Milk consumption before races

The makers of the product called sportlegs (www.sportlegs.com) claim that it helps supress production of lactic acid by your muscles by pre-loading your blood with lactate (or something like that anyway.) The active ingredients are Vitamin D, calcium, and magnesium. So I can see where milk might be able to promote the same chemical effect as it contains those same three chemicals, and at a much lower cost as well.

But as stated above, you don't want to start serious activity with a stomach full of milk.

Lactose is a milk sugar composed of glucose and galactose. It is broken down by lactase. 

Lactate (lactic acid) happens when pyruvate goes through fermentation rather than the Kreb's cycle (if I correctly remember Biochemistry). 

Yo Artemis - What??? Speaka da english, man.

I eat a yogurt in the parking lot before an event, along with a Clif Bar and banana, some OJ and coffee (usually on the drive up to keep me from falling asleep).  No reason for it, it just tastes good to me. 

What I'm saying is that lactose is a sugar just like fructose or sucrose.  It gets broken down into two smaller sugars.  Lactic acid is something completely different.  It happens when your body starts doing anaerobic respiration - or energy metabolism without oxygen.  If you don't have enough oxygen, all of the sugars will start turning into lactic acid.

So, from a strict biochemical point of view, it doesn't seem like it should make a difference.  Personally, I can't stand too much of it before I exercise.  If you can, go for it. 

Hey, I drink OJ every single morning.  Don't take away my OJ!   

Actually, I've heard it bothers some people's stomach, but it never has bothered mine.  If in ain't broke, don't fix it so to speak. 

Glad someone agrees.  I still work in molecular biology and it's been awhile since I took biochem.