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SPORTS DISCOVERY NEWS

THE ANSWER TO CARBOLOADING? Science 330:567 (2010) -Up against the wall - Which is better, chowing down days before or grabbing some sugar during the race? "Both," says sports nutritionist Edward Coyle of the University of Texas, Austin. "The carb loading will raise the glycogen levels in your muscles, and taking in carbs during the race will keep your blood glucose levels up." And now Rapoport even has an app for that: Athletes will soon be able to calculate their thresholds at http://endurancecalculator.com/.

BOOST MUSCLE STEM CELLS WITH EXERCISE - Science 330: 573 (2010) - Exercising can help you age gracefully by keeping you fit. But it turns out that endurance exercise, like running, doesn't just tone muscles, it enhances muscle stem cells, too. Younger rats showed a 20% to 35% increase in the mean number of stem cells per muscle fiber, whereas older rats showed a 33% to 47% increase. These cells regenerate muscles after injury or illness, so the boost could explain why human exercisers have better muscle function than nonexercisers as they age. Better muscle quality could also delay sarcopenia, the decline in muscle mass that occurs with aging.