Manipulation of dietary carbohydrate and muscle glycogen affects glucose uptake during exercise when fat oxidation is impaired by β-adrenergic blockade

We have recently reported that, during moderate intensity exercise, low muscle glycogen concentration and utilization caused by a high-fat diet is associated with a marked increase in fat oxidation with no effect on plasma glucose uptake (Rd glucose). It is our hypothesis that this increase in fat oxidation compensates for low muscle glycogen, thus preventing an increase in Rd glucose. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine whether low muscle glycogen availability increases Rd glucose under conditions of impaired fat oxidation. Six cyclists exercised at 50% peak O2 consumption (Vo2 peak) for 1 h after 2 days on either a high-fat (HF, 60% fat, 24% carbohydrate) or control (CON, 22% fat, 65% carbohydrate) diet to manipulate muscle glycogen to low and normal levels, respectively. Two hours before the start of exercise, subjects ingested 80 mg of propanolol (βB), a nonselective β-adrenergic receptor blocker, to impair fat oxidation during exercise. HF significantly decreased calculated muscle ...