Should you Eat Plant-Based Before Training?

July 16, 2024

In a recent randomize crossover study, researchers looked at what happened when subjects ate a plant-based meal compared with a meal that contained meat, prior to training, and how it affected their heart function and exercise capacity. Researched looked at VO₂max, arterial stiffness, endothelial function, blood pressure and heart rate, as well as assessed triglycerides, HDL-C, LDL-c and total cholesterol levels.

Study participants (11 young men) consumed a plant-based meal and a meat-containing meal on two separate occasions, separated by a week each time. Two hours after each meal, the participants completed a maximal aerobic exercise test. Immediately before and two hours after each meal, blood pressure, heart rate, arterial stiffness, and endothelial function were assessed.

Both meals had a similar calorie count and macronutrient composition, with 13-20% protein, 0-20% fat, and 50-65% carbohydrates. The plant-based meal had rice, veggies (corn, broccoli, and beets), potato, tofu and a soybean-based hamburger. The meal with meat was rice, roasted pork and a hamburger, and vegetables (broccoli only).

What were the results?

After eating the plant-based meal, participants showed improved endothelial function and VO₂max compared to after eating the meat-containing meal.

Compared to baseline, arterial stiffness also improved after the plant-based meal, but there was no significant when compared to the meat-containing meal.

It’s worth noting …

The plant-based meal did contain beetroot, which is well known dietary nitrate that has been shown to increase exercise performance and endothelial function in studies.

To view the original study, visit: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38394648/

Want to get a baseline for biomarkers like HDL-C, LDL-C and many others? Click here to get 10% off all InsideTracker testing using code NUTRITIONALREVOLUTION!