I read somewhere that drinking baking soda with water before a race that is shorter than 15 minutes will help because it has similiar ingredients as illegal drugs. i cannot remeber the amount to drink per pound of body wieght, but I remeber that i would have to drink something like 62 grams, and i weigh 150.
is this a good idea and will it help?
would mixing with cool aid or other flavor drinks be fine?
Baking soda is a buffer for lactate and hydrogen ion build up. Increase the buffers, then more can build up before muscle pH lowers to critical levels.
All that is great as long as you are not having to take a dump or puke every 400m.
meaning?
Pac
You need to focus in on the dump/puke aspect before you worry about lactic acid buffering.
the real question is...does ingesting it necessarily mean that it will get into working muscles (where it would presumably buffer the lactic acid)? if so, how long does it take? does anyone have any real knowledge here?
... Similar ingrediants to illegal drugs, you idiots ...
agreed
oh wait, thats me your talkign about
Not baking soda, it's gun powder.
it really works. I'd only suggest it for like a 400m or 800m runner in a big race scenario. you will have to shit, a lot, afterwards.
agree here- I used to slam baking soda and/or antacids before 800s in high school. Be very sure you're in striking distance of a bog at any given time because it'll give you the runs like you read about
i've been told by my coach that alka seltzer (sodium bicarbonate) will help buffer acid buildup in the muscles.
This is a load of bull shit. it's a mind game. your body regulates blood pH so sensitively that anything you do will be futile.
plus, doing anything like drinking baking soda will actually make your blood more basic (think bleach) before your event, and therefore, your blood will already be acidic to counteract what you just did.
it's a placebo. just suck it up and run.
Effects of sodium bicarbonate ingestion on anaerobic performance: a meta-analytic review.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=8388767&dopt=Citation
Neutralize Acid to Enhance Performance
http://www.sportsci.org/traintech/buffer/lrm.htm
The Effects of Sodium Citrate Ingestion on 3000-m Time Trial Performance
(Need NSCA membership to view full article)
http://nsca.allenpress.com/nscaonline/?request=get-abstract&doi=10.1519/1533-4287
(2001)0152.0.CO;2
Effects of sodium bicarbonate ingestion on prolonged intermittent exercise.
Effects of sodium citrate ingestion before exercise on endurance performance in well trained college runners
Sorry, 3rd link doesn't work. You may need to cut and paste to get the abstract.
http://nsca.allenpress.com/nscaonline/?request=get-abstract&doi=10.1519/1533-4287
(2001)0152.0.CO;2
Bicarb "milkshake" was common till banned in horse racing/steeplejumping/showjumping.They tube the horse and pour into stomach.
As stated it's used to slow lactic acid buildup......DK/NS of efficacy.
The idea is just plain silly. Ingesting large amounts of Sodium will make you several pounds heavier, which will slow you down, negating any advantage from Lactate buffering.
I'd hate to be the jockey behind THAT horse
You are not injesting Sodium you moron, it's Sodium Bicarbonate. The are completly different things. Obviously, you did not do well in chemistry class.
The body cannot react to high bicarb levels that fast since bicarb has a hard time getting passed the blood brain barrier. Another example of this is post-hypercapneic alkalosis in COPD patients who are put on a ventilator. If the body regulated pH so well, why do they become alkalotic?
H2O wrote:
You are not injesting Sodium you moron, it's Sodium Bicarbonate. The are completly different things. Obviously, you did not do well in chemistry class.
You are missing the point smartypants. Ingesting a large amount of Sodium Bicarbonate will make you awfully thirsty, just as ingesting Sodium Chloride will.