Benefits of Carbohydrates, Sports Drinks, and Energy Gels

Yes, carbohydrates work towards giving energy and replenishing spent glycogen during and after exercise.

Carbohydrates Post-Workout:
A detailed study showed that a carbohydrate drink after exercise replenished more glycogen than a carbohydrate-protein-fat drink or placebo. A similar study showed that a carb/protein/fat drink replenished glycogen slightly more than just a carbohydrate drink. Regardless, carbohydrates and protein taken after exercise work towards refueling your muscles.

Carbohydrates during workout:
This study concluded that Carbohydrate supplementation can enhance prolonged continuous variable-intensity exercise by reducing dependency on muscle glycogen as a fuel source.

Carbohydrates Pre-Workout:
A nice summary of studies here states that Ingesting 50-200 g of CHO 30-60 min before exercise... does not affect the rate of muscle glycogen utilization. Ingesting 200-350 g of CHO 3-6 hours before exercise appears to improve performance, possibly by maximizing muscle and/or liver glycogen stores or by supplying CHO from the small intestine during exercise itself. 200-350g of carbs before a competition is such an extremely high amount that we don't recommend this unless you know exactly what you're doing.

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