During insulin stimulation whole body glucose uptake is increased in trained compared with untrained humans. However, it is not known which tissue is responsible. Seven young male subjects bicycle trained one leg for 10 wk at 70% of maximal O2 consumption (VO2max). Sixteen hours after last exercise bout, a three-step euglycemic hyperinsulinemic clamp (clamp 1) was performed (insulin levels, means +/- SE: 9 +/- 1, 53 +/- 3, 174 +/- 5, and 2,323 +/- 80 was microU/ml), with measurement of arteriovenous differences and blood flow in both legs. After 6 days of detraining subjects were restudied, having exercised the untrained leg 16 h before. VO2max for trained (T) and untrained (UT) legs was 52 +/- 2 vs. 44 +/- 2 ml.min-1.kg-1 (P < 0.05). In clamp 1 glucose uptake in T and UT legs was 1.0 +/- 0.2 vs. 0.5 +/- 0.1 mg.min-1.kg-1 (basal), 9.7 +/- 2.3 vs. 6.7 +/- 1.7 (P < 0.05) (step I), 19.2 +/- 2.8 vs. 14.3 +/- 2.0 (P < 0.05) (step II), and 22.8 +/- 2.3 vs. 18.6 +/- 2.2 (P < 0.05) (step III). During insulin infusion lactate release (P < 0.05) [8.9 +/- 1.8 vs. 2.9 +/- 0.9 mumol.min-1.kg-1 (step I), 24.6 +/- 3.1 vs. 12.5 +/- 2.6 (step III)] and glycogen storage (P < 0.1) calculated by indirect calorimetry [6.7 +/- 2.3 vs. 5.0 +/- 1.7 mg.min-1.kg-1 (step I), 16.8 +/- 2.1 vs. 14.1 +/- 1.8 (step III)] were always higher in T than in UT legs. Release of glycerol, free fatty acids, and tyrosine and clearance of insulin were not influenced by training. Insulin-mediated glucose uptake was not increased after detraining or a single bout of exercise. In conclusion, training increases sensitivity and responsiveness of insulin-mediated glucose uptake in human muscle by local mechanisms. Glycolysis and glycogen storage are equally enhanced. The training effect represents a genuine adaptation to repeated exercise but is short lived. Insulin clearance in muscle is not influenced by training.