#4 Exercise Performance
We know that medium chain triglycerides increase energy expenditure. Can this extra energy be put to use in our workouts?
Well, its not quite going to ‘enhance’ strength capacity the same way as creatine or caffeine can. But they will likely allow you to exercise for longer.
MCTs may influence exercise by:
- Immediately increase available energy pool.
- Synergistically improve metabolic machinery over time.
Here’s how that works:
A. Increasing the body’s energy pool.
As you have already learned, MCTs digest independently of carbohydrates. This means that during exercise, your muscles have a second energy source to tap.
Clinically, usage of MCT oils before exercise have been found to:
- lower cardiac workload.
- Suppress lactic acid accumulation.
This indicates that medium chain triglycerides are being strategically used by the body for fuel at times when the over-metabolism of glucose would lead to physiological imbalances. Very cool, but it gets better.
B. Improving metabolic efficiency and capacity.
You have also already learned in the weight loss section that medium chain triglycerides can improve the health of your mitochondria.
It would appear that MCTs can revitalize mitochondria even more-so during exercise as well as signal for new mitochondria to be made. The result of this of course, is more energy burning capacity. Though, it can only go so far.
The performance enhancing effects of MCT oils do have a metabolic limit. This was observed in cyclists already at the peak elite level, where MCT oil did not lead to greater performance. This is likely because through training their bodies already display greater metabolic flexibly and energy storage.
Exercise performance summary
Medium chain triglycerides can improve the duration of your workouts and make your workouts more metabolically stimulating. This is due to MCTs acting as a secondary fuel source to glucose, as well as increasing total metabolic capacity of mitochondria. As you progress, this edge may even out as endurance improvements plateau in elite athletes.
