Acute L-Carnitine Tartrate Supplementation Boosts VO2-Max, Fat Oxidation & Endurance in Elite Wrestlers
The VO2-max boosting effects of l-carnitine tartrate can be beneficial for almost every athlete. |
As a recent study from the Shahid Chamran University in Iran shows, this could be a mistake. After all, Mostafa Dehghani and his colleagues were able to show that "supplementation of L-carnitine improved effectively the performance by increasing in [sic!] lipid metabolism" (Dehgani. 2015).
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The twenty healthy elite male wrestlers with a mean age of 22.05 ± 2.6 years, mean weight of 77.10 ± 11.65 kg, mean height of 1.79 ± 0.06 m, and mean body mass index of 23.79 ± 2.45 kg/m2 who participated in this single-blind clinical trial were randomly divided into two groups including test and placebo.
- The test group received 3 g of L-carnitine tartrate in 200 ml water and 6 drops of lemon juice.
- The placebo group consumed only 200 ml water and 6 drops of lemon juice.
Figure 1: The carnitine supplement led to significant increases in VO2 max (fatty acid oxidation) and the maximal distance the subjects were able to cover in the Concoi test (Dehgani. 2015). |
Immediately after the workout there were transient changes in blood lipids that are surprising, but probably not (health-)relevant (Dehgani. 2015). |
What remains to be seen, though, is whether the effects will still be visible after weeks of supplementation. You, as a SuppVersity reader, should know that acute supplement studies can be deceiving. Therefore, it would be great if we had a 6-week study that compared the performance increases in response to standardized training regimens with and without carnitine supplementation | Comment on Facebook!
- Dehghani, Mostafa, et al. "Effects of L-Carnitine L-Tartrate Acute Consumption on Lipid Metabolism, Maximum oxygen consumption (VO2 max), and distance run Following Aerobic Exhaustive Exercise on Treadmill in Elite Athletes wrestling." The AYER 2 (2015): 189-105.