19. THE PHYSIOLOGICAL DETERMINANT OF HIGH FAT OXIDATION RATES DURING EXERCISE
When competition’s duration exceeds ~2 hours, durability (or fatigue resistance) is the fourth additional physiological determinants of endurance performance (in addition to VO2max, threshold and movement economy). In a previous research note we saw that preserving muscle glycogen (carbs) levels during prolonged exercise positively impacts durability. As body fat reserves are a virtually unlimited energy resource, while muscle glycogen (carbs) are not, higher fat oxidation rates during exercise can help to spare muscle glycogen (carbs) and so improve durability.
So, what is the physiological mechanism behind higher fat oxidation rates during exercise?
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