The Study
Effects of an 8-week high intensity interval training (HIIT) and ashwagandha supplementation on aerobic capacity, muscle oxygenation and haematological parameters in healthy men
This study is like a carefully designed test where some people got real ashwagandha pills and others got fake pills, and nobody knew which ones they got - not even the scientists running the test. Everyone did the same exercise training program. The results showed that the people taking ashwagandha didn't do any better than the people taking fake pills. So we can say with good confidence that this herb supplement doesn't help healthy young men run or row better when they're already exercising, at least not at this dose.
Analysis score
Maximum 90 for a randomized controlled trial.
Where the score came from
This study tested if ashwagandha pills help healthy men get better at exercise when combined with high-intensity interval training. Researchers had two groups - one took ashwagandha, one took fake pills - and both did the same 8-week workout program.
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 561 / 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.
- 1For a person wanting to improve fitness: the workout alone works great, but taking ashwagandha doesn't add any extra advantage.
- 2The supplement didn't help with oxygen delivery to muscles either.
- 3Both groups got much better at exercise after training (17% longer test time, 12-14% more power).
- 4But the ashwagandha group did NOT get any extra benefits compared to the placebo group.
- 5No changes in blood markers were found.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
Biology of Sport
Year
2025
Authors
Jówko Ewa, A. Klusiewicz, Kinga Rębiś, B. Długołęcka, M. Charmas, I. Cieśliński
Related Content
Claims (7)
Taking ashwagandha supplements (300-600mg every day) for about 2 months makes people stronger at bench pressing, according to this claim.
Taking ashwagandha supplements while doing high-intensity interval training doesn't help your fitness any more than just doing the training by itself. That's what this study found when it tested healthy young men doing 8 weeks of workouts.
If healthy young men do intense rowing workouts for 8 weeks (about 2 months), doing short 1.5-minute bursts at very high intensity 3 times per week, they can significantly boost their aerobic fitness - improving their exercise endurance by about 17% and their peak power output by 12-23%.
Taking ashwagandha supplements (an herb used in traditional medicine) every day for about 2 months might help people exercise longer without getting as tired by improving how efficiently their body uses oxygen during physical activity.
A study on young men doing intense exercise for 8 weeks found that those taking a dummy pill got better at using oxygen in their muscles, but those taking ashwagandha didn't improve at all - suggesting the herb might actually block the normal benefits exercise has on muscle oxygen use.
After doing 8 weeks of intense interval exercise, young men can breathe in about 5% more oxygen per minute, but taking an ashwagandha supplement doesn't help any more than a fake pill, and because they might gain a little weight, their oxygen use relative to body weight doesn't really improve.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.