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Evidence supports that the ingestion of carbohydrate solutions after exercise can facilitate recovery both through providing the fluid necessary for rehydration and stimulating carbohydrate storage. Indeed, many components of the optimal carbohydrate feeding strategy after exercise have now been established and further progress has been sought through investigating the potential influence of other macronutrients. Specifically, combined ingestion of carbohydrate with protein may promote a more rapid resynthesis of endogenous glycogen stores than when either nutrient is ingested individually. It is therefore possible that mixtures of carbohydrate and protein may restore the capacity for physical exercise more completely when recovery time is limited than when a matched quantity of carbohydrate alone is ingested. This thesis summarises current evidence on this topic before describing a series of experiments designed to directly examine the role of carbohydrate-protein supplements during recovery from prolonged exercise.

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Dr Betts was awarded a PhD in Human Muscle Metabolism from Loughborough University before joining the University of Bath as a lecturer in Human Physiology, Nutrition and Metabolism. His research is centred around the interactions between dietary nutrients and physical exercise in relation to human metabolism (portrait by Tim Holsgrove).

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