What is Carb Loading and How Do I do it?

Athletes train their body to be pushed to the absolute limit every time they step into a race. Whether it’s how they sleep, eat, or just go about day to day life, there is a method to everything. Technology has allowed us to know more information than ever about how to maximize an athletes energy potential to keep training and competing longer than the next to the point that many athletes have similar practices. One very common practice amongst endurance athletes in particular is carb loading, but what exactly is it and what does it even do?

Our body’s predominant energy source is carbohydrates (carbs). Especially during longer, more strenuous events, your body is burning calories, and the energy used to do this is coming mostly from the carbs you eat. These include, but are not limited to: bread, pasta, rice, oatmeal, and bagels. To capitalize on this, many endurance athletes use a nutrition technique called carb loading. What this is, is athletes will increase the percentage of carbs consumed in their diet per day the 2-3 days leading into race day to help increase their glycogen stores. Glycogen is a form of glucose and the main source of energy in muscles. Through this, athletes are able to maximize the amount of energy their body can use and run faster, swim longer, and have enough energy in the tank for the last sprint of a race to win. 

Knowing how to fuel the body is the most crucial step to any fitness goal. Carbs, fat, and protein all work together in harmony to fuel and strengthen your body and it is important to not completely cut out one of them or consume another in excess. Balance is key! Understanding how your body responds to things before race day can be the difference in hitting a new PR or cramping halfway into the race. It is important to note that any new changes that you are wanting to try should be tested during practice, multiple times and not on race day as you may not know how you will react. 

How can I carb load more effectively?

Carbohydrate loading has been used in endurance sports in the early 1960s when Scandanavian exercise physiologists found, through muscle biopsy, that pre-exercise muscle glycogen stores impacted submaximal exercise capacity. In other words, more muscle glycogen resulted in better endurance performance.

Think of glycogen stores as the gas in the car. Without gas, you’re not going to get very far and the more you can fill your tank, the further you can go. The foods you eat before a race are fueling those glycogen stores that your body will depend on during the race, on top of the foods you eat during. 

To properly carb load, research has shown that 3 days of heavy training on a low carb, higher protein diet, followed by 3 days of lower intensity training with high carb intake. This allows the glycogen stores to build up in the muscles and prolong athletes capacity by upwards of 20%.

When carb loading, a good rule of thumb is to have an extra portion of a starch such as rice, potatoes, or pasta. Some may also add in a carb drink mix for easy consumption during the day. This however, doesn’t mean gorging yourself and overeating. Aim to lower your intake of high fat foods and consume around 8-12g of carbs per kilogram.

Other things to keep in mind are that each person will respond differently to different methods. Give yourself ample time to try different methods of carb loading throughout your training cycle to find what works best for you and take notes to look back on.