Ed Maunder

Auckland University of Technology | AUT · Sports Performance Research Institute New Zealand (SPRINZ)

Purpose: Restoring skeletal muscle and hepatic glycogen content during short-term (<6 h) recovery from prolonged exercise is pertinent for athletes seeking to maximize performance in repeated exercise bouts. Previous research suggests that coingestion of fructose-glucose carbohydrate sources augments hepatic and has equivalent effects on skeletal...

Profiling physiological attributes is an important role for applied exercise physiologists working with endurance athletes. These attributes are typically assessed in well-rested athletes. However, as has been demonstrated in the literature and supported by field data presented here, the attributes measured during routine physiological-profiling as...

Endurance athletes are frequently exposed to environmental heat stress during training. We investigated whether exposure to 33°C during training would improve endurance performance in temperate conditions and stimulate mitochondrial adaptations. Seventeen endurance-trained males were randomly assigned to perform a 3-week training intervention in 18...

Altering dietary carbohydrate (CHO) intake modulates fuel utilization during exercise. However, there has been no systematic evaluation of metabolic responses to graded changes in short-term (< 1 week) dietary CHO intake. Thirteen active men performed interval running exercise combined with isocaloric diets over 3 days before evaluation of metaboli...

Purpose Whole-body fat oxidation during exercise can be measured non-invasively during athlete profiling. Gaps in understanding exist in the relationships between fat oxidation during incremental fasted exercise and skeletal muscle parameters, endurance performance, and fat oxidation during prolonged fed-state exercise. Methods Seventeen endurance...

New findings: What is the central question of this study? Does a ketogenic diet (KD) modulate circulating counts of natural killer (NK) cells, including CD56bright and CD56dim subsets, and their ability to activate (CD69 expression) following in vitro antigen stimulation in response to exhaustive moderate-intensity exercise? What is the main findi...

Purpose: To determine whether i) a plasma acidosis contributes to a reduction of mechanical performance and ii) bicarbonate supplementation blunts plasma acidosis and arterial oxygen desaturation to resist fatigue during the end-spurt of a supramaximal trial in elite sprint and endurance cyclists. Methods: Elite/world-class cyclists (n = 6 sprin...

Purpose To determine the effect of prolonged exercise on moderate-to-heavy intensity transition power output and heart rate. Methods Fourteen endurance-trained cyclists and triathletes took part in the present investigation (13 males, 1 female, V·O2peak 59.9 ± 6.8 mL.kg−1.min⁻¹). Following a characterisation trial, participants undertook a five-st...

Purpose: The three-minute all-out test (3MT), when performed on a laboratory ergometer in a linear mode, can be used to estimate the heavy-severe-intensity transition, or maximum metabolic steady state (MMSS), using the end-test power output. As the 3MT only requires accurate measurement of power output and time, it is possible the 3MT could be us...

Aim This study characterised the decoupling of internal-to-external workload in marathon running and investigated whether decoupling magnitude and onset could improve predictions of marathon performance. Methods The decoupling of internal-to-external workload was calculated in 82,303 marathon runners (13,125 female). Internal workload was determin...

Purpose: To present a case report of an elite ultra-endurance cyclist, who was the winner and course record holder of 2 distinct races within a 4-month span: a 24-hour solo cycling race and a 2-man team multiday race (Race Across America). Methods: The athlete's raw data (cycling power, heart rate [HR], speed, and distance) were obtained and ana...

Watkins, CM, Gill, ND, Maunder, E, Downes, P, Young, JD, McGuigan, MR, and Storey, AG. The effect of low-volume preseason plyometric training on force-velocity profiles in semiprofessional rugby union players. J Strength Cond Res XX(X): 000-000, 2020-Rugby union is a physically demanding and complex team sport requiring athletes across all position...

Vertical jump is a valuable training, testing, and readiness monitoring tool used across a multitude of sport settings. However, accurate field analysis has not always been readily available or affordable. For this study, two-dimensional motion capture (Mo-Cap), G-Flight micro-sensor, and PUSH accelerometer technologies were compared to a research-...

Ketone bodies (KB) provide an alternative energy source and uniquely modulate substrate metabolism during endurance exercise. Nutritional ketosis (blood KBs > 0.5 mM) can be achieved within minutes via exogenous ketone supplementation or days-to-weeks via conforming to a very low-carbohydrate, ketogenic diet (KD). In contrast to short-term (< 2 wee...

Many endurance athletes perform specific blocks of training in hot environments in “heat stress training camps.” It is not known if physiological threshold heart rates measured in temperate conditions are reflective of those under moderate environmental heat stress. A total of 16 endurance-trained cyclists and triathletes performed incremental exer...

Purpose: Considerable interindividual heterogeneity has been observed in endurance performance responses following induction of a ketogenic diet (KD). It is plausible that a physiological stress response in the period following the dramatic dietary shift associated with transition to a KD may explain this heterogeneity. Methods: In a randomized,...

Hyperthermia stimulates endogenous carbohydrate metabolism during exercise; however, it is not known if exercise intensity impacts the metabolic effect of heat stress. In the first study of this two-part investigation, endurance-trained male cyclists performed incremental exercise assessments in 18 and 35°C (60 % rH). The stimulatory effect of heat...

A common practice amongst endurance athletes is to purposefully train in hot environments during a ‘heat stress camp’. However, combined exercise-heat stress poses threats to athlete wellbeing, and therefore heat stress training has the potential to induce maladaptation. This case study describes the monitoring strategies used in a successful three...

Purpose: We investigated the effect of a 31-d ketogenic diet (KD) on submaximal exercise capacity and efficiency. Methods: A repeated-measures, crossover study with preintervention and postintervention outcomes was conducted in eight trained male endurance athletes (maximal oxygen uptake (V[Combining Dot Above]O2max), 59.4 ± 5.2 mL⋅kg⋅min). Part...

Ironman triathlons are ultra-endurance events of extreme duration. The performance level of those competing varies dramatically, with elite competitors finishing in ~ 8:00:00, and lower performing amateurs finishing in ~ 14-15:00:00. When applying appropriate values for swimming, cycling and running economies to these performance times, it is demon...

Using a short-duration step protocol and continuous indirect calorimetry, whole-body rates of fat and carbohydrate oxidation can be estimated across a range of exercise workloads, along with the individual maximal rate of fat oxidation (MFO) and the exercise intensity at which MFO occurs (Fatmax). These variables appear to have implications both in...

Background Low-carbohydrate, high-fat and ketogenic diets are increasingly adopted by athletes for body composition and sports performance enhancements. However, as yet, there is no consensus on their efficacy in improving performance. There is also no comprehensive literature on athletes’ experiences while undertaking this diet. The purpose of thi...

The manifestations of fatigue during fast bowling in cricket were systematically evaluated using subjective/perceptual reports by cricket experts and quantitative data published from scientific studies. Narratives by international players/team physiotherapists were sourced from the internet using criteria for opinion-based evidence. Research articl...

Purpose: To compare the physiological and performance effects of ad libitum cold fluid (CF) and ice slurry (IS) ingestion on cycling time-trial (TT) performance in the heat. Methods: Seven well-trained male triathletes and cyclists completed two maximal-effort 40-km cycling TT's in hot (35°C) and humid (60% rH) conditions. In randomised order, p...