Eating dark chocolate every day could help boost athletic performance

Chocolates have been the favourites of everyone and even the researchers, read out earlier article of researches under Health benefits of Chocolates.

In a recent study undertaken at London’s Kingston University has found the tasty treat could help give sports enthusiasts an extra edge in their fitness training.

undertaken at London’s Kingston University has found the tasty treat could help give sports enthusiasts an extra edge in their fitness training.

undertaken at London’s Kingston University has found the tasty treat could help give sports enthusiasts an extra edge in their fitness training.

After undergoing initial fitness tests to establish a baseline for comparison, the participants were then split into two groups. The first group was asked to replace one of its normal daily snacks with 40g of a dark chocolate known to be rich in flavanols for a fortnight, while the other participants substituted 40g of white chocolate for one of their daily snacks as a control.

The effects of the athletes’ daily chocolate consumption were then measured in a series of cycling exercise tests in the sports performance laboratory at the University’s Penrhyn Road campus. The cyclists’ heart rates and oxygen consumption levels were measured during moderate exercise and in time trials. After a seven-day interval, the groups then switched chocolate types and the two-week trial and subsequent exercise tests were repeated.

The study stated that after eating dark chocolate, the riders used less oxygen when cycling at a moderate pace and also covered more distance in a two-minute flat-out time trial.

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