ArticleJournal of human kinetics2017
Low-Carbohydrate-High-Fat Diet: Can it Help Exercise Performance?
Article in Journal of human kinetics, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 28 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
28 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 68 citations in OpenAlex.
- Coronary Artery Disease in Masters Athletes: A Systematic Review.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2026Pooled it
- Dietary Intake of Masters Athletes: A Systematic Review.Nutrients · 2023Pooled it
- The Effects of Concurrent Training Combined with Low-Carbohydrate High-Fat Ketogenic Diet on Body Composition and Aerobic Performance: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Pooled it
- A review of the ketogenic diet for endurance athletes: performance enhancer or placebo effect?Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition · 2020Pooled it
- Carbohydrate mouth-rinsing does not rescue simulated time trial performance in trained endurance cyclists following a 5-day ketogenic diet.Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition · 2025Trial
- Exploring the non-targeted metabolomic landscape in endurance-trained runners following 10 weeks of different dietary patterns and concomitant training.Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition · 2025Trial
- Effects of a low-carbohydrate ketogenic diet on health parameters in resistance-trained women.European journal of applied physiology · 2021Trial
- A 3-day dietary manipulation affects muscle glycogen and results in modifications of carbohydrate and fat metabolism during exercise when hyperglycaemic.European journal of applied physiology · 2020Trial
- Non-Energy-Restricted Low-Carbohydrate Diet Combined with Exercise Intervention Improved Cardiometabolic Health in Overweight Chinese Females.Nutrients · 2019Trial
- Efficacy of ketogenic diet on body composition during resistance training in trained men: a randomized controlled trial.Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition · 2018Trial
- Assessment of Micro- and Macronutrient Intake in Male Competitive Athletes Using the Epic-Norfolk Food Frequency Questionnaire.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Periodized carbohydrate intake influences metabolic flexibility and indices of running economy during endurance training in recreationally active males.Frontiers in nutrition · 2025Article
- The Liver Circadian Metabolic Homeostasis Influence by Combining Ketogenic Diet with Exercise.Nutrients · 2024Article
- Longer-Term Effects of the Glycaemic Index on Substrate Metabolism and Performance in Endurance Athletes.Nutrients · 2023Review
- Analysis of the Nutritional Value of the Diets Presented in Women's and Sports Magazines before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Article
- Physical Activity, Dietary Patterns, and Glycemic Management in Active Individuals with Type 1 Diabetes: An Online Survey.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Article
- Efficacy of Popular Diets Applied by Endurance Athletes on Sports Performance: Beneficial or Detrimental? A Narrative Review.Nutrients · 2021Review
- Effects of a Ketogenic Diet Containing Medium-Chain Triglycerides and Endurance Training on Metabolic Enzyme Adaptations in Rat Skeletal Muscle.Nutrients · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Low-carbohydrate-high-fat (LCHF) diets have been used as a means of weight loss and control of symptoms in several clinical conditions. There is emerging evidence that the metabolic changes induced by LCHF diets enhance endurance performance. The aims of this review are to examine the evidence of LCHF diets in improving various aspects of athletic performance. Long-term LCHF dietary intake may help control body weight and fat mass while maintaining lean body mass in athletes in weight-sensitive sports. LCHF-adapted endurance athletes can reach the maximal fat oxidation rate of approximately 1.5 g/min, with a lower carbohydrate oxidation rate and similar muscle glycogen content and a resynthesis rate compared to their counterparts consuming high-carbohydrate-low-fat (HCLF) diets. The elevated fat oxidation rate and glycogen sparing effect may improve performance in ultra-endurance events. These metabolic changes may also prevent the decline in performance in later stages of repeated high-intensity movements, in which the aerobic metabolism becomes more important. However, elevated blood concentrations of non-esterified fatty acids and ammonia during exercise after LCHF diets may lead to early development of central fatigue. It appears that at least several months of adaptation to a LCHF diet are required for the metabolic changes and restoration of muscle glycogen to occur. Further investigations on LCHF diets are needed regarding (1) performance after weight loss in weight-categorized sports; (2) repeated high-intensity exercise performance; (3) development of central fatigue during endurance events; (4) perceptual-motor performance during prolonged intermittent sports; and (5) ideal dietary fatty acid compositions.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.