Jeff S Volek

• Professor at The Ohio State University

Ballistic virtual reality (VR) can measure shooting performance reliably in trained and untrained subjects. The purpose of this investigation was to determine whether baseline traits such as age, habitual physical activity, and prior experience are correlated with VR decision-making and reaction time performance. Thirty participants completed a ser...

As the prevalence of chronic diseases persists at epidemic proportions, health practitioners face ongoing challenges in providing effective lifestyle treatments for their patients. Even for those patients on GLP-1 agonists, nutrition counseling remains a crucial strategy for managing these conditions over the long term. This paper aims to address t...

Low-carbohydrate, high-fat diets enhance lipid metabolism and decrease reliance on glucose oxidation in athletes, but the associated gene expression patterns remain unclear. The purpose of this study was to determine whether coordinated molecular pathways in skeletal muscle may be revealed by differential expression of genes driven by dietary profi...

Weight loss (WL) has an important role in managing obesity and type 2 diabetes, but preserving lean body mass (LBM) during WL is essential for maintaining muscle function and metabolic health. Significant WL with incretin mimetic‐based therapies, similar to bariatric surgery, raises concerns regarding disproportionate LBM loss, which may lead to ph...

Kraemer, WJ, Caldwell, LK, Post, EM, Volek, JS, Hagen, JM, Newton, RU, Häkkinen, K, Omonije, O, and Maresh, CM. Endogenous opioid peptides after floatation therapy in resistance trained men. J Strength Cond Res 38(10): 1808–1812, 2024. Floatation-restricted environmental stimulation therapy (Float-REST) has shown improvements in muscle soreness and...

Abstract Comstock, BA, Flanagan, SD, Denegar, CR, Newton, RU, Häkkinen, K, Volek, JS, Maresh, CM, Kraemer, WJ. Structural and functional properties of lower extremity tendons in men. J Strength Cond Res XX(X): 000–000, 2024—The purpose of this study was to understand further patellar and Achilles tendon structure and function, body composition, and...

Weight loss can positively alter female physiology; however, whether dietary carbohydrate- or fat- restriction confer unique effects is less studied. Precisely designed, hypocaloric well-formulated ketogenic diets (KD; ~75% energy for weight maintenance) were compared to isocaloric/isonitrogenous low-fat diet (LFD) on self-reported menses in pre-me...

The purpose of this review is to delineate aspects of energy metabolism at rest and during exercise that may be subject to sex differences and the potential underlying mechanisms involved. It focuses on distinct aspects of female physiology with an oriented discussion following the reproductive life stages of healthy, eumenorrheic females, includin...

Buga, A, Decker, DD, Robinson, BT, Crabtree, CD, Stoner, JT, Arce, LF, El-Shazly, X, Kackley, ML, Sapper, TN, Anders, JPV, Kraemer, WJ, and Volek, JS. The VirTra V-100 is a test-retest reliable shooting simulator for measuring accuracy/precision, decision-making, and reaction time in civilians, police/SWAT, and military personnel. J Strength Cond R...

Purpose of Review Considering the high prevalence of obesity and related metabolic impairments in the population, the unique role nutrition has in weight loss, reversing metabolic disorders, and maintaining health cannot be overstated. Normal weight and well-being are compatible with varying dietary patterns, but for the last half century there has...

Ketogenic diets have been widely used for weight loss and are increasingly used in the management of type 2 diabetes. Despite evidence that ketones have multiple positive effects on kidney function, common misconceptions about ketogenic diets, such as high protein content and acid load, have prevented their widespread use in individuals with impair...

There is a substantial body of clinical evidence supporting the beneficial effects of lower-carbohydrate dietary patterns on multiple established risk factors associated with insulin resistance and cardiovascular diseases in adult populations. Nutrition and health researchers, clinical practitioners, and stakeholders gathered for, “The Scientific F...

Demonstrates the major benefits of dietary carbohydrate restriction by reversing metabolic syndrome without weight loss in a 3-way randomized crossover study

Background: People with prediabetes are more likely to suffer from poor sleep, and sleep characteristics are correlated with metabolic markers such as glycemia and weight. We previously reported 1-yr improvements in sleep and metabolic health among people with prediabetes participating in a very low carb intervention including nutritional ketosis d...

Nutrition security - access to food that promotes well-being and prevents or treats disease, particularly among racial and ethnic minority populations, lower income populations, and rural and remote populations - is a national priority. Leading causes of death and disability in America, such as heart disease, stroke, cancer, and diabetes that dispr...

In exercise science, the crossover effect denotes that fat oxidation is the primary fuel at rest and during low-intensity exercise with a shift towards an increased reliance on carbohydrate oxidation at moderate to high exercise intensities. This model makes four predictions: First, >50% of energy comes from carbohydrate oxidation at ≥60% of maximu...

Rucksack marches (‘rucks’) are strenuous, military‐relevant exercises that may benefit from pre‐event fuelling. The purpose of this investigation was to explore whether acute ingestion of carbohydrate‐ or lipid‐based nutritional bars before rucking can elicit unique advantages that augment exercise performance. Recreationally active and healthy mal...

High carbohydrate, low fat (HCLF) diets have been the predominant nutrition strategy for athletic performance, but recent evidence following multi-week habituation has challenged the superiority of HCLF over low carbohydrate, high fat (LCHF) diets, along with growing interest in the potential health and disease implications of dietary choice. Highl...

Background: Single doses of exogenous ketone salts (KS) transiently increase circulating beta-hydroxybutyrate (BHB) (∼1 mM; 1-2 h) regardless of starting levels of ketosis; however, no studies have explored how sustained use of KS influences measures of ketonemia and glycemia. Objectives: To determine the response to a hypocaloric, well-formulated...

Context: Ketogenic diets (KDs) and low-fat diets (LFD) result in similar weight loss, but differential cardiometabolic effects on lipids and insulin. Generally, weight loss decreases renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) activity. Objective: Investigate the effects of KDs with varying sodium content versus LFD on RAAS in overweight and obe...

Background Ketogenic diets are a commonly used weight loss method, but little is known how variations in sodium content and ketones influence cognition and mood during the early keto-adaptation period. Objectives To investigate the effects of an exogenous ketone salt (KS) as part of a hypocaloric KD on mood and cognitive outcomes in overweight and...

Brain-Derived Neurotropic Factor (BDNF) expression is decreased in conditions associated with cognitive decline as well as metabolic diseases. One potential strategy to improve metabolic health and elevate BDNF is by increasing circulating ketones. Beta-Hydroxybutyrate (BHB) stimulates BDNF expression, but the association of circulating BHB and pla...

Kraemer, WJ, Caldwell, LK, Post, EM, Beeler, MK, Emerson, A, Volek, JS, Maresh, CM, Fogt, JS, Fogt, N, Häkkinen, K, Newton, RU, Lopez, P, Sanchez, BN, and Onate, JA. Arousal/stress effects of "Overwatch" eSports game competition in collegiate gamers. J Strength Cond Res XX(X): 000-000, 2022-To date, no physical response data are available for one o...

The U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans is an enormously influential policy that has guided US nutrition programs since 1980. During these last forty years, some researchers have expressed concern that the guidelines are based on an insufficiently rigorous assessment of the scientific evidence, a view that was largely substantiated by a Congressi...

The obesity pandemic continues unabated despite a persistent public health campaign to decrease energy intake (“eat less”) and increase energy expenditure (“move more”). One explanation for this failure is that the current approach, based on the notion of energy balance, has not been adequately embraced by the public. Another possibility is that th...

Adults with Down syndrome are an underserved population at high risk for a host of different pathologies from aging and lack of activity. Purpose To examine the effects of a 10-week resistance training program on measures of motor behavior, cognitive function, mood, and physical fitness. Methods Participants ( n = 11) were men and women clinicall...

Background: We previously reported 1- and 2-year effectiveness of a VLCI via CRC. Here we assess the long term effectiveness of the treatment via achievement of A1c ≤6.5%, <7%, and <8% with and without antidiabetes medications at 5 years. Research Design and Methods: Patients with T2D who initially enrolled in a 2-year non-randomized, controlled cl...

The national Diabetes Prevention Program (nDPP) failed to translate the efficacy of the Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) into real world effectiveness. We initiated a prevention program, previously publishing outcomes on 96 patients with prediabetes over two years with 75% retention. This single center observational trial examines the effectivenes...

Objective: To address the long-term effectiveness of VLCI for T2D, we report changes in lipids, inflammatory, hepatic, and renal markers at 5y. Research Design and Methods: Of the 200 subjects with T2D reaching 2-years in a non-randomized, controlled trial of CRC emphasizing VLCI, 169 (84.5%) consented to 3-year extension and 122 (61%) completed 5y...

Objective: We previously reported long term effectiveness of a very low carbohydrate intervention including nutritional ketosis (VLCI) delivered via continuous remote care (CRC) for improving weight and glycemia at 2 years in people with type 2 diabetes (T2D) . We assessed 5-year changes to determine if the intervention is sustainable, durable, and...

Purpose: The aim of the present investigation was to determine whether a one-hour floatation-REST session could augment recovery from high-intensity resistance exercise (6 x10 back squats, 2 minutes rest) known to induce significant metabolic, adrenergic, and mechanical stress. Methods: Eleven healthy resistance-trained males (age: 22.5 ± 2.3 ye...

Background In a previous study, we assessed a novel, remotely monitored carbohydrate restricted diet regimen including nutritional ketosis in patients with type 2 diabetes and reported significant improvements in weight, glycemic control, abdominal fat and inflammation from baseline to 2 years. Knee outcome measures were collected as a secondary ou...

Background: Ketosis has been reported to benefit healthspan and resilience, which has driven considerable interest in development of exogenous ketones to induce ketosis without dietary changes. Bis hexanoyl (R)-1,3-butanediol (BH-BD) is a novel ketone di-ester that can be used as a food ingredient that increases hepatic ketogenesis and blood beta-...

A growing number of endurance athletes have considered switching from a traditional high-carbohydrate/low-fat (HCLF) to a low-carbohydrate/high-fat (LCHF) eating pattern for health and performance reasons. However, few studies have examined how LCHF diets affect blood lipid profiles in highly-trained runners. In a randomized and counterbalanced, cr...

The decades-long dietary experiment embodied in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) focused on limiting fat, especially saturated fat, and higher carbohydrate intake has coincided with rapidly escalating epidemics of obesity and type 2 diabetes (T2D) that are contributing to the progression of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and other diet-rela...

The last decade has seen nearly 20 papers reviewing the totality of the data on saturated fats and cardiovascular outcomes, which, altogether, have demonstrated a lack of rigorous evidence to support continued recommendations either to limit the consumption of saturated fatty acids or to replace them with polyunsaturated fatty acids. These papers w...

According to a commonly held view, the obesity pandemic is caused by overconsumption of modern, highly palatable, energy-dense processed foods, exacerbated by a sedentary lifestyle. However, obesity rates remain at historic highs, despite a persistent focus on eating less and moving more, as guided by the energy balance model (EBM). This public hea...

Alpelisib is a α-selective phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) inhibitor approved for treatment of postmenopausal women, and men, with hormone receptor positive (HR+), human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 negative (HER2–), PIK3CA-mutated, advanced breast cancer (ABC). Hyperglycemia is a common, on-target adverse effect that impairs treatment e...

Background: Foods rich in saturated fatty acids (SFAs) have been discouraged by virtue of their cholesterol-raising potential, but this effect is modulated by the food source and background level of carbohydrate. Objective: We aimed to compare the consumption of palm stearin (PS) versus butter on circulating cholesterol responses in the setting...

The purpose of this study was to examine the responses of growth hormone (GH) and insulin-like growth factor-I (IGFI) to intense heavy resistance exercise in highly trained men and women to determine what sex-dependent responses may exist. Subjects were highly resistance trained men (N = 8, Mean ± SD; age, yrs., 21 ± 1, height, cm, 175.3 ± 6.7, bod...

The purpose of the present study was to examine the influence of an acute bout of high-intensity resistance exercise on measures of cognitive function. Ten men (Mean ± SD: age = 24.4 ± 3.2 yrs; body mass = 85.7 ± 11.8 kg; height = 1.78 ± 0.08 m; 1 repetition maximum (1RM) = 139.0 ± 24.1 kg) gave informed consent and performed a high-intensity 6 set...

Background: Prediabetes phenotypes differ based on whether an individual exhibits impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), impaired fasting glucose (IFG), or both. The traditional diabetes prevention approach focused on weight loss via fat/caloric restriction and exercise appears less effective in those with IFG. Given that even transient regression to no...

Background: Ketogenic diets ( KDs ) that elevate beta-hydroxybutyrate ( BHB ) promote weight and fat loss. Exogenous ketones, such as ketone salts ( KS ), also elevate BHB concentrations with the potential to protect against muscle loss during caloric restriction. Whether augmenting ketosis with KS impacts body composition responses to a well-formu...

Ketogenic diets (KDs) often contain high levels of saturated fat, which may increase liver fat, but the lower carbohydrate intake may have the opposite effect. Using a controlled feeding design, we compared liver fat responses to a hypocaloric KD with a placebo (PL) versus an energy-matched low-fat diet (LFD) in overweight adults. We also examined...

The purpose of this study is to assess the effects of an alternative approach to type 2 diabetes prevention. Ninety-six patients with prediabetes (age 52 (10) years; 80% female; BMI 39.2 (7.1) kg/m2) received a continuous remote care intervention focused on reducing hyperglycemia through carbohydrate restricted nutrition therapy for two years in a...

Traumatic musculoskeletal injuries may involve adaptive changes in the brain that contribute to loss of function. Our combination of neuroimaging and theta burst transcranial magnetic stimulation (iTBS) revealed distinct patterns of iTBS-induced plasticity that normalized differences in muscle and brain function evident years after unilateral knee...

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via the original article.

Background We have previously reported that in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) consumption of a very low carbohydrate diet capable of inducing nutritional ketosis over 2 years (continuous care intervention, CCI) resulted in improved body weight, glycemic control, and multiple risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) with the exception of a...

Objective The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of a novel “floatation-restricted environmental stimulation therapy” (floatation-REST) on growth hormone responses to an intense resistance exercise stress. Design Nine resistance trained men (age: 23.4 ± 2.5 yrs.; height: 175.3 ± 5.4 cm; body mass: 85.3 ± 7.9 kg) completed a balance...

Kraemer, WJ, Caldwell, LK, Post, EM, DuPont, WH, Martini, ER, Ratamess, NA, Szivak, TK, Shurley, JP, Beeler, MK, Volek, JS, Maresh, CM, Todd, JS, Walrod, BJ, Hyde, PN, Fairman, C, and Best, TM. Body composition in elite strongman competitors. J Strength Cond Res 34(12): 3326-3330, 2020-The purpose of this descriptive investigation was to characteri...

Animal data indicate that ketogenic diets are associated with improved mitochondrial function, but human data are lacking. We aimed to characterize skeletal muscle mitochondrial changes in response to a ketogenic diet combined with exercise training in healthy individuals. Twenty-nine physically active adults completed a 12-week supervised exercise...

Background: We have previously reported that in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) consumption of a very low carbohydrate diet capable of inducing nutritional ketosis over two years (continuous care intervention, CCI) resulted in improved body weight, glycemic control, and multiple risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) with the exception o...

Purpose of review: There is an extensive literature on the efficacy of the low carbohydrate diet (LCD) for weight loss, and in the improvement of markers of the insulin-resistant phenotype, including a reduction in inflammation, atherogenic dyslipidemia, hypertension, and hyperglycemia. However, critics have expressed concerns that the LCD promote...

We have evaluated dietary recommendations for people diagnosed with familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH), a genetic condition in which increased low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) is associated with an increased risk for coronary heart disease (CHD). Recommendations for FH individuals have emphasised a low saturated fat, low cholesterol die...

The effects of mode of rehydration on stress hormone response to subsequent maximal intensity exercise in the heat. Linda M. Yamamoto1,2, Elaine C. Lee1, Brendon P. McDermott1, Kathleen N. Beasley1, Holly Emmanuel1, Jeff S. Volek1, Douglas J. Casa1, FACSM, Lawrence E. Armstrong1, FACSM, William J. Kraemer1, FACSM, and Carl M. Maresh1, FACSM. 1U...

Background: Increased soft-drink consumption has contributed to poor calcium intake with 90% of adolescent girls consuming less than the RDA for calcium. Purpose/objectives: The purpose of this investigation was to determine the independent and additive effects of two interventions (milk and resistance training) on nutrient adequacy, body compositi...

Regression from prediabetes (preD) to normoglycemia (NG) is associated with reduced progression to type 2 diabetes (T2D). Carbohydrate restriction including nutritional ketosis (CR) has emerged as a safe, effective, and sustainable treatment for regression of hyperglycemia in T2D, yet its multi-year effects on preD are unknown. Also, some patients...

The recommendation to limit dietary saturated fatty acid (SFA) intake has persisted despite mounting evidence to the contrary. Most recent meta-analyses of randomized trials and observational studies found no beneficial effects of reducing SFA intake on cardiovascular disease (CVD) and total mortality, and instead found protective effects against s...

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is associated with, and often preceded by, increased levels of circulating c-reactive protein (CRP) and WBC count that mediate the body’s inflammatory and immune responses (inflammatory mediators [IMs]). This relationship between inflammation and diabetes is complex, as statins have anti-inflammatory properties but paradoxical...

Introduction: A ketogenic diet improves type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and cardiovascular disease. Weight loss studies using caloric reduction have demonstrated a decrease in aldosterone, but there is limited data on the effect of a ketogenic diet on aldosterone. Thus, we evaluated the impact of a ketogenic diet on aldosterone in overweight o...

Novel lifestyle, pharmaceutical, and/or surgical therapies for type 2 diabetes (T2D) are under study to assess lasting impact on metabolic risk. Among them, carbohydrate restriction including nutritional ketosis (CR) has emerged as a safe and effective nutrition therapy for reducing hyperglycemia in patients with T2D1, yet longer term effects are u...

Background: Acute ingestion of ketone supplements alters metabolism and potentially exercise performance. No studies to date have evaluated the impact of co-ingestion of ketone salts with caffeine and amino acids on high intensity exercise performance, and no data exists in Keto-Adapted individuals. Methods: We tested the performance and metabolic...

Excess visceral adipose tissue (VAT) and VAT volume relative to subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) are associated with elevated health risks. This study compares fat measurements by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). In total, 21 control subjects (Control) and 16 individuals with metabolic syndrome (MetSyn)...

BACKGROUND Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is highly correlated with obesity and cardiovascular risk, but the importance of dietary carbohydrate independent of weight loss in MetS treatment remains controversial. Here, we test the theory that dietary carbohydrate intolerance (i.e., the inability to process carbohydrate in a healthy manner) rather than ob...

Purpose: Studies on long-term sustainability of low-carbohydrate approaches to treat diabetes are limited. We previously reported the effectiveness of a novel digitally-monitored continuous care intervention (CCI) including nutritional ketosis in improving weight, glycemic outcomes, lipid, and liver marker changes at 1 year. Here, we assess the eff...

The effects of mode of rehydration on subsequent exercise-heat challenge performance. Linda M. Yamamoto1,2, Elaine C. Lee1, Brendon P. McDermott1, Kathleen N. Beasley1, Holly Emmanuel1, Jeff S. Volek1, Douglas J. Casa1, FACSM, Lawrence E. Armstrong1, FACSM, William J. Kraemer1, FACSM, and Carl M. Maresh1, FACSM. 1University of Connecticut, 2Central...

Purpose: To evaluate the changes in the state of hydration in elite National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I college wrestlers during and after a season. Methods: Ohio State University wrestling team members (N = 6; mean [SD] age = 19.6 [1.1] y; height = 171.6 [2.9] cm; body mass = 69.5 [8.1] kg) gave informed consent to partic...

Introduction Ketogenic diets (KDs) that elevate ketones into a range referred to as nutritional ketosis represent a possible nutrition approach to address the emerging physical readiness and obesity challenge in the military. An emerging body of evidence demonstrates broad-spectrum health benefits attributed to being in nutritional ketosis, but no...

Objective: Sleep disruption is frequently associated with type 2 diabetes (T2D) and hyperglycemia. We recently reported the effectiveness of a continuous care intervention (CCI) emphasizing nutritional ketosis for improving HbA1c, body weight and cardiovascular risk factors in T2D patients. The present study assessed the effect of this CCI approac...

Objective One year of comprehensive continuous care intervention (CCI) through nutritional ketosis improves glycosylated haemoglobin(HbA1c), body weight and liver enzymes among patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D). Here, we report the effect of the CCI on surrogate scores of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and liver fibrosis. Methods This...

OBJECTIVE: Studies on long-term sustainability of low-carbohydrate approaches to treat diabetes are limited. We aim to assess the effects of a continuous care intervention (CCI) on retention, glycemic control, weight, body composition, cardiovascular, liver, kidney, thyroid, inflammatory markers, diabetes medication usage and disease outcomes at 2...

Objective One-year of comprehensive continuous care intervention (CCI) through nutritional ketosis improves HbA1c, body weight and liver enzymes among type 2 diabetes (T2D) patients. Here, we report the effect of the CCI on surrogate scores of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and liver fibrosis. Methods This was a non-randomized longitudi...

For decades, dietary advice was based on the premise that high intakes of fat cause obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and possibly cancer. Recently, evidence for the adverse metabolic effects of processed carbohydrate has led to a resurgence in interest in lower-carbohydrate and ketogenic diets with high fat content. However, some argue that the re...

Purpose The ketogenic diet induces a profound shift in energy metabolism from carbohydrate oxidation towards fat oxidation, both at rest and during exercise. We compared endocrine regulators of energy metabolism in keto‐adapted and non‐keto‐adapted ultra‐endurance athletes before, during, and after aerobic exercise to better understand the role of...

Eggs attenuate postprandial hyperglycemia (PPH), a predictor of cardiovascular disease‐related mortality. We hypothesized that acute ingestion of egg‐based meals with a glucose challenge would protect against PPH‐mediated impairments in vascular endothelial function (VEF) by attenuating lipid peroxidation and dysregulated arginine metabolism. A ran...

Greater intakes of dairy are associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Ingestion of low‐fat milk compared with carbohydrate‐rich rice milk limits postprandial hyperglycemia (PPH), a predictor of CVD‐related mortality. We hypothesized that acute ingestion of dairy milk proteins would protect against PPH‐mediated increases in lipi...

Objective A growing number of ultra-endurance athletes have switched to a very low-carbohydrate/high-fat eating pattern. We compared markers of cholesterol and the lipoprotein profile in a group of elite ultra-runners consuming a high-carbohydrate (HC) or low-carbohydrate (LC) diet. Methods Fasting blood was obtained from competitive male ultra-en...

Postprandial hyperglycemia (PPH) transiently impairs vascular endothelial function (VEF) in an oxidative stress-dependent manner by decreasing nitric oxide (NO•) bioavailability. Dairy milk and its proteins attenuate PPH, but whether this improves VEF is unknown. We hypothesized that dairy milk, mediated by its whey and/or casein proteins, improves...

Replacing a portion of a glucose challenge with whole eggs (EGG) or egg whites (WHITE) was shown to protect against glucose-induced impairments in vascular function. We hypothesised in the present study that previously observed vasoprotection following co-ingestion of EGG or WHITE with glucose was attributed to limiting postprandial hyperglycaemia-...

Objective: Sleep disruption is frequently associated with type 2 diabetes (T2D) and hyperglycemia. We recently reported the effectiveness of a continuous care intervention (CCI) emphasizing nutritional ketosis for improving HbA1c, body weight and cardiovascular risk factors in T2D patients. The present study assessed the effect of this CCI approach...

Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a leading cause of death among adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D). We recently reported that glycemic control in patients with T2D can be significantly improved through a continuous care intervention (CCI) including nutritional ketosis. The purpose of this study was to examine CVD risk factors in...