Effect of beta-alanine supplementation on repeated sprint performance during the Loughborough Intermittent Shuttle Test

Abstract

The aim of this study was to examine the effect of β-alanine supplementation on repeated sprint performance during an intermittent exercise protocol designed to replicate games play. Sixteen elite and twenty non-elite game players performed the Loughborough Intermittent Shuttle Test (LIST) on two separate occasions. Trials were separated by 4 weeks of supplementation with either β-alanine (BA) or maltodextrin (MD). There was no deterioration in sprint times from Set 1 to Set 6 of the LIST in either group prior to supplementation (elite: P=0.92; non-elite: P=0.12). Neither BA nor MD supplementation affected sprint times. Blood lactate concentrations were elevated during exercise in both groups, with no effect of supplementation. β-Alanine supplementation did not significantly improve sprint performance during the LIST. Neither group showed a performance decrement prior to supplementation, which might have masked any benefit from increased muscle buffering capacity due to β-alanine supplementation.