In exercise, carbohydrate-rich diets are often recommended to promote recovery and maximise performance.

However, research suggests such foods may not help exercise recovery. There is also a potential link with carbohydrate-rich foods and metabolic diseases.

Since late 1960, the energy status of muscles is deemed to be important in exercise performance.

Since carbohydrate is the preferred energy source for muscle contraction during intense exercise, sports nutrition guidelines recommend eating carbohydrate-rich food to maximis...

• Recovery describes the processes inside the muscles that are stimulated by the stress of exercise sessions. These processes build up and result in increased endurance and muscle growth.
• Exercise performance describes the ability to perform exercise...

Researchers have recently observed that limiting carbohydrate intake close to endurance training sessions might promote early muscle recovery and possibly long-term improvements in endurance.

• Studies show high carbohydrate intakes can suppress the activation of several genes ...

Consuming protein when doing resistance exercise is known to benefit muscle growth. Dietary carbohydrate plays little to no role in recovery from resistance exercise.

While high carbohydrate intake have traditionally been recommended to support resistance...

Carbohydrates have a potential role in the development of metabolic diseases, including type 2 diabetes and obesity.

Carbohydrate-rich food is thought to overstimulate the hormone insulin by causing chronically high blood sugar levels. One of the roles of insulin is blocki...