Fructose-maltodextrin drink after exercise and next run capacity
What it found
In eight trained runners, a recovery drink with fructose and maltodextrin let them run longer in a second bout than one with glucose and maltodextrin.
The study was in people.
What they found
Studies in people
Second run time
In the second run, the fructose-maltodextrin trial lasted 81.4 minutes on average versus 61.4 minutes with glucose-maltodextrin. Seven of the eight participants ran longer with fructose-maltodextrin.
Carbohydrate burned
Total carbohydrate burned during the second run was greater with fructose-maltodextrin (223 g versus 157 g). The rate of burning the carbohydrate from the drink was also higher in the first 30 minutes of the second run.
Blood glucose and lactate
Plasma glucose and nonesterified fatty acid levels were not significantly different between trials. Plasma lactate was higher during recovery with fructose-maltodextrin.
Stomach comfort
Nausea and stomach fullness during the second run were marginally in favour of fructose-maltodextrin, but differences were small and not significant at any single time point.
What the authors conclude
- They conclude that short-term recovery of endurance capacity was significantly enhanced with fructose-maltodextrin compared with glucose-maltodextrin ingestion during recovery.
- They suggest that some of the effect may be explained by increased carbohydrate availability, although a contribution from improved gastrointestinal comfort cannot be dismissed.
- They say that if verified in future work, these results have implications for endurance athletes aiming to optimize performance in repeated bouts of prolonged exhaustive exercise with limited recovery duration.
How it was done
Athletes who need to perform again after a short recovery want to restore carbohydrate stores quickly. Earlier work suggested that taking fructose with glucose-based carbohydrates during recovery might help, but no study had checked whether this changes how long they can exercise afterwards.
Eight trained endurance runners and triathletes ran to exhaustion on a treadmill, then rested for four hours while drinking either a glucose-maltodextrin or fructose-maltodextrin beverage at 90 g of carbohydrate per hour. After recovery they ran to exhaustion again. Each person did both drinks in a randomised order.
What it can’t tell you
- This was a small study of eight trained endurance athletes, so the results may not apply to other people or to other types of exercise.
- The study cannot show exactly how the ingested carbohydrate was used, such as how much was stored in muscle or liver before being burned.
Who paid
- Authors work at
- University of Birmingham, UNITED KINGDOM
The paper
- Title
- Postexercise Fructose-Maltodextrin Ingestion Enhances Subsequent Endurance Capacity
- Type
- Randomised controlled trial
- Evidence
- Studies in people
- Summarised from
- Full text
- Cite
- Maunder E, Podlogar T, Wallis GA (2018). Postexercise Fructose-Maltodextrin Ingestion Enhances Subsequent Endurance Capacity. Medicine and science in sports and exercise. doi:10.1249/MSS.0000000000001516Free full textPubMed 29232314DOI
Summary written 26 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error