Exercises to Break Down Carbs

All types of exercise lead to the breakdown of carbohydrates in the body. This process is known as glycogen depletion: Your body stores carbohydrate in your muscles as glycogen, and heavy exercise stimulates a chemical and hormonal reaction that triggers its release. The glycogen is then broken down to be used as energy to fuel your training. For glycogen depletion to happen, it's key that your training be intense, and that you eat your carbs at the right time.

  1. Break Carbs Down With Strength

    • Weight training is highly effective for breaking down stored glycogen. Your muscles are under a lot of strain, and your available energy tends to be used up very quickly. A review at the University of New Mexico found that most weight sessions will produce glycogen depletion of about 30 percent of total stored energy -- quite a substantial decrease for most people. Some of the best weight exercises you can do to trigger glycogen depletion are squats, deadlifts, leg presses, leg extensions, bench presses, shoulder presses, lat pulldowns, lateral raises and hyperextensions.

    Never Underestimate Intervals

    • High Intensity Interval Training is very effective for depleting glycogen. Working from the principle that you perform a short bout of very intense activity followed by a brief period of rest, HIIT is anaerobic, meaning it draws on your stored energy (glycogen or fat) to fuel the activity. HIIT can be done a variety of ways. Common methods include 100 metre sprints performed at 100 percent of your capacity followed by a minute or so of rest, performed 10 to 15 times; 20 seconds of jumping rope followed by 10 seconds of rest, performed eight times; or swimming the length of a pool as quickly as possible, followed by 30 to 60 seconds of rest, performed 10 to 15 times.

    MISS Your Carbs

    • Medium Intensity Steady State also contributes to the breakdown of stored carbohydrate. Prime examples of MISS include running, swimming, cycling or playing sports. To be classified as MISS, the activity should be performed for at least 30 minutes at 50 to 75 percent of your work capacity. It's important to note that MISS drives glycogen depletion differently than weight training or HIIT. Because it's of much longer duration than those activities, you will experience a more sustained glycogen breakdown. Allowing your carbohydrate stores to become too depleted can result in poor performance, exhaustion and injury. This is particularly relevant when the activity is of long duration, such as a marathon or long-distance cycle.

    Carb Load for a Boost

    • Glycogen depletion can be highly effective for reducing body fat over the course of a few months of training, but it can also lead to performance problems. It's important, therefore, to make sure you are eating your carbohydrates at the right time and in the right quantities. The Australian Institute of Sport suggests that anyone on a moderate- to high-intensity routine should eat 5 to 10 grams of carbohydrate per kilogram of body weight each day. If you are doing endurance events or long training sessions (over 90 minutes of high-intensity work), however, include carbohydrates in the meal before your event to boost your glycogen levels. This method is known as carb loading and will improve your performance without causing glycogen storage.