The Effect of Carbohydrate Supplementation on the Pistol Shooting Performance of Police Officers after Exhaustive Acute Exercise

Introduction: Pistol shooting performance in police officers is paramount while chasing suspects. The present study aimed to investigate the effects of carbohydrate supplementation on the pistol shooting performance, pulse rate (PR), systolic blood pressure (SBP), and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) of police officers after exhaustive acute exercise. Methods: This quasi-experimental study was conducted on 40 male officers with the mean age of 30.12±2.21 years and more than eight years of police work experience. The subjects were divided into five groups of eight, including control, placebo consumption before exercise (PBE), placebo consumption during exercise (PDE), carbohydrate consumption before exercise (CBE), and carbohydrate consumption during exercise (CDE). The subjects performed an exhaustive acute exercise on the treadmill between two shooting trails in accordance with the protocol and consumed carbohydrates and placebo supplementation. Pistol shooting performance, PR, SBP, and DBP were measured before and after the exercise. Results: The pistol shooting performance in the PBE and PDE groups significantly decreased after the exercise (P≤0.05), while it significantly increased in the CDE group (P≤0.05). In addition, the PR and SBP of the PBE, PDE, CBE, and CDE groups significantly increased after the exercise (P≤0.05). Conclusion: According to the results, carbohydrates supplementation during exhaustive acute exercise could enhance the pistol shooting performance of the police officers.