Gatorade or Big Mac? When it comes to recovering from exercise, one might be as good as the other, according to researchers from the University of Montana.
Their new study published in the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism and presented at the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) annual meeting is stirring controversy.
It showed that cyclists got just as energized by a little fast food as by sports drinks or foods like Powerbar and Clif products.
In the study, 11 male cyclists biked hard for 90 minutes then took four-hour breaks. Immediately following each ride and again two hours later, researchers gave the cyclists either sports food or fast food, such as hamburgers, french fires and hash browns. Then the cyclists completed a 12.4-mile (20-kilometer) time trial.
The researchers analyzed muscle tissue and blood samples taken between the two rides. They found no differences between the two groups in these two key ways that people store energy: blood sugar and muscle glycogen.
They also did not find a difference in insulin between the two groups. Insulin plays a role in recovery from exercise.
And there were no differences in time-trial performance between the two groups.
“Our results show that eating fast food — in the right amounts — can provide the same potential for muscle glycogen as sports nutrition products that usually cost more,” said Brent Ruby, director of the Montana Center for Work Physiology and Exercise Metabolism, in a press release.
Problems with Fast Food for Sports
Dozens of publications, from the Washington Post and the Daily Mail to Runner’s World and Outside magazine, have picked up the results of the study since it first appeared online in late March. But not all of the articles are accurate, Ruby said.
“A lot of the articles out there are totally misrepresenting the study,” he said. “We had participants eating small servings of the fast-food products, not giant orders of burgers and fries. Moderation is the key to the results we got.”
The researchers also didn’t investigate the long-term effects of eating fast foods for sports nutrition. They note that other researchers have blamed fast food for causing obesity and heart disease.
And some experts think eating fat after a workout will slow down muscle growth.
It’s worth remembering, too, that what you should eat after a workout depends on your individual metabolism, the type of workout you’re doing and what else you eat.
When I’m thinking about post work-out nutrition, I usually go for a glass of nonfat milk. More often, I just eat a healthy meal.
Photo: A hamburger and French fries from Barney’s restaurant in Berkeley, California. By Elliot.
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