Pt. 2 – Dr. Jeff Volek and Zach Bitter: Inside the FASTER Study and Low-Carb Fueling for Athletes
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Listen to Part 1
be sure to tune into part one of the series before you continue on to part 2.
What you get in Part 2 of the FASTER Study and Low-Carb Fueling Series:
Defining the FASTER study & the Results
“We’re charting new territories here in terms of what are the limits in how much fat humans can oxidize.” – Dr. Jeff Volek
Previously fat oxidation rates were seen at 1g per minute prior; seen in this study. But the FASTER study showed up to 1.8g per minutes of fat oxidation – first to be documented in a lab setting!
- How this applies to performance: no bonking, mentally sharper/higher clarity, less muscular fatigue, etc.
- FASTER = Fat-Adapted-Substrate Oxidation in-Trained-Elite-Runners
- Purpose: physiological differences between elite male ultra-marathon runners with one cohort following a conventional high carbohydrate diet and the other following a low carb/fat-adapted strategy
- Subjects – how were they recruited, how many runners were involved, their athletic ability (elite), how the diets were monitored (HCD vs LCD)
- Low carb (<20%) vs. High carb (>50%) diets being tested
- Research protocol – what were the variables, what did the runners do (duration & intensity of running upon their visit, etc), what was being measured, etc?
- The 3-hour treadmill run at 65% VO2max, and in Zach’s opinion, what was it like to participate and have to run on the treadmill for 3 hours at a set intensity.
- Brain and cognitive aspects of performance, and how fat-adaptive/keto prevents brain from running out of fuel; and tying in Noakes’ Central Governer theory.
- Subjectively, how did HCD look running vs. LCD
- How LCD vs HCD actually burn fuel and the ratios of glycogen vs fat over the course of 3hrs, and how each performed
- Fat oxidation rates – how much FAT can humans burn?? What current science said until now, and how this study sets new ground for what we now know is achievable.
- One subject actually recording a rate of 1.8 grams /minute of fatty acid oxidation at a set RQ.
- Crossover point.
More reading:
- Check out this great writeup on the FASTER Study with further details, charts, analysis and more.
- Zach’s Blog
- Dr. Jeff Volek’s other research and articles.
One Comment
Thank you.. This is some solid stuff. I love EP.. Amazeballs is the word of the day..