Tadej Pogačar’s coach, Iñigo San Millán has debunked bicarbonate’s performance benefits, saying that the science simply doesn’t add up.
Team Jumbo-Visma has been having a good spring, and many of their rides claim that part of the reason is bicarbonate, essentially baking soda.
“It’s a big step. We’ve taken something that people have struggled to consume for decades and removed all the possible negatives from it,” Joshua Rowe, who is a scientist for Maurten, a sports nutrition company said to VeloNews. “I think that’s a game changer, and it looks like athletes do too.”
The claims about bicarbonate
Jumbo-Visma coach Mathieu Heijboer said that using the product has helped many of the riders on the team.
“This system is opening a new world for some of our riders who weren’t able to use bicarb before. I think it’s really a big change and a big advantage for riders who weren’t able to use it before,” Jumbo-Visma coach Mathieu Heijboer said. “We’ve seen the power outputs for 20 or 30-second sprints is higher with bicarb. The riders cope better with the lactic acid which is produced in those hard efforts.”
The claims don’t make sense to San Millán
However, Tadej Pogačar’s coach doesn’t believe there is any basis to believe this.He tweeted about the bicarbonate claims.
“A thread on how IMHO bicarbonate doesn’t work to “decrease” lactate from muscles. First of all, bicarbonate is one of the oldest supplements out there. It has been used for decades for this purpose. Like many supplements that don’t work, they tend to resurface 20-30 years later,” San Millán began. “Blood pH is 7.35-7.45 and one of the most sacred homeostatic states for human body. Three main elements ‘threaten’ blood pH: CO2, electrolyte concentrations and weak acid concentrations. During high intensity exercise and pathological stress, these elements are threats to blood pH.”
He continues to break down the concept, saying that “our body possess a large pool of bicarb to constantly defend the physiological and sacred pH of 7.35-7.45. This is key as if your blood pH or over those ranges you could simply die. Hence, exogenous bicarb will normally be neutralized as blood pH cannot homeostatic levels.
Bicarb can’t reach skeletal muscle
San Millán goes on to say that the reason that is doesn’t check out is that it’s not plausible the product could even reach skeletal muscles.
“The pH in skeletal muscle during high…
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