Sodium bicarbonate
Food-grade sodium bicarbonate powder, or enteric-coated / hydrogel-delivery capsules (e.g. Maurten Bicarb) to cut GI distress
Strong
Several good studies agree
An ISSN position stand plus two meta-analyses (24 studies for strength/endurance; 20 studies and 241 athletes for team sport) converge on a small consistent benefit in a well-defined duration window, and equally consistently on no strength effect. The prediction interval in the team-sport meta crossed zero, so individual response is genuinely variable.
It helps muscles keep going in hard efforts of 30 seconds to 12 minutes, worth about 1 to 3%. It does nothing for how much you can lift in one go.
Improves muscular endurance (SMD 0.37, 95% CI 0.15 to 0.59) and high-intensity intermittent team-sport performance (Hedges' g 0.23, 95% CI 0.07 to 0.39), worth ~1.3–2.9% in 30 s–12 min events — with no effect at all on maximal strength (SMD −0.03, 95% CI −0.18 to 0.12).
Raises extracellular bicarbonate (+2.73 mmol/L, 95% CI 2.16 to 3.30) and blood pH (+0.050, 95% CI 0.025 to 0.075), steepening the H⁺ gradient out of working muscle and letting glycolysis run longer before acidosis limits it. Blood lactate rises (+1.73 mmol/L) precisely because more lactate leaves the muscle.
Athletes in 30 s–12 min maximal events (800 m, 2000 m row, 4 km TT, 200–400 m swim) and in repeated-sprint team sports — benefit grows across repeated bouts (d = 0.62 by the fourth sprint). Useless for 1RM strength and for efforts under 30 s.
What to buy
- ✓Food-grade sodium bicarbonate powder, or enteric-coated / hydrogel-delivery capsules (e.g. Maurten Bicarb) to cut GI distress
- ✓0.3 g/kg body mass single dose (0.2 g/kg is the minimum effective); 0.4–0.5 g/kg adds side effects without adding benefit. Serial loading: 0.4–0.5 g/kg/day split into 0.1–0.2 g/kg portions across 3–7 days.
- ✓Third-party tested (USP, NSF, Informed Sport)
- ✕Proprietary blends that hide the dose per ingredient
- ✕Unstandardised extracts with no active-compound percentage
- · GI distress — bloating, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain and diarrhoea; the dose-limiting problem and the reason it is trialled in training first
- · High sodium load: 0.3 g/kg in a 70 kg person is ~5.7 g of sodium bicarbonate (~1.6 g sodium) — inappropriate in hypertension, heart failure or sodium-restricted diets
- · Contraindicated in pregnancy and in significant renal impairment; metabolic alkalosis is possible with repeated high doses
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Capsules take the guesswork out of 0.3 g per kilo of body weight. Take it with a carbohydrate meal and 2–3 hours before the session, or the GI distress will cost you more than the bicarbonate gains.
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Pharmacy-grade tablets at a fixed 650 mg, which makes the arithmetic simple: a 70 kg athlete needs roughly 32 of them for a full 0.3 g/kg dose.
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Delayed release moves the dissolution past the stomach, which is the whole reason the hydrogel and enteric versions exist. The best-rated option here if plain bicarbonate has wrecked your gut before.
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See all on AmazonEvery result, next to the line that means no effect
Each diamond is a study's best estimate. The thin line shows how sure the study was: the shorter the line, the more certain the result.
- Muscular enduranceSMD · Grgic et al., Sports Medicine 2020 (13 studies)+0.37+0.15 … +0.59
- Maximal strengthSMD (null) · Grgic et al., Sports Medicine 2020 (11 studies) — no effect−0.03−0.18 … +0.12
- High-intensity intermittent performanceHedges' g · Ge et al., Frontiers in Nutrition 2026 (20 studies, 241 athletes); prediction interval −0.22 to 0.68+0.23+0.07 … +0.39
- Blood bicarbonatemmol/L · Ge et al., Frontiers in Nutrition 2026+2.73+2.16 … +3.30
Each unit gets its own scale, so numbers are never mixed on one line. When a study gave no range, we leave it blank instead of inventing one.
3 studies over 6 years
The studies
- 1.International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: sodium bicarbonate and exercise performanceJournal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition · 2021 · systematic review
0.2 g/kg minimum, 0.3 g/kg optimal, taken 60–180 min pre-exercise; ergogenic for 30 s–12 min efforts (800 m +1.8–2.9%, 4 km TT ~2%, 2000 m row +1.4%). GI distress mitigated by lower dose, 180 min timing, high-carb meal or enteric coating.
- 2.Effects of Sodium Bicarbonate Supplementation on Muscular Strength and Endurance: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysisSports Medicine · 2020 · meta-analysis · 24 experiments
Muscular endurance SMD 0.37 (0.15–0.59, p=0.001); large muscle groups 0.40 (0.13–0.66), small 0.31 (0.04–0.59). Muscular strength SMD −0.03 (−0.18 to 0.12, p=0.725).
- 3.Effects of acute or short-term oral sodium bicarbonate supplementation on high-intensity intermittent exercise performance and physiological responses in team-sport athletes: a systematic review and meta-analysisFrontiers in Nutrition · 2026 · meta-analysis · 20 experiments · n = 241
Hedges' g 0.23 (95% CI 0.07–0.39, p=0.008) across 53 effect sizes, prediction interval −0.22 to 0.68; bicarbonate +2.73 mmol/L, pH +0.050, lactate +1.73 mmol/L. Of 12 studies assessing GI symptoms, 4 found increases and 7 did not.
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