If you consume mashed potatoes directly during a long workout, it will help maintain stable blood sugar levels, improving athletic performance, writes Scitech Daily. According to experts at the University of Illinois, mashed potatoes can be compared in effect to the concentrated carbohydrate gel, which is shown to athletes for use during prolonged exercise.
Moreover, mashed potatoes are characterized by low cost, nutritional value and affordability. In addition, often carbohydrate gels have a sweet taste, which some do not like. An experiment was conducted with the participation of 12 volunteers who had extensive training experience (they covered 267 kilometers on a bicycle per week).
Cyclists were required to reach a certain threshold of aerobic performance and complete a 120-minute stationary bike test and then test it. The participants in the experiment were randomly assigned to three groups. The first during the experiment consumed one water, the second - a carbohydrate gel, the third - an equivalent amount of carbohydrates obtained from potatoes.
Throughout the experiment, athletes measured the level of glucose in the blood, body temperature, exercise intensity, assessed the state of the gastrointestinal system. Researchers also measured concentrations of lactate, a metabolic marker of intense exercise.
As a result, experts did not find differences between the indicators of the second and third groups. Both groups showed significant performance improvements that the first group did not achieve. In the second and third groups, the plasma glucose concentration increased approximately the same. A similar situation was observed with heart rate and actual speed during the races. However, from the point of view of discomfort from the gastrointestinal tract, potatoes often created problems.
Source: http://www.meddaily.ru/