The Study
Effects of acute and multi-day low-dose sodium bicarbonate intake on high-intensity endurance exercise performance in male recreational cyclists
This study tested if taking baking soda helps cyclists ride longer. It found that baking soda does make the blood less acidic, which is good. But it didn't prove that cyclists actually rode longer or faster because the results were too close to call — like flipping a coin and getting 6 heads out of 10, which might just be luck.
Analysis score
Maximum 90 for a randomized controlled trial.
Where the score came from
Scientists tested if taking baking soda before cycling helps people ride longer. They gave some people a small dose every day for four days, others a single dose before riding, and others a placebo.
Where does this study sit?
Reviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert Opinion
Max 574 / 100
Quality score
Participants are randomly assigned to treatment or control groups, minimizing bias. The gold standard for testing whether an intervention causes an effect.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1Even though some cyclists rode a little longer, the improvement was too small and inconsistent to say baking soda reliably helps most people cycle longer.
- 2Baking soda raised blood buffering levels by 2–4 mmol/L in both groups.
- 3One group rode 9% longer on average, but the result wasn't strong enough to be certain it wasn't due to chance.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
European Journal of Applied Physiology
Year
2024
Authors
S. Aktitiz, Ş. Koşar, H. Turnagöl
Related Content
Claims (7)
When male recreational cyclists take 0.2 grams of sodium bicarbonate per kilogram of body weight 90 minutes before cycling, their blood bicarbonate levels rise by about 3.7 mmol/L, but their ability to sustain high-intensity cycling until exhaustion does not improve significantly.
In male recreational cyclists, taking sodium bicarbonate at a dose of 0.2 grams per kilogram of body weight before exercise raises blood bicarbonate levels by 2.0 to 3.7 mmol/L compared to a placebo, but does not reliably extend the time until exhaustion during high-intensity cycling.
Male recreational cyclists who took sodium bicarbonate for four days at a dose of 0.2 grams per kilogram of body weight showed a 9% increase in time-to-exhaustion during exercise compared to those who took a placebo, but this difference was not statistically significant after adjusting for multiple comparisons.
Some endurance cyclists improve their performance with sodium bicarbonate, others see no change, and some perform worse, meaning the average benefit across all athletes does not reflect what happens in individuals.
Taking 0.2 to 0.5 grams of sodium bicarbonate per kilogram of body weight 60 to 180 minutes before exercise increases high-intensity athletic performance.
Taking sodium bicarbonate before high-intensity exercise lasting 30 seconds to 12 minutes results in better performance compared to not taking it.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.