The objective of this study is to assess the influence of acute exercise, training and intensified training on the plasma amino acid profile. In a 32-week longitudinal study using 10 Standardbred horses, training was divided into four phases, including a phase of intensified training for five horses. At the end of each phase, a standardized exercise test, SET, was performed. Plasma amino acid concentrations before and after each SET were measured. Training significantly reduced mean plasma aspartic acid concentration, whereas exercise significantly increased the plasma concentrations of alanine, taurine, methionine, leucine, tyrosine and phenylalanine and reduced the plasma concentrations of glycine, ornithine, glutamine, citrulline and serine. Normally and intensified trained horses differed not significantly. It is concluded that amino acids should not be regarded as limiting training performance in Standardbreds except for aspartic acid which is the most likely candidate for supplementation.