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Study Reveals Metabolic Limits of Elite Ultra-Athletes

10/20/2025

Summary

Story summary

Researchers found that elite ultra-athletes cannot exceed a metabolic ceiling of about 2.5 times their basal metabolic rate over extended periods.
During intense efforts, they can burn up to 7 times their BMR, but this is unsustainable long-term.
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts and Duke University researchers studied ultra-athletes to measure energy expenditure, tracking 14 athletes over one year.
The findings, published in Current Biology, underscore the biological limits of endurance.

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Story summary

Researchers found that elite ultra-athletes cannot exceed a metabolic ceiling of about 2.5 times their basal metabolic rate over extended periods.
During intense efforts, they can burn up to 7 times their BMR, but this is unsustainable long-term.
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts and Duke University researchers studied ultra-athletes to measure energy expenditure, tracking 14 athletes over one year.
The findings, published in Current Biology, underscore the biological limits of endurance.