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NCT Number: NCT07298863

The Effect of Hydration Status on Substrate Oxidation at Rest and During Light and Moderate Exercise

Metabolic flexibility is the ability to properly switch between fat and carbohydrate stores to use for energy under different conditions (rest, feeding, exercise). Impairments in metabolic flexibility, also known as metabolic inflexibility, have been suggested to be an underlying cause of metabolic disease, like type 2 diabetes. Long-term low fluid intake may increase the risk of type 2 diabetes due to insulin resistance, a form of metabolic inflexibility. Further, low fluid intake has been shown to impair the ability to switch fuel preference during exercise.

While there is some evidence that low fluid intake may lead to impaired metabolic flexibility, more information is needed. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of hydration status on substrate preference at rest and during exercise at varying intensities (light and moderate). Further, we will examine whether biological sex and menstrual cycle phase impact hydration and metabolism under these same conditions.

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Key information

Age range

18 year–35 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

Gatorade Sports Science Institute

Valhalla, New York, 10595, United States

Location status: Recruiting

Location contact

Matt Hinkley

CONTACT

[email protected]

570-574-1858

About this study

The 3-arm intervention will be completed in females during both the follicular and luteal phases for a total of 13 visits including the medical screening. In males, the 3-arm intervention will be completed once for a total of 7 visits including the medical screening.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • Subject is male or female
  • If female, subject is not pregnant (based on self-report)
  • If female, subject has stopped taking birth control medication or removed long-acting reversible contraceptive >6 months at start of the study
  • If female, subject has normal menstrual cycle (21-35 days)
  • If female, subject is willing to track their menstrual cycle
  • If female, subject has a smartphone compatible for application to track menstrual cycle (female only) and/or wearable data (females and males)
  • Subject is 18-35 years of age, inclusive
  • Subject body mass index (BMI) is between 18.5-25 kg/m2
  • Subject is at least recreationally active (engaged in moderate-intensity, intermittent, or steady-state exercise at least 3 days per week for at least 60 min at a time)
  • Subject is accustomed to cycling for at least 60 min
  • Subject does not smoke (or has quit for at least 6 months)
  • Subject is not taking medication that may interfere with the study (e.g., diuretics, laxatives, or weight loss drugs)
  • Subject has no health conditions that would interfere with the study as indicated on the general health questionnaire (GHQ) e.g. cardiovascular, renal, or metabolic diseases
  • Subject is not actively involved in weight loss intervention (dieting and/or anti-obesity medications)
  • Subject is not allergic to adhesives (e.g., medical tape)
  • Subject is willing to avoid alcohol consumption 24 hours prior to visit(s)
  • Subject is willing to fast overnight (~8-12 hours)
  • Subject is willing to refrain from vigorous exercise for 24 hours (light physical activity only)
  • Subject is willing to be shaved at patch or electrode site, if necessary
  • Subject is willing to eat the exact same food the day prior to each visit to the laboratory
  • Able to speak, write, and read English
  • Provision of written consent to participate

Exclusion criteria

  • Subject has participated in a clinical trial within the past 30 days
  • Subject has participated in any PepsiCo trial within past 36 months
  • Subject has a condition or is taking medication that the investigator believes would interfere with his/her ability to provide informed consent, comply with the study protocol, which might confound the interpretation of the study results, or put the person at undue risk
  • Subject is allergic to alcohol (alcohol pre pads are used for blood draws
  • If female, subject is taking birth control medication or has long-acting reversible contraceptive
  • If male, subject is undergoing hormone therapy to alter testosterone levels (injections, transdermal patch, pill, etc.)
  • Subject is employed by, or has a parent, guardian, or other immediate family member employed by a company that manufactures any products that compete with any Gatorade product. If subject is unsure if a company would be considered a competitor to Gatorade, they will be asked to please let the study investigator know the name of the other company and the nature of their relationship to that company before they sign the informed consent.

Treatment and study plan

Exercise trial

Other

Perform steady-state cycling exercise for approximately 1 hour at 70-80% of maximal heart rate

Experimental Trial

Other

24h after exercise trial, following assigned 24h hydration plan, perform indirect calorimetry followed by 30 min of light cycling (~50% VO2 max) then 30 min of moderate-high cycling (~80% VO2 max).

Primary outcomes

  1. Respiratory Exchange Ratio

    Time frame: Measured over the course of exercise bouts performed during the exercise and experimental trials. Compared across DEH, EUH-H2O, and EUH-Electrolyte arms.

    VCO2 / VO2 measured using indirect calorimetry measured by metabolic cart (Moxus or similar device) while exercising on cycle ergometer.

Secondary outcomes

  1. Body Mass

    Time frame: Exercise Trial- following bladder void at baseline, post 1st and 2nd 30 min exercise sessions, and post 20 min rest Experimental Trial-following bladder void at baseline, post 10 min rest, post 1st and 2nd 30 min exercise sessions, and post 20 min rest

    kg

  2. Plasma copeptin concentration

    Time frame: Exercise trial- Post 10 min rest, pre-exercise bout. Experimental trial- Post 10 min rest, pre indirect calorimetry; post 1st and 2nd 30 min exercise bout; post 20 min rest.

    pmol/L

  3. Plasma osmolality

    Time frame: Exercise trial- Post 10 min rest, pre-exercise bout. Experimental trial- Post 10 min rest, pre indirect calorimetry; post 1st and 2nd 30 min exercise bout; post 20 min rest.

    mOsm/kg

  4. Blood glucose

    Time frame: At medical screening to determine eligibility. Exercise trial- Post 10 min rest, pre-exercise bout. Experimental trial- Post 10 min rest, pre indirect calorimetry; post 1st and 2nd 30 min exercise bout; post 20 min rest.

    mg/dL

  5. Blood lactate

    Time frame: Exercise trial- Post 10 min rest, pre-exercise bout. Experimental trial- Post 10 min rest, pre indirect calorimetry; post 1st and 2nd 30 min exercise bout; post 20 min rest.

    mmol/L

  6. Peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) mitochondrial function

    Time frame: Exercise trial- Post 10 min rest, pre-exercise bout. Experimental trial- Post 10 min rest, pre indirect calorimetry; post 1st and 2nd 30 min exercise bout; post 20 min rest.

    cells/uL

  7. Urine Specific Gravity

    Time frame: Exercise Trial-baseline, post 1st and 2nd 30 min exercise sessions, and post 20 min rest Experimental Trial-baseline, post resting metabolism assessment, post 1st and 2nd 30 min exercise sessions, and post 20 min rest

    au

  8. Urine Osmolality

    Time frame: Exercise Trial-baseline, post 1st and 2nd 30 min exercise sessions, and post 20 min rest Experimental Trial-baseline, post resting metabolism assessment, post 1st and 2nd 30 min exercise sessions, and post 20 min rest

    mOsm/kg

  9. Urine mass

    Time frame: Exercise Trial-baseline, post 1st and 2nd 30 min exercise sessions, and post 20 min rest Experimental Trial-baseline, post resting metabolism assessment, post 1st and 2nd 30 min exercise sessions, and post 20 min rest

    g

  10. Urine Color

    Time frame: Exercise Trial-baseline, post 1st and 2nd 30 min exercise sessions, and post 20 min rest Experimental Trial-baseline, post resting metabolism assessment, post 1st and 2nd 30 min exercise sessions, and post 20 min rest

    Scale of 1 (most hydrated) to 7 (most dehydrated)

  11. Fat and Carbohydrate Oxidation

    Time frame: Exercise Trial- resting metabolism assessed over 30 min rest period pre-exercise bout and exercise metabolism assessed over final 10 min of 1st and 2nd 30min exercise bout.

    resting metabolism measured by Cosmed Quark or similar device. Exercise metabolism measured by Moxus or similar device.

  12. Energy Expenditure

    Time frame: Exercise Trial- resting metabolism assessed over 30 min rest period pre-exercise bout and exercise metabolism assessed over final 10 min of 1st and 2nd 30min exercise bout.

    kcal-resting metabolism measured by Cosmed Quark or similar device. Exercise metabolism measured by Moxus or similar device.

  13. VO2 peak

    Time frame: Assessed at medical screening during a stress test with a 12-lead EKG on a cycle ergometer.

    mL/kg/min measured using indirect calorimetry (Moxus or similar device)

  14. Fat and fat-free mass

    Time frame: At medical screening to determine body composition

    kg measured using BodPod

  15. Fluid Intake

    Time frame: documented by subject on provided log for 24 hours prior to exercise and experimental trials. Exercise and Experimental Trial- DEH group restricted from fluid intake. EUH group fluid measured over duration of exercise bout (60 minutes).

    mL

  16. Blood Pressure

    Time frame: Medical Screening to determine eligibility

    systolic/diastolic (mmHg)

  17. Heart Rate

    Time frame: At medical screening to determine eligibility. Throughout entire duration of each 90-120 min exercise trial. Throughout entire duration of 120-150 min of each experimental trial.

    bpm

  18. Standardized Exercise Intensity

    Time frame: Every 10 min throughout entire duration of each 60 min exercise trial to reach 70-80% of VO2 max. Every 10 min throughout entire duration of each 60 min experimental trial to reach 50-80% of VO2 max.

    W

  19. Sweat Rate

    Time frame: Throughout entire duration of 60 min exercise bout of exercise trial. Throughout entire duration of 60 min exercise bout of each experimental trial.

    [Body mass loss (kg) + fluid intake (mL)]/Duration of exercise (hr)

  20. Wearable Sensr Data

    Time frame: Continuous data collection over 24 hours from start of exercise trial through completion of experimental trial.

    photoplethysmogram (PPG) waveform data- optical signals obtained from photoplethysmography, which measure blood volume changes in the microvascular bed of tissue.

  21. Rate of Perceived Exhaustion

    Time frame: Every 10 min throughout entire duration of each (2x) 30 min exercise bout for each exercise trial. Every 10 min throughout entire duration of each (2x) 30 min exercise bout for each experimental trial.

    Borg scale of rating of perceived exertion. Rated on a 6-20 scale from No exertion at all to maximal exertion.

  22. Menstrual categorization

    Time frame: After medical screening and one month prior to first study session

    Current status (e.g., contraception, regular periods or not, etc.) tracked by physical log or an at-home menstrual cycle monitoring kit (Proov)

  23. Adverse Events

    Time frame: Through study completion, an average of 3 weeks for male subjects and 8 weeks for female subjects.

    Documented changes in health and symptoms

Study contacts

Contact information is provided by the study sponsor or research team.

Matt Hinkley

CONTACT

[email protected]

570-574-1858

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

PepsiCo Global R&D

Industry

Registry information

Important dates

Study start
2025
Primary completion
2026
Study completion
2026
First posted
Dec 23, 2025
Registry last updated
Mar 3, 2026

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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