Effects of Ketogenic Diet on Triathlon's Performance
Condition: Ketogenic Dieting; Physical Activity
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      The study aimed to verify the effects of 5 weeks of ketogenic diet (KD) on some performance
      index in long distance triathletes
    

Detailed description: 
      16 well trained male long distance Triathletes participates in the study (30.65 ± 10.77 years
      of age), with minimum one year of triathlon competition experience and 8-10 hours of training
      per week. All subjects had a personal interview made by a registered Medical Doctor about the
      diet intervention prior to the beginning of the study. Moreover participants were educated
      about the benefits and limitations of the two different dietary treatments and asked to
      nominate their preference for, or non-acceptance of, each of these interventions. Thus
      participants also decided liberally if participate for the diet intervention or not. This
      choice was decided to prevent any type of dropout in the KD group, considering that a free
      and conscious choices is better for the adherence on a strict diet like ketogenic diet .
      Investigators were thus able to allocate the athletes to their preferred treatment, while
      achieving suitable matching of groups based on age, body mass and aerobic power. All the
      participants were healthy and injured free, and not consuming a low carbs diet prior to the
      study. The diet macronutrient percentage distribution was the following: for ND the
      percentages were 25% of TDC (total daily calories), fat were 20% of TDC and carbohydrates
      represented the 55% of TDC; for KD the percentages were 68% fat, 26% protein and 6%
      carbohydrate. In the KD very low carbohydrate foods that simulate carbohydrates taste food
      like croissants, bread and cracked slices made by Le Gamberi Foods (Forlì, Italy), were used
      for a better compliance to the dietary intervention. Subjects undertaken an anthropometric
      test and two different cardiopulmonary tests with a professional cycloergometer (MARCA). The
      anthropometric measures were taken to evaluated body weight. height and body composition .
      After the body composition analysis subjects underwent to a maximal cardiopulmonary test
      (GXT) to evaluate the maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max). The following day subjects
      performed 60 minutes at 45% of PPO to assess endurance performance at ironman biking
      race-pace. The day after test session KD group started the KD 5 weeks. The Control Group (S)
      followed his habitual normo-caloric, balanced diet. The same order and procedures were
      conducted for testing the subjects post diet intervention. Anthropometric and performance
      test was conducted in the same order for each subjects and at the same time of the day. Blood
      ketones were measured each other day to ensure the compliance to KD
    

Intervention name(s): Ketogenic diet; Western Diet
Intervention type(s): Other; Other
Intervention description(s): total daily caloric intake was divided into 5 meals. Individual daily caloric need is calculated referring to body composition and adjusted for daily activity (Frankenfield, Roth-Yousey, & Compher, 2005; Wang et al., 2000). Macronutrients percentage is 68% fat, 26% protein and 6% carbohydrate Paoli et al. 2013). Very low carbohydrate foods that simulate carbohydrates taste food like croissants, bread and cracked slices made by Le Gamberi Foods (Forlì, Italy), are used for a better compliance to the dietary intervention; total daily caloric intake was divided into 5 meals. Individual daily caloric need is calculated referring to body composition and adjusted for daily activity (Frankenfield, Roth-Yousey, & Compher, 2005; Wang et al., 2000). The diet macronutrient percentage distribution is the following: protein is 25% of TDC (total daily calories), fat is 20% of TDC and carbohydrates represented the 55% of TDC
Allocation: Non-Randomized
Intervention model: Parallel Assignment
Intervention model description: It is single blind, parallel arms study
Masking: Single (Outcomes Assessor)
Primary purpose: Other
Keywords: ketogenic diet; triathlon; VO2max; PPO