The buffering capacity of Sodium Bicarbonate and Sodium Citrate has been well-studied for their potential to decrease the acidity of our blood during exercise, and ultimately attenuate fatigue.
In a larger effort to reevaluate the hyperhydration strategies in the lead-up to the Tokyo Olympics, Dr. Siegler and colleagues aimed to uncover if buffering agents such as Sodium Bicarbonate and Sodium Citrate have the potential to enhance performance in ways that had not been previously studied.
As I have discussed on this forum before I’m a frequent user of sodium bicarb loading and greenleaf/sims hyper hydration strategies…and in fact during one of those threads we mused that sodium bicarb might not be providing a so much of a buffering benefit as it was just working to mimic the greenleaf/sims salt loading protocol.
So interesting to see somebody take a more rigorous approach to answering that question!
I used sodium loading previous to my state TT win last year. I used sodium bicarb loading previous to my (one and only) triathlon podium finish last year. So both strategies can be used by a joe schmoe athlete…now, how much did they help? I don’t know. There is a good chance both helped but in such an uncontrolled situation, who can say for sure?
Here is what I would do. I normally mix 1.3tbsp sodium bicarb in 8oz of water…3x. Every half hour I’ll drink one. Wait 1/2hr after the last dose and race.
I would do the same thing for DK except I wouldn’t mix in the sodium bicarb. I’d just drink the water. Because nobody needs to buffer against lactate at DK. It’s a 200 mile race that’s going to take 10+ hours.
What I did not really understand: What is going on with sodium citrate? Can I use it the same way as sodium bicarb? Same amout and same ingesting protocol and expect similar results? Or is there a different effect expected in comparison with sodium bicarb?
Edit: ok, watched the results part again. If I understand correctly, Sodium citrate is almost expected to buffer as well as Sodium bicarb with less discomfort.
good catch, @Todd_Palmer! Yikes. Even when I was competing I never weighed that much. Maybe half that much.
One time I put a tsp of sodium bicarb in my smoothie and mixed it up. Bad idea. It totally exploded. I still find specs of dried blueberry smoothie on the wall from time to time. Had to paint the kitchen.
So is the xantham / alginate in there to thicken AND get the bicarb past the stomach without causing GI distress?
As well as preventing G.I. distress, the new product also doubles bicarb absorption rate, meaning the gains are still coming seven hours deep into the longest monument or world championship race.
But what IS the marginal gain for the top 1% of endurance athletes and where with in a 4-6+ hour effort does the gain manifest? What kind of tactics need to be employed to maintain the gain?
Finally when is the Saturday AM app going to have a bi-line for this under nectar? @Dr_Alex_Harrison (just kidding…or am I?)
But couldn’t one just get a thicker capsule that can withstand the stomach that dissolves later and reduces the distress when straight baking soda is taken without the gelatin? I mean that’s what this is, using gelatin to delay absorption.
Unless it’s like the secret ingredient in my dad’s famous “Secret Ingredient Soup”
I have used their gels in my mix, and depending on how you’re feeling on the bike that can range from “okay” to “oh god it’s a big hot booger” This looks like the carb gels but more…a lot more.
Yikes. Even when I was competing I never weighed that much. Maybe half that much. 
This looks like the carb gels but more…a lot more.