text: Eating fast food after a workout may be just as beneficial as dietary supplements, a study has claimed. Researchers found that during recovery periods between periods of exercise, it didn’t matter what food was eaten. Performance remained the same after resting for several hours, while levels of glycogen - used by muscles as ‘fuel’ - were actually slightly higher after fast food was eaten as a recovery food. Research led by the University of Montana has found that eating fast food (stock image shown) after a workout may be just as beneficial as dietary supplements. Researchers found that during recovery periods between periods of exercise, it didn’t matter what food was eaten . The research, published in the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, was led by University of Montana graduate student Michael Cramer. In the study, 11 male athletes were asked to fast for 12 hours, before a 90-minute endurance workout. After this, half were fed hot cakes, hash browns and orange juice, followed by a burger, fries and a Coke two hours later. If you fancy a burger, then sprint to the fast-food joint to get it. Short bursts of intensive exercise before a high-fat meal can help protect blood vessels from the effects of a poor diet, researchers have found. Just eight minutes of high-intensity cycling was found to be more beneficial than going at a moderate pace for 25 minutes - the current recommended level. Scientists at the University of Exeter say the short burst approach may be more appealing to youngsters - few of whom achieve even the minimum of an hour of moderate exercise a day. The other group were given Gatorade, organic peanut butter and Cliff Shot Bloks, followed two hours later by Cytomax powder and PowerBar products. Two hours after the second meal, all participants were then ask to ride 12 miles (20km) on a stationary bike a fast as they good. Each meal eaten by the participants was roughly equal in calories, carbohydrates and protein - although the fast food had more sodium and slightly more fat. At various intervals, the researchers took muscule tissue samples and did blood tests, to check glycogen levels. After a week, the participants returned and performed the task again, this time switching their diet to the one they didn’t do last time. The results showed that, when performing the second exercise task, the times were about the same no matter which meal group the participants were in. In the study, 11 male athletes were asked to fast for 12 hours, before a 90-minute endurance workout. They were then given meals of either fast food or supplements. Two hours after the second meal, all participants were then ask to ride 12 miles on a stationary bike - and performance for all was the same . Also, levels of glycogen across the two groups were almost the same - with the fast food group being slightly higher. No differences in insulin, glucose or cholesterol were found, while neither group reported any serious stomach discomfort. ‘These data indicate that short-term food options to initiate glycogen resynthesis can include dietary options not typically marketed as sports nutrition products such as fast food menu items,’ the researchers wrote. However, the researchers said that the experiment included a fairly small sample, and the long-term effects on workout recovery of eating fast food over other, healthier sources of food are not known.
target: University of Montana student studied recoveries after a workout .
  Gave participants either fast food or supplement meals during recovery .
  Found there was no difference in performance between the two groups .
  And levels of glycogen in fast food group were actually slightly higher .