Australian Triathlete – July-August 2017

AustrAliAn triAthlete | 69

PERfoRmAncE

Training TOOLBOX

MILK

Once any training session has been

completed, athletes turn their attention to

re-establishing hydration, muscle

glycogen, and minimising muscle

soreness. The source of replenishment is

key to optimise recovery and will vary

according to the previous training load,

and with an athlete’s previous response to

a variety of products.

A plethora a research over the past 30

years or so, has demonstrated the

effectiveness of sports drinks under a

variety of circumstances, to deliver energy

and fluid during exercise. However, the

efficacy of sports drinks following exercise,

to promote recovery, remains questionable.

Therefore scientists, coaches and athletes

commonly experiment with a range of post

training beverages, including milk and

inflammatory blood markers and aerobic

capacity were evaluated before sesame

ingestion. After 28 days, the experimental

group had significantly reduced levels of

muscle damage (creatine kinase, lactate

dehydrogenase); inflammation

(C-reactive protein) and oxidative stress

(malondialdehyde). Furthermore,

antioxidants (superoxide dismutase,

vitamin A, vitamin E) and aerobic capacity

significantly increased in the experimental

sesame group.

Sesame derivatives are cheap and

readily available. There does not appear to

be any downside to consumption of

sesame, although care needs to be taken

on frequency, as protective interventions

can also interfere with important

adaptations to muscle damage and

inflammation when used in abundance.

risk that comes with a ketogenic diet,
supplementing with ketone esters and
salts before competition has recently
increased in popularity – especially among
cyclists and triathletes, as an alternative
source of energy (evans et al., 2016).
However, there is currently no conclusive
evidence that consuming ketone bodies
prior to or during exercise contributes to
an improvement in performance.
During recovery, however, recent
research by Holdsworth and colleagues
(2017) has demonstrated that
consumption of a ketone ester drink
following exercise, significantly increases
skeletal muscle glycogen resynthesis. In
this study, 12 well-trained males
completed a glycogen depleting exercise
protocol and were then subjected to
recovery re-feeding via three-way,
randomised crossover design; (1) control
drink then saline infusion; (2) control drink
then hyperglycemic clamp; (3) ketone
ester drink then hyperglycemic clamp.
After the ketone ester drink, co-existing
with high glucose solution, muscle
glycogen was 50% higher compared to
the control drink. Considering the typical
time course required to fully restore liver
and muscle glycogen (24-48hrs) via
standard refuelling and adequate rest,
these findings are encouraging. The
downside is the high cost of ketone esters,
and gastrointestinal discomfort
commonly experienced by those using
ketone salts. Ketone bodies are not lollies,
and come with risk – always seek
professional advice.

SeSAMe
Training for any distance of triathlon
comes varying degrees of muscle soreness
and risk of incomplete recovery and
fatigue disorders. If you know where to
look, you will find many natural food
extracts with nutrient rich healing
properties. Sesame cultivar (Sesamum
indicum L.), rich in antioxidants, vitamins
and minerals appears to provide
noteworthy bang for the buck, as a muscle
damage and oxidative stress mediator.
A recent study by da silva Barbosa et al.
(2017) investigated the antioxidant and
anti-inflammatory effects of sesame
consumption by semi-professional soccer
players. Twenty players consumed 40g
per day of placebo or sesame over 28 days
after routine/heavy loaded training.
Baseline measures of muscle and