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Gang of Five
May 2001

By Dr. John M Berardi, Ph.D.
First published at www.t-mag.com

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I'm just a simple man . . .

Q. I read a recommendation in Flex that the perfect post-workout shake would be made up of whey protein and dextrose. I've been using maltodextrin as the carb for years for mine, thinking simple sugars had no business in my supplements. What's your opinion on simple sugars after training?

A. Anyone who is familiar with my writings knows that the perfect post-workout shake is NOT made up of regular whey plus dextrose. Rather, the perfect post-workout shake would consist of a blend of whey hydrolysates, maltodextrin, dextrose, and various amino acids including glutamine, phenylalanine, and BCAA. To refresh your memory as to why, go and read (or re-read) my two-part Solving the Post-Workout Puzzle article.

Since your question revolves around the carbohydrate source in this mixture and this is something I didn't spend a lot of time on in my article, I will address this now. First of all, with respect to post-workout carbohydrates, your goal should be to rapidly re-hydrate the body as well as rapidly replenish glycogen stores. The best way to do this is by consuming a high glycemic index carbohydrate source. High glycemic carbs are very rapidly digested and absorbed into the blood.

Interestingly, as most people now know, the distinction between simple (single sugar units) and more complex carbs (longer chains of sugar units) doesn't tell us much about the glycemic index. In fact, the dextrose and maltodextrin comparison is a good example of this. Dextrose is a simple carb consisting of single glucose units in solution. It is very sweet tasting. Maltodexrin, on the other hand, is a complex carb consisting of between 3-20 glucose units joined together. It has very little taste. While there are some striking differences between these carb sources in terms of structure and metabolic processing once inside the body, their glycemic indices are both quite high.

To take advantage of their similarities as well as their differences, the ideal post-workout carbohydrate source should be a 50-50 combo of the two. You see, maltodextrin is less likely to cause GI distress due to the low osmolarity (the amount of free glucose units in a given amount of liquid). This property also means that it will be more quickly absorbed. The more free glucose molecules in solution, the slower the GI absorption times. So since malto has less free units per quantity of liquid, it is more rapidly absorbed. Finally malto seems to replenish glycogen stores better than other carbohydrates. So it's a must for the post workout drink. However, don't sell out dextrose just yet. Since free glucose units can actually facilitate fluid uptake and absorption in the GI due to an active coupled glucose-sodium transporter, dextrose is a good addition to the drink as well.

In the end, I hope it's clear that a combo of malto and dextrose is ideal for the post-workout drink and that in the post-workout situation, the difference between "simple" and a "complex" carbs is unimportant. Your main goal at this time is to get rapidly absorbed carbs and protein into the blood as fast as you can.

Hoop Dreams

Q. I am a 15-year-old who is trying my best to earn a scholarship for basketball. Are there any supplements that could send my height bursting through the roof? I was thinking of using a GH-releaser or maybe even getting some real GH.

A. I know how important athletics are to you since I've been a competitive athlete all my life. But I want you to realize that the risks of trying to boost your height with growth hormone FAR outweigh the unlikely benefits. For a review of GH itself, go back and read my "Fountain of GH" article. In it you will find that while GH use at your age might marginally increase your height (it is debatable though), it is more likely to increase the size of your organs, lead to the temporary destruction of your joints, and could lead to enlarged hands and jaw (a condition known as acromegaly). In addition, although GH may increase muscle mass, the new muscle seems to have poor strength ability relative to its size. So although you might be a bit taller, your muscles may not perform properly, your organs may fail early, and your joints may be a limiting factor in your performance. I may be wrong, but none of these side effects will lead to a career of basketball greatness. The several hundred dollars per week that you will have to spend on GH is probably something that might present a challenge as well.

As far as supplements, the "GH-boosters" have been sadly disappointing. The ones that have been studied have been shown to be completely ineffective. And the ones that are being promoted as super-effective have absolutely no data to support them. So GH releasers will probably just be a waste of money for you.

My advice at this point is to just keep training with weights, plyometrics, and cardiovascular conditioning. This will put you light years ahead of your peers. Trust me on this one. And you just might have a growth spurt coming on that will boost you up higher than you had expected.