Day 68...Workout of the Day...and CARBS!

Hey everyone, today's workout took place on the mountain bike...on the mountain.  Now most people don't actually ride their mountain bikes on a mountain...well, at least not big ones.  A great majority of mountain bike riding actually takes place on trails that are, for the most part, relatively flat.  Many of my training days are spent on relatively flat terrain, with a few little steep climbs mixed in.  Today however, was not one of those days.

Today was a climbing day.  I rarely look forward to climbing days, and today was no exception.  If I never climb another steep climb on my bike, I will be content for the rest of my days.  But this is the real world folks...mountain bike racing requires riders to actually climb hills...steep ones.  This being said, a good portion of training must be spent climbing steep, technical terrain...the type of terrain that makes your legs feel like they are going to explode, either right before, or right after your lungs!  Today was that day!

In terms of mileage, today's ride was pretty short...just over seven-miles.  Roughly six of those miles however, were spent climbing...steeep climbing.  And yes, I know I put three e's in steeep...it was for emphasis :)

So all in all, I turned about seven-miles, achieved a max HR of 191, and burned off about 600 kcal...all in roughly 53-minutes.  

So now let's turn our focus toward nutrition.  Those of you who have been reading for a while now, should be able to answer this question.  "What do you think the primary source of energy was for my ride today...carbohydrate, protein, or fat?"

And everyone says...carbohydrate.  Very good!  Remember, stored muscle glycogen is the primary energy source for activities such as mountain biking.  Unless of course, you are merely gliding along, or barely pedaling...then the primary source is fat, but in very small amounts (kcal).

So what the heck are carbohydrates anyway?  Unfortunately, many people believe carbs are the Devil!  We can all thank Dr. Atkins for that...RIP.  

SCIENCE ALERT...SCIENCE ALERT!!!

Carbohydrates are a class of organic molecules, which contain a carbon (C) backbone, of which atoms of hydrogen (H) and oxygen (O) are attached.  From here on I will use the standard abbreviation of CHO for carbohydrates.  There are two classifications of CHO...simple and complex.  For those of you who took chemistry at some point in your life, you will remember that  various chemical structures are often made up of chains of molecules.  CHO are no different.  Simple CHO, or simple sugars are comprised of only one or two sugar molecules linked together.  Complex CHO however, are made of longer and more complex chains of sugar molecules.

A complex carbohydrate chain

I think it is probably safe to assume that nearly all of us have heard the terms simple and complex carbohydrates...yes?  Assuming that is true, let's dive a little deeper into these two types of sugars.  Simple sugars are broken into two groups; monosaccharides and disaccharides.  A single molecule of sugar is referred to as a monosaccharide, while disaccharides are made up of...yep, you got it...two sugar molecules.  And you thought chemistry was hard!  There are a number of monosaccharides that exist, but the three simple sugars that  serve as nutrients for the human body are glucose, fructose, and galactose.  

Glucose molecules..simple sugars

Glucose is the most abundant simple sugar found in nature, and as we learn more about CHO, we will learn that glucose is used as a reference point by which all other CHO are classified, or indexed.  Within the human body, glucose supplies energy to our cells, and is considered the primary fuel for the brain.  As a paramedic, I run countless calls on diabetic patients who have difficulty maintaining a proper blood glucose level.  If blood glucose levels drop too far, the brain becomes starved of its fuel, and fails to operate properly.  This process is often cascading, meaning that as levels begin to drop, a persons brain function will slowly decrease until it can no longer process information properly.  At this time, unconsciousness occurs, which can ultimately lead to death.  So you see, sugar is actually necessary in our bodies...even simple sugars!  Remember though...simple sugars are not just table sugar!

Galactose is rarely found alone in nature, or in foods.  It commonly bonds with glucose to form the disaccharide lactose...or milk sugar.

Fructose occurs naturally in fruits and a variety of vegetables, and provides the sweet taste within these foods.  A common sweetener used in many fat free foods these days is high-fructose corn syrup...which we will discuss another time.  

We will end by looking briefly at the disaccharides; Sucrose, Lactose, and Maltose.  Sucrose is table sugar, and is made up of one glucose and one fructose molecule.  We have all heard the term refined sugar, right?  Sucrose is a refined sugar.  It is manufactured by extracting natural sugars from sugar beets and sugar cane, to produce granulated sugar.  Has anyone ever driven through Spreckles, California?  I know there are at least a couple of you who have.  I am not sure if they are still processing sugar there or not, but when they did...man it stunk bad!  To the best of my knowledge, they processed sugar beets in Spreckles...but it sure didn't smell sweet!

We have already mentioned the disaccharide lactose, made up of glucose and galactoselactase.  Many over-the-counter digestive enzyme products contain lactase, or you can by it individually.

Last but not least...maltose.  This disaccharide is comprised of two glucose molecules, and seldom occurs naturally in foods.  Maltose is often formed when long chains of starches are broken down by digestive enzymes within the body.  Maltose is said to have a bland taste, although it is still considered a sugar.

Well now, there you have it.  You possibly know a little more about CHO than you did ten minutes ago.  If not...stay tuned.  Tomorrow (hopefully), we'll act like enzymes, and break down those complex carbohydrates!