The Efficacy Of Individualizing Sodium Bicarbonate Supplementation Strategies On Elite-level Rowing Performance

Abstract

A recent review has addressed a number of practical issues associated with traditional sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3) supplementation approaches, identifying ingestion timing as critical to maximising the potential of this ergogenic medium. Furthermore, contemporary empirical studies have also suggested that adjusting the start of exercise to commensurate with an individual’s peak blood buffering response may result in better outcomes in terms of GI distress and exercise performance, however this concept has yet to be investigated in international level athletes. PURPOSE: The following study addressed the question of whether or not ingestion timing is critical to time-trial performance (2,000 m rowing time-trial) in elite-level rowers including Pan American, World Champion and Olympic team members) adhering to their own individualised pre-race strategies (e.g. nutrition, warm-up, etc.). METHODS: Twenty three (n = 23) elite rowers across two research centres (Canadian Sport Institute Pacific and the New South Wales Institute of Sport) completed three trials (one NaHCO3 loading profile to determine the individual’s time-to-peak blood buffering capacity followed by two randomized experimental trials (Consensus Standard (CON): 2,000 m rowing time trial (TT) performed 60 min post 0.3 g·kgBW-1 NaHCO3 ingestion; and Individualised Peak (IP): 2,000 m rowing TT performed at the rower’s individual peak bicarbonate concentration [HCO3-] (determined from the profiling trial) after ingesting 0.3 g·kgBW-1 NaHCO3)). RESULTS: Significant interaction effects and post hoc comparisons revealed differences between CON and IP at pre-warm up for HCO3- (mean difference of 2.9 ± 0.4 mmol·L-1 (95% CI 2.0 to 3.8 mmol·L-1); p = 0.02) but not at pre-TT. Performance times were significantly different between CON (369.0 ± 10.3 s) and IP (367 ± 10.5 s) (mean difference 1.5 ± 2.4 s (95% CI 0.5 to 2.6 s); p = 0.007), however given the effect size this difference was likely trivial. CONCLUSIONS: The findings of the present study do not support the recent claims that targeting the onset of exercise to commence with an individual’s peak blood buffering capacity after NaHCO3 supplementation is essential to maximise the erogenicity of this supplement.