Lesedauer 5 Minuten  

  • Lactate is a readily available energy source, not just a by-product.
  • It acts as a shuttle between muscle fibres and organs, supplying the heart and other tissues with energy.
  • Lactate helps regulate pH levels and protects the muscle from excessive acid build-up.
  • It also acts as a signalling substance, promoting training adaptations such as increased mitochondria and capillary density.
  • Horses have an exceptionally high tolerance for lactate and are able to utilise it very efficiently.
Contents Hide
1 The revolutionary reassessment of lactate
2 What is lactate and how is it produced?
3 Lactate Shuttling: The Smart Energy Transport System
4 pH regulation: lactate as a shield against muscle over-acidification
5 Lactate as a signalling molecule: the training optimiser
6 The exceptional lactate tolerance of horses
7 Practical implications for training and recovery
8 An overview of the five core functions of lactate
9 Conclusion: Lactate as a key to equine performance

The revolutionary reassessment of lactate

Lactate was misunderstood for decades, long regarded as a harmful cause of muscle soreness or premature fatigue. This outdated view has changed fundamentally: today, sports scientists and veterinarians recognise lactate as a highly active and extremely useful metabolic metabolite, playing a key role in energy supply, metabolic balance, and training adaptation.

The extraordinary role of lactate is particularly evident in horses. As evolutionarily optimised runners, they have not only developed a remarkably high lactate tolerance but also use this molecule as a central component of their impressive endurance and athletic performance.

What is lactate and how is it produced?

Lactate is produced whenever a muscle encounters a situation in which there is insufficient oxygen to fully oxidise glucose in the mitochondria. In this case, pyruvate—the end product of glycolysis—is rapidly and efficiently converted into lactate. Although this biochemical process is less energy-efficient than complete aerobic metabolism, it provides an extremely fast source of energy, allowing the muscle to continue working even under the most intense exertion.

The crucial insight is that lactate is by no means an undesirable “waste product”; rather, it is a versatile and valuable energy carrier. This fundamental reappraisal has revolutionised our understanding of muscle physiology and explains why some horses are capable of extraordinary endurance performance.

Lactate Shuttling: The Smart Energy Transport System

One of the most fascinating features of lactate is its ability to participate in “lactate shuttling”. This sophisticated transport mechanism allows lactate to move from one muscle fibre to another or through the bloodstream to other organs. The heart, in particular, benefits greatly from this system, as it can use lactate directly as a high-quality fuel, helping it sustain continuous performance.

This ingenious transport system makes energy metabolism highly flexible and adaptable. While intensely working muscle fibres produce lactate, other, less active fibres or organs can immediately draw on it as a fuel source. In this way, no valuable energy goes to waste; instead, the body distributes and utilises it efficiently.

pH regulation: lactate as a shield against muscle over-acidification

Lactate plays a crucial role in muscle pH regulation, acting as a natural buffer against harmful over-acidification. It is produced alongside protons (H⁺ ions) and actively helps to capture and neutralise excess acid in the muscle. This buffering function significantly stabilises muscle performance and delays the onset of damaging acidosis, which would otherwise impair performance.

This protective role is especially important during hard exercise, as it helps the muscle keep working strongly for longer without getting tired or “burning out” from too much acid.

Lactate as a signalling molecule: the training optimiser

Lactate functions not only as an energy source and pH buffer, but also as a powerful signalling molecule for training adaptations. It specifically stimulates the formation of new mitochondria (mitochondriogenesis), improves the capillary network in muscles, and regulates key enzymes that control glucose and fat metabolism. These diverse signalling roles make lactate a central factor for sustainable training effects and performance improvements.

Through this signalling effect, muscles are constantly encouraged to increase their metabolic capacity and adapt to greater demands. This is why training at different intensities produces different, yet complementary, improvements.

The exceptional lactate tolerance of horses

Horses have an exceptionally high lactate tolerance, which sets them apart from other mammals. This remarkable ability allows them not only to tolerate large amounts of lactate without difficulty but also to use it very efficiently as an energy source. Their muscles and cardiovascular system are evolutionarily adapted to metabolise lactate quickly and effectively.

This unique physiological setup allows horses to work longer and at higher intensities before fatigue sets in. They can handle workloads that would cause performance-limiting lactate accumulation in other animals. At the same time, they can efficiently use the lactate they produce through the highly developed shuttling system, turning it into an additional energy source to sustain performance.

Practical implications for training and recovery

A deeper understanding of lactate physiology has far-reaching implications for working with horses. Training can be specifically designed to optimise the natural lactate metabolism pathways and make the most of horses’ exceptional abilities. At the same time, it becomes clear why certain training intensities are particularly effective and how different workload levels influence performance development.

However, the high production and utilisation of lactate also require careful recovery planning. Glycogen stores must be systematically replenished after intense exercise, and the complex enzyme systems need to be stabilised. Only by maintaining a balanced approach between workload and rest can the exceptional capabilities of the horse’s musculature be preserved and further developed over the long term.

An overview of the five core functions of lactate

Lactate performs five central functions in the horse’s body, all contributing to its exceptional performance: it acts as a rapidly available energy source for immediate exertion, serves as an intelligent shuttle system between muscle fibres and organs, helps regulate pH to protect against harmful acidification, functions as a signalling molecule to promote beneficial training adaptations, and, thanks to horses’ unusually high tolerance, is used with exceptional efficiency.

Conclusion: Lactate as a key to equine performance

Modern sports science has transformed our understanding of lactate, highlighting its central role in equine performance. Far from being a harmful waste product, lactate is a highly sophisticated component of energy metabolism that makes a major contribution to the remarkable athletic ability of horses. Understanding these complex mechanisms is essential for optimal training, targeted performance development, and long-term health for the horse.

Elke Malenke
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