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Clinical Trial
. 2019 Apr 4;11(4):778.
doi: 10.3390/nu11040778.

Anaerobic Performance after a Low-Carbohydrate Diet (LCD) Followed by 7 Days of Carbohydrate Loading in Male Basketball Players

Małgorzata Magdalena Michalczyk  1 , Jakub Chycki  2 , Adam Zajac  3 , Adam Maszczyk  4 , Grzegorz Zydek  5 , Józef Langfort  6
Affiliations
Clinical Trial

Anaerobic Performance after a Low-Carbohydrate Diet (LCD) Followed by 7 Days of Carbohydrate Loading in Male Basketball Players

Małgorzata Magdalena Michalczyk et al. Nutrients. .

Abstract

Despite increasing interest among athletes and scientists on the influence of different dietary interventions on sport performance, the association between a low-carbohydrate, high-fat diet and anaerobic capacity has not been studied extensively. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of a low-carbohydrate diet (LCD) followed by seven days of carbohydrate loading (Carbo-L) on anaerobic performance in male basketball players. Fifteen competitive basketball players took part in the experiment. They performed the Wingate test on three occasions: after the conventional diet (CD), following 4 weeks of the LCD, and after the weekly Carbo-L, to evaluate changes in peak power (PP), total work (TW), time to peak power (TTP), blood lactate concentration (LA), blood pH, and bicarbonate (HCO₃-). Additionally, the concentrations of testosterone, growth hormone, cortisol, and insulin were measured after each dietary intervention. The low-carbohydrate diet procedure significantly decreased total work, resting values of pH, and blood lactate concentration. After the low-carbohydrate diet, testosterone and growth hormone concentrations increased, while the level of insulin decreased. After the Carbo-L, total work, resting values of pH, bicarbonate, and lactate increased significantly compared with the results obtained after the low-carbohydrate diet. Significant differences after the low-carbohydrate diet and Carbo-L procedures, in values of blood lactate concentration, pH, and bicarbonate, between baseline and post exercise values were also observed. Four weeks of the low-carbohydrate diet decreased total work capacity, which returned to baseline values after the carbohydrate loading procedure. Moreover, neither the low-carbohydrate feeding nor carbohydrate loading affected peak power.

Keywords: anaerobic power; athletes; dietary intervention; work capacity.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest. The Ministry of Science and Higher Education of Poland had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript, and in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Scheme of the experimental protocol.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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