muscle tissue: the decrease in T3 will negatively affect protein synthesis.”6
The other group obviously stands for other factors regulating proper thyroid function rather than carbohydrates themselves. The main rebuttal with this group of researchers seems to be one of total energy expenditure is most significant on the Thyroid rather than the composition of the diet via the macronutrients of carbohydrates, fats, and protein. Very logical indeed.
In their defense, the research definitely shows that overfeeding with calories, in general raised levels of thyroid hormones, but so did carbohydrates.7 The theory for why this may be is due to Insulin assisting in the conversion of the inactive T4 thyroid hormone into the metabolically potent T3.8
So there you have it, ladies and gentlemen. There is no doubt that carbohydrates do indeed help support a healthy thyroid and all that it does in the human body that ultimately affects athletic performance in everyone! You will be witnessing even more, had benefits here in the future on why carbohydrates are so essential for athletes of any kind everywhere, so stay tuned!
SCIENTIFIC REFERENCES:
#1-https://bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/how-we-get-fat
#2-McDonald, Lyle. The Stubborn Fat Solution. Lyle McDonald Publishing. 2008. SCRIBD. Web. https://www.scribd.com/document/337430424/Lyle-McDonald-The-Stubborn-Fat-Solution-pdf
3. Danforth, Elliot, et al. “Nutritionally-Induced Alterations in Thyroid Hormone Metabolism and Thermogenesis.” Experientia Supplementum Effectors of Thermogenesis, 1978, pp. 213–217., doi:10.1007/978-3-0348-5559-4_25.
#4-Hyman, Mark. Ultrametabolism: Awaken the Fat-Burning DNA Hidden in Your Body: the Simple Plan for Automatic Weight Loss. Atria Books, 2008.
#5-Lin, Y, and Z Sun. “Thyroid Hormone Potentiates Insulin Signaling and Attenuates Hyperglycemia and Insulin Resistance in a Mouse Model of Type 2 Diabetes.” Advances in Pediatrics., U.S. National Library of Medicine, Feb. 2011, .www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20883475
#6-McDonald, Lyle. The Ketogenic Diet: A complete guide for the Dieter and Practitioner. Lyle McDonald. 1998.
#7-Kresser, Chris. “Is a Low-Carb Diet Ruining Your Health?” Chris Kresser, Chriskresser.com, 26 Aug. 2014, chriskresser.com/is-a-low-carb-diet-ruining-your-health/.
#8- McDonald, Lyle. “Bodyweight Regulation Wrap-Up: A Few More Hormones.”Bodyrecomposition, Lyle McDonald, 16 Aug. 2015, bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/bodyweight-regulation-wrap-up-other-hormones.html/
RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
MOST POPULAR
The Benefits of Carbohydrates for Athletes – Part 1
Today as part 1 of this 4-part series, we are going to briefly discuss a topic that has been plaguing athletes, coaches, trainers, and parents all over the world for years now. And that is whether or not you do, in fact, need carbohydrates to perform at a high level, among other things. The answer, as you will see shortly, is a resounding yes!
A VITAL ENERGY SOURCE IN SPORTS COMPETITION
No matter what type of extra-curricular activity you partake in, your body will be automatically required to acquire energy very rapidly from the eventual end product of carbohydrates, known as glucose. Before I go on, when you ingest any type of carbohydrate, digestion begins the moment the food enters your mouth, and perhaps before in anticipation of food consumption, as key enzymes which help break down the food are released from glands in the mouth.
From here, carbohydrates will travel down the digestive tract and, at some point, reach the small intestines. The small intestines then process the specific carbohydrate at specific sections along the organ, where the newly reduced glucose molecules are then released into the bloodstream for uptake into our body’s cells for eventual use.
They are then sent through the bloodstream without a transporter to structural locations that are in need of them, such as your brain, liver, nerves, and muscles, preferably. If the available glucose can’t be used immediately, then the glucose will either be stored directly in the muscles or the liver in the form of glycogen to be used later.
And just In case you were curious, our muscles can house approximately 500 grams of glucose, while the liver carries about 100 grams, although much of this will depend on several nutritional and training factors. Moreover, only the liver can release stored glycogen into our body’s systemic circulation through a detailed process called “Glycogenolysis,” which is just a fancy term for the liver’s ability to break down the stored glycogen into usable glucose for other muscles and tissues to use.
Unfortunately, skeletal muscles lack a specific enzyme called glucose-6-phosphatase and thus are unable to release stored glucose into the bloodstream for other active muscles and tissues to use. This is one of many potential reasons why if you’re active, you will need to supplement with more carbohydrates; since only the liver can provide this source of fuel with high-intensity efforts, its stores are extremely limited, as you just saw, and the production of energy from fats and proteins at intense efforts is naturally limited by the body. All of these outcomes will limit performance and trigger fatigue and exhaustion without question.
Once you have consumed carbohydrates and the body has done its job processing, then they are now available for you to use. And here is a diagram that outlines the pathway where most carbohydrates will be utilized during vigorous exercise; “Anaerobic Glycolysis.”
And I suppose this book wouldn’t be complete unless I quickly outlined all of the systems where our body processes energy. Before I do so, just realize that the outline is very basic, and there are several steps and reactions that occur naturally, but they aren’t very practical past a general understanding. Here they are for the sake of completeness:
Now you might be wondering to yourself, “I’ve heard that the protein we eat can also provide the energy we need during the same predictable exercise situations?” True, but unfortunately, we run the risk of using “internal” body protein stores needed for building all of our muscles and various tissues to support that effort. And why risk it? Furthermore, we could also be confiscating the protein we just ate to deliver energy for movement and function, when ideally, we would want to utilize the newfound protein for rebuilding and recovery purposes from hard training and daily work that was completed. It’s a no-brainer, folks.
Lastly, even though protein can supply energy, the availability of this potential outcome will be very limited, as I alluded to earlier. Depending on the duration and intensity of exercise and other factors such as glycogen stores and energy intake, amino acids can provide a few to approximately 10% of the total energy for sustained exercise.”1 As you can see, this is a huge restriction, so if you don’t have adequate carbohydrates, you are going to burn out sooner rather than later, as I mentioned before.
FUELING THE THYROID GLAND FOR MAXIMAL PERFORMANCE
The thyroid gland is a very complicated hormonal network that is responsible for energy production, increased oxygen uptake in the body, bone and tissue growth, CNS activation and maturation, Growth Hormone production, and more. 2,3 The best analogy I’ve heard for describing the Thyroid is to view this anatomical system as one of our available “power generators” for feeding high amounts of useful energy to working parts in the body. If you want to compete at the highest level, run your absolute fastest, jump and cut with ease, and showcase any other conceivable athletic feat, then you had better make damn sure you are eating carbohydrates to supply your thyroid power generator!
An unwanted reduction in the generator (thyroid) can inevitably and negatively affect the working parts in which it is structurally intertwined within the body. Historically, carbohydrates have routinely been proclaimed as the main type of fuel you should eat, along with a healthy quantity of overall calories, to help to ensure your body’s generator becomes or remains happy so that you can perform at your best. “Now, as it relates to carbohydrates, several food sources containing iodine, selenium, and vitamin A will be derived from carbohydrates, which may explain why carbohydrates help out the thyroid so much.”4
There are essentially 4 Thyroid hormones produced by the body. “There are two primary thyroid hormones which are T4 and T3; T2 also has some acute metabolic effects. The body releases both hormones in roughly an 80:20 ratio of T4:T3 from the thyroid gland; most T3 production occurs in other tissues via an enzyme called Type 2 Deiodinase (which removes one of the iodine molecules from T4 to produce T3); much of this occurs in the liver.”2 The other hormone that wasn’t mentioned is Thyroid Stimulating Hormone which is a precursor to T4, and there are some other ones as well.
Now that you have a basic understanding of the thyroid hormone system, I must mention that there currently exists a lot of debate surrounding thyroid functioning and whether or not total calorie intake or carbohydrates actually influence various functions of the Thyroid Gland.
The first party in the Thyroid debate are those who strongly advocate and support the inclusion of moderate to high amounts of carbohydrates into the standard diet, pretty much regardless of body type or activity level. There are several researchers and nutritional authorities on both sides of the argument. For example, Danforth et al. 1979 discussed several studies which examined different overfeeding approaches consisting of different combinations of fat, carbohydrates, and calories.
The common theme here was that only overfeeding with more calories and carbohydrates seemed to have an effect on T3 concentrations and energy expenditures, while fat didn’t require the body to elevate the thyroid and burn off extra calories since it wasn’t raising the metabolism as much. The thyroid gland also works in harmony with Insulin and helps improve both sensitivity and production of the hormone. 5 Lastly, Lyle McDonald, who is arguably one of the smartest nutritional minds on the planet, had this to say about the thyroid and its impact on muscle growth potential: “As a side note, this is one reason why low carbohydrate diets are not ideal for individuals wishing to gain muscle tissue: the decrease in T3 will negatively affect protein synthesis.”6
The other group obviously stands for other factors regulating proper thyroid function rather than carbohydrates themselves. The main rebuttal with this group of researchers seems to be one of total energy expenditure is most significant on the Thyroid rather than the composition of the diet via the macronutrients of carbohydrates, fats, and protein. Very logical indeed.
In their defense, the research definitely shows that overfeeding with calories, in general raised levels of thyroid hormones, but so did carbohydrates.7 The theory for why this may be is due to Insulin assisting in the conversion of the inactive T4 thyroid hormone into the metabolically potent T3.8
So there you have it, ladies and gentlemen. There is no doubt that carbohydrates do indeed help support a healthy thyroid and all that it does in the human body that ultimately affects athletic performance in everyone! You will be witnessing even more, had benefits here in the future on why carbohydrates are so essential for athletes of any kind everywhere, so stay tuned!
SCIENTIFIC REFERENCES:
#1-https://bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/how-we-get-fat
#2-McDonald, Lyle. The Stubborn Fat Solution. Lyle McDonald Publishing. 2008. SCRIBD. Web. https://www.scribd.com/document/337430424/Lyle-McDonald-The-Stubborn-Fat-Solution-pdf
3. Danforth, Elliot, et al. “Nutritionally-Induced Alterations in Thyroid Hormone Metabolism and Thermogenesis.” Experientia Supplementum Effectors of Thermogenesis, 1978, pp. 213–217., doi:10.1007/978-3-0348-5559-4_25.
#4-Hyman, Mark. Ultrametabolism: Awaken the Fat-Burning DNA Hidden in Your Body: the Simple Plan for Automatic Weight Loss. Atria Books, 2008.
#5-Lin, Y, and Z Sun. “Thyroid Hormone Potentiates Insulin Signaling and Attenuates Hyperglycemia and Insulin Resistance in a Mouse Model of Type 2 Diabetes.” Advances in Pediatrics., U.S. National Library of Medicine, Feb. 2011, .www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20883475
#6-McDonald, Lyle. The Ketogenic Diet: A complete guide for the Dieter and Practitioner. Lyle McDonald. 1998.
#7-Kresser, Chris. “Is a Low-Carb Diet Ruining Your Health?” Chris Kresser, Chriskresser.com, 26 Aug. 2014, chriskresser.com/is-a-low-carb-diet-ruining-your-health/.
#8- McDonald, Lyle. “Bodyweight Regulation Wrap-Up: A Few More Hormones.”Bodyrecomposition, Lyle McDonald, 16 Aug. 2015, bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/bodyweight-regulation-wrap-up-other-hormones.html/