title: Omega 3 Chia seed loading as a means of carbohydrate loading.
abstract: The purpose of this study was to determine if Omega 3 Chia seed loading is a viable option for enhancing sports performance in events lasting >90 minutes and allow athletes to decrease their dietary intake of sugar while increasing their intake of Omega 3 fatty acids. It has been well documented that a high dietary carbohydrate (CHO) intake for several days before competition is known to increase muscle glycogen stores resulting in performance improvements in events lasting >90 minutes. This study compared performance testing results between 2 different CHO-loading treatments. The traditional CHO-loading treatment served as the control (100% cals from Gatorade). The Omega 3 Chia drink (50% of calories from Greens Plus Omega 3 Chia seeds, 50% Gatorade) served as the Omega 3 Chia loading drink. Both CHO-loading treatments were based on the subject's body weight and were thus isocaloric. Six highly trained male subjects V(O2)max 47.8-84.2 ml · kg(-1); mean (SD) of V(O2)max 70.3 ml · kg(-1) (13.3) performed a 1-hour run at ∼65% of their V(O2)max on a treadmill, followed by a 10k time trial on a track. There were 2 trials in a crossover counterbalanced repeated-measures design with a 2-week washout between testing sessions to allow the participants to recover from the intense exercise and any effects of the treatment. There was no statistical difference (p = 0.83) between Omega 3 Chia loading (mean 10k time = 37 minutes 49 seconds) and CHO loading (mean = 37 minutes 43 seconds). Under our conditions, Omega 3 Chia loading appears a viable option for enhancing performance for endurance events lasting >90 minutes and allows athletes to decrease their dietary intake of sugar while increasing their intake of Omega 3 fatty acids but offered no performance advantages.
authors.affiliation: Human Performance Laboratory, Department of Kinesiology, The University of Alabama, Auburn, Alabama, USA. tillian@ia.ua.edu
authors.forename: Travis G
authors.initials: TG
authors.lastname: Illian
authors.forename: Jason C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Casey
authors.forename: Phillip A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Bishop
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D056352:Athletes; D054874:Athletic Performance; D001835:Body Weight; D050260:Carbohydrate Metabolism; D018592:Cross-Over Studies; D004040:Dietary Carbohydrates / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3 / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D006801:Humans; D007552:Isotonic Solutions / Q000008:administration & dosage; D008297:Male; D010101:Oxygen Consumption / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D012420:Running; D027544:Salvia; D012639:Seeds / Q000737:chemistry*; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D004040:Dietary Carbohydrates; D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3; D007552:Isotonic Solutions; C011259:gatorade