Daily intake of water rich in bicarbonate (bicarbonate) ensures that anoxic power is maintained without much loss even when dehydration is near. Data was reported. This is the result of a pilot study conducted on elite judo athletes at the level of participation in international competitions in Poland.
Verification of the two effects of dehydration and improvement of acid-base balance
In martial arts, anaerobic power is often the key to victory or defeat. In judo competitions, a four-minute match is usually repeated several times until the final, and the decrease in instantaneous power that occurs during that time is thought to be mainly due to decompensated acid-base balance, dehydration tendency, and depletion of muscle glycogen. Be done.
However, it is often unclear how much dehydration impairs anaerobic performance, and research results are inconsistent. On the other hand, there is no doubt that proper hydration is important for maintaining homeostasis of various functions of the human body. In addition, there is a lot of evidence that the buffering action of bicarbonate and the like suppresses metabolic acidosis and improves anaerobic performance.
Based on these findings, the authors hypothesize that chronic intake of bicarbonate-rich water will reduce dehydration during exercise and improve the performance of high-intensity anaerobic exercise. Study was carried out.
Crossover test with Polish elite judoka
The subjects of the study are eight male elite judo players. All have at least 12 years of training experience, participate in international competitions as Polish national team members, and are national competition medalists. The weight class was limited to either the 73 kg class or the 81 kg class to avoid complicating the hydration protocol.
The main characteristics of the participants were age 24.3 ± 0.5 years, height 181 ± 2.3 cm, weight 81 ± 2.4 kg, VO2max 59.7 ± 3.2 mL / kg / min, and the total workload (TW) was the upper limbs. 192.10 ± 5.50 J / kg, lower limbs 246.00 ± 6.50 J / kg, average power (Mean Power; MP) is 7.22 ± 0.47 W / kg for the upper limbs, 9.14 ± 0.87 W / kg for the lower limbs.
The study design is a crossover method that attempts a condition in which everyone ingests normal water and a condition in which water rich in bicarbonate (HCO3-about 4,000 mg / dm3) is ingested. In both conditions, either water was ingested for 21 days at 3.2-3.4 L / day, which was set based on the individual body weight of the participants. There was a 21-day washout period between the two conditions.
During the study period, the diet was 3,455 ± 436 kcal / day (carbohydrate 55%, protein 20%, fat 25%), and exercise was refrained from 2 days before each performance test. The diet before the performance test was 600 kcal (70% carbohydrate, 10% protein, 20% fat). These diets were planned by a nutritionist and all were monitored. Also, during the study period, the intake of drugs, supplements and ergogenic aids was banned.
Performance test
In the performance test, the load was first applied with a treadmill at an intensity of 50% VO2max until dehydration occurred. Dehydration was determined by weighing at 12 minute intervals and weight loss of 3%.
Then, every 15 minutes, take either normal water or bicarbonate-rich water set for each condition at a rate of 1/12 of the weight loss, and either recover or lose weight. At the time of ingesting 150% of the water, the dehydration was considered corrected.
Anaerobic performance was measured in the upper and lower limbs by a 30-second wingate test, and aerobic performance was also measured by an ergometer.
Significant difference in total upper limb work and average power in dehydrated state
As a result of trials with the above protocol, the total work (TW) of the upper limbs was significantly increased in the dehydrated state under the condition of ingesting water rich in bicarbonate compared to the condition of ingesting normal water (161.67). vs 195.43J / kg, p = 0.014), and the average power (MP) of the upper limbs also increased significantly (6.56 vs 7.79W / kg, p = 0.007). In the comparison at the timing when the water intake was satisfied, the levels of TW and MP tended to be higher than those in the dehydrated state in both conditions, and no difference was observed between the conditions.
Plasma HCO3-levels and lactate levels were significantly higher under conditions of ingestion of bicarbonate-rich water, both when dehydrated and when water intake was met. The authors believe that this is a result of the increase in the concentration gradient of extracellular and intracellular H + due to the increase in the level of bicarbonate, and does not indicate muscle fatigue. There was no significant difference in plasma pH between the conditions.
Urine osmolality is significantly lower under conditions of ingestion of bicarbonate-rich water
There was also a significant difference in urinary osmolality between the conditions. Specifically, when the water intake is satisfied, the condition for ingesting normal water is 769.62 ± 55.82mOsm / L, whereas the condition for ingesting water rich in bicarbonate is 679.87. It is significantly low at ± 57.92mOsm / L, and there is a significant difference even in the dehydrated state (913.125 ± 53.48 vs 862.62 ± 51.05mOsm / L) and 60 minutes after the start of dehydration correction (644.62 ± 42.92 vs 568.37 ± 38.25mOsm / L). (Both p <0.05). The difference between the conditions in urinary osmolality became insignificant 120 minutes after the start of dehydration correction.
There was also a significant difference in urine output up to 3 hours later, and there were fewer conditions for ingesting bicarbonate-rich water (484 ± 60 vs 316 ± 45 mL, p <0.05).
Continued intake of high bicarbonate water is a performance benefit
The authors said, “Although there are already studies that have shown usefulness by examining the ergogenic effects of bicarbonate before this study, this study is new in some respects. I got the insight. ” One is that the subject of the study is an elite athlete group, and the second is that both the effect of bicarbonate as a buffer and the effect of suppressing dehydration were examined.
In conclusion, the results of this study conclude that “the benefits of high bicarbonate water intake in terms of acid-base equilibrium buffering capacity, anaerobic performance, and correction of dehydration have been shown.”
Literature Information
原題のタイトルは、「Chronic Ingestion of Bicarbonate-Rich Water Improves Anaerobic Performance in Hypohydrated Elite Judo Athletes: A Pilot Study」。〔Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 May 6;18(9):4948〕
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