Carbohydrates before training have no effect on strength or muscle fiber activation

Carbohydrates are the primary source of energy for muscle training above 65 percent of maximal effort.

Timothy Fairchild and colleagues from Murdoch University in Australia found that consuming glucose (75 grams of glucose) prior to exercise did not improve power release during three sets of 3 repetitions at maximal effort on an isokinetic dynamometer compared to a placebo. Electromyography measurements (measurements of the electrical activity of muscles during contractions) also showed that glucose did not alter muscle fiber activation.

The results of this study were predictable, as adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and creatine phosphate are the primary energy sources for short bursts of intense activity.

(Journal Strength Conditioning Research, 30: 194 - 199, 2016)