The Effects of Novel Ingestion of Sodium Bicarbonate on Repeated Sprint Ability

Abstract

Abstract:Purpose: To examine the influence of an acute dose of sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3) on buffering capacity and performance during a repeated sprint ability (RSA) protocol. Methods: Eleven (mean ± SD: age 24.6 ± 6.1y; mass 74.9 ± 5.7kg; height 177.2 ± 6.7cm) participated in the study, undertaking four test sessions. On the first visit to the laboratory, each participant ingested 300 mg.kg-1 of NaHCO3 (in 450ml of flavoured water) and blood samples were obtained at regular intervals to determine the individual times peak pH and HCO3-response time. During the subsequent visits, participants ingested either 300mg.kg-1 of NaHCO3, or 270 mg.kg-1 BM of NaCI or no drink followed by a RSA cycling protocol (10 x 6s sprints with 60s recovery), which commenced at each individuals pre-determined ingestion peak pH response time. Blood samples were obtained pre-exercise, and after the 1st, 5th and 10th sprint to determine the blood pH, HCO3-and lactate (La-) responses. Results: The total work completed during the repeated sprint protocol was higher (P < 0.05) in the NaHCO3 condition (69.8 ± 11.7kJ) compared with both the control (59.6±12.2 kJ) and placebo (63.0±8.3 kJ) conditions. Peak power output (PPO) was similar (P > 0.05) between the three conditions. Relative to the control and placebo conditions, NaHCO3 ingestion induced higher (P < 0.05) blood pH and HCO3-concentrations pre-exercise and during the bouts, and higher lactate concentrations (P < 0.05) following the final sprint. Conclusion: The results from the present study suggest that NaHCO3-improves the total amount of work completed during RSA through enhanced buffering capacity. Results:The total work completed during the repeated sprint protocol was higher (P < 0.05) in the NaHCO 3 condition (69.8 ± 11.7kJ) compared with both the control (59.6±12.2 kJ) and placebo (63.0±8.3 kJ) conditions. Peak power output (PPO) was similar (P > 0.05) between the three conditions. Relative to the control and placebo conditions, NaHCO 3 ingestion induced higher (P < 0.05) blood pH and HCO 3 -concentrations pre-exercise and during the bouts, and higher lactate concentrations (P < 0.05) following the final sprint. Conclusion: The results from the present study suggest that NaHCO 3 -improves the total amount of work completed during RSA through enhanced buffering capacity.

Ingestion of Sodium Bicarbonate (NaHCO3) Following a Fatiguing Bout of Exercise Accelerates Postexercise Acid-Base Balance Recovery and Improves Subsequent High-Intensity Cycling Time to Exhaustion

“…Exercise cycling time to exhaustion improved however in TLIM2 following NaHCO3 ingestion upon pH peaking at 60 min recovery for two participants, despite these individuals not exercising at peak alkalosis. Equally, in the aforementioned studies (Miller et al, 2016;Jones et al, 2016;Deb et al, 2017;Gough et al, 2017) NaHCO3 ingestion was administered pre-exercise and in resting conditions and not in the post exercise fatigue state of the present study.…”

“…A reason for such variation might be the ingestion strategy adopted in this study, with recent work highlighting an ingestion strategy based upon each individual's alkalotic peak (i.e. pH or HCO3 -) might be more appropriate due to a high inter-individual variation to achieve peak alkalosis (Miller et al, 2016;Jones et al, 2016;Deb et al, 2017;Gough et al, 2017). This might explain why three participants failed to elicit ergogenic effects from NaHCO3 supplementation administered at a set time frame (60 min), corroborating with previous research (McNaughton, 1992;Vanhalato et al, 2010;Higgins et al, 2013).…”

Determinants of curvature constant (W’) of the power duration relationship under normoxia and hypoxia: the effect of pre-exercise alkalosis

“…More recent methodological developments in NaHCO 3 administration suggest an inter-individual variability in extracellular peak blood alkalosis, which ranges from 10 to 140 min (Stannard et al 2016; Miller et al 2016). Consequently, previous research utilising standard ingestion times across all participants may not have induced individual peak alkalosis, such as that used by Vanhatalo et al (2010b).…”

Sodium bicarbonate ingestion and individual variability in time-to-peak pH

“…H + efflux out of the muscle cell has been reported to be inhibited by extracellular acidosis 9 and enhanced by a greater extracellular buffer concentration 10 . It is therefore frequently hypothesized that increases in the extracellular buffer concentration, via the ingestion of an alkaline solution such as sodium bicarbonate 4 (NaHCO 3 ), may improve H + efflux out of the muscle cell and improve repeated-sprint performance 11 .…”

“…As a result of the mechanisms by which this supplement may act to delay fatigue, many laboratory investigations have used a variety of relevant exercise models including running 16,17,18 , cycling 11,19,20,21 , boxing and swimming 22,23 in order to assess its effectiveness. Indeed, such is the wealth of published studies on sodium bicarbonate, that recently, researchers have started to focus on its co-ingestion with other active ingredients such as caffeine 24,25 and -alanine 26,27,28 in order to assess the potential additive effects in order to provide further performance enhancements via the activation of different ergogenic mechanisms simultaneously.…”