Effects of nutritional intake on performance in master athletes during an extreme ultra-trail

Abstract

The purpose of our study was to monitor a well-trained master athlete who competed in the race, keeping under review his performance outcomes. TransPyrenea (La Grande Traversée des Pyrénées) is an Ultra Trail 13-16-d race, 866 km long, 53200 meters of elevation gain, performed for the first time in 2016, becoming the longest race in the world. At every checkpoint, a member of the team ascertained total macronutrients intake and body composition. A wearable device was used to monitor glycemia during all the race. The athlete completed the race with an average speed of 2.6 Km/h, including 26 hours and 30 minutes of sleeping. Multiple regression analysis showed that the increase of the speed (β: 0.5 km/h, 95% CI: 0.07 | 1.02 km/h, p-value: 0.035 and β: 1.32 km/h, 95% CI: 0.53 | 2.11 km/h, p-value: 0.004) was related to the increase of one hour of sleep and one kg of weight respectively. This evidence could induce the use of specific nutritional supplements and the analysis of body composition on the management strategies of the race, with eventually the planning of a greater number of hours of sleep to acquire greater speed.

The importance of aerobic capacity and nutrition in recreational master mountain runners’ performance and race-induced changes in body composition and biochemical blood indices

“…Inadequate protein intake has been associated with impaired performance, training-induced maladaptation, impaired protein metabolism, extensive muscle damage, muscle loss, and neuromuscular fatigue. 5,26,27,30,33–35,40–44 To our knowledge, this is the first study to report insufficient protein intake among master mountain runners, either during the preparation period or during a race. Considering these results, especially the correlations between protein intake and race performance, race-induced changes in LBM, and changes in muscle damage/metabolism blood markers, but also age-related alterations of muscle structure and function, 2–9,45 endurance runners’ need for higher protein intake, 40 and an age-related need to increase protein intake to maintain normal muscle function, 46,47 it is perhaps time to reconsider the importance of proper protein intake to endurance and ultra-endurance athletes, particularly in master athletes.…”

“…Significant changes in body composition parameters and metabolic/muscle damage-related blood markers have been repeatedly reported after endurance and ultra-endurance races. 3,[13][14][15][16]18,21,26,33,[40][41][42][48][49][50][51][52][53][54] These changes are closely related to race distance 50 and race pace reduction, at least in marathon and ultra-marathon young runners. 48,55 The results of this study indicate, for the first time, that in a given trail length, the time needed to complete a mountain trail race, which is determined also by the race pace, is closely associated with race-induced changes in body composition and metabolic/muscle damage-related blood markers in recreational master mountain runners.…”

Heart rate analysis during very deep dives in flooded caves: single case study

“…The measurements were made possible thanks to the collaboration of an expert diver, the deep diver Luigi Casati, who can boast years of experience and thousands of performed dives. This study is part of the activity that the authors are carrying out on human physiology in extreme environments or in extreme performances [13].…”