Bicarb vs Super Shoes, Aerodynamics & Tech Suits: How Big Is the Performance Gain?
FLYCARB-fuelled athletes have won World, European and Commonwealth titles across running, cycling, rowing, swimming and other endurance sports.
At elite levels, the difference between a podium spot and going home empty-handed is small, and marginal gains can make the difference. From carbon-plated running shoes to aerodynamic cycling kit, rowing blades and technical swimming suits, elite sport is constantly innovating. But how big is the performance boost from sodium bicarbonate (bicarb) compared with some of the biggest technological advances in sport?
The answer is surprisingly well.
How much can bicarb improve performance?
Research suggests that sodium bicarbonate can improve exercise performance by around 1.4% in longer endurance events, with benefits of up to around 3% during high-intensity shorter efforts approximately 15 minutes.
To put that into perspective, let's compare the potential benefits of bicarb with some of sport's most significant performance innovations.
Running: bicarb vs carbon-plated super shoes 🏃
Carbon-plated super shoes have transformed distance running.
Advanced foam compounds and rigid carbon plates can improve running economy by around 2–4%, with studies suggesting this can translate into approximately 1–2% faster race performance.
At elite level, that is enough to change records, qualification standards and medal outcomes.
Interestingly, the potential performance benefit of sodium bicarbonate for running sits in a similar range, particularly when the race involves sustained high-intensity efforts.
For middle-distance runners, 800m and 1500m athletes and other events where anaerobic energy production plays a significant role, bicarb can be particularly relevant.
The takeaway: super shoes optimise how efficiently you move. Bicarb helps your body cope with the acidity produced when you're working hard.
Read the advanced footwear review
Cycling: bicarb vs aerodynamics 🚴
In cycling, aerodynamics are one of the biggest opportunities to go faster without producing more power.
Optimising a rider's position, skinsuit, helmet and equipment can produce huge performance gains depending on the rider, speed and event.
Even something as seemingly small as helmet design can have a meaningful effect, with research showing differences in aerodynamic performance of up to approximately 1.5% between helmet shapes.
Bicarb works in a completely different way, but the potential magnitude is comparable.
For cyclists tackling short, hard efforts, time trials, climbs or repeated high-intensity efforts, sodium bicarbonate supplementation can help buffer the hydrogen ions associated with intense exercise, potentially allowing you to sustain a higher intensity for longer.
The takeaway: aerodynamics reduce the energy required to move through the air. Bicarb helps you maintain power when intensity gets very high.
Rowing: bicarb vs optimised blade design 🚣
Rowing is a perfect example of how a seemingly tiny performance gain can have a huge impact.
Research into optimised rowing blade design found that an improved blade could produce approximately 0.4% higher boat speed at the same power output.
That sounds small.
Over a 2,000m race, however, it can equate to roughly 1.5 seconds or eight metres.
In elite rowing, that can be the difference between winning a medal and finishing outside the podium.
The potential benefit of bicarb in rowing is considerably larger than that blade-design improvement. Rowers most often race 2000m, taking around 5 to 6 minutes, making it one of the sports where sodium bicarbonate supplementation is particularly well suited.
The takeaway: elite performance is often decided by fractions of a percent. Bicarb has the potential to offer a considerably larger physiological advantage than many equipment innovations.
Swimming: bicarb vs technical racing suits 🏊
Modern technical swimming suits are engineered to reduce drag, improve streamlining and support body position in the water.
Research has reported performance improvements of approximately 1–3%, although the precise benefit varies depending on the swimmer, suit and event.
Again, this puts the potential performance benefit of sodium bicarbonate firmly in the same conversation.
The takeaway: technical suits improve hydrodynamic efficiency. Bicarb targets a completely different part of the performance equation, but the potential size of the gain can be similar.
Read the high-speed swimsuit review
What about other sports?
The potential benefits of bicarb aren't limited to running, cycling, rowing and swimming.
Sodium bicarbonate has been studied across a wide range of sports, including athletics, team sports, combat sports and other activities involving repeated or sustained intense efforts.
That makes bicarb particularly interesting for:
- Athletics – especially 400m, 800m, 1500m and other high-intensity events
- Cycling – time trials, track cycling, climbs and repeated hard efforts
- Rowing – particularly 2,000m racing
- Swimming – sprint and middle-distance events
- Triathlon – particularly for high-intensity sections and finishing efforts
- Team sports – where repeated high-intensity efforts are required
- Racquet sports – where repeated bursts of high-intensity activity are common
- Combat sports – where athletes need to sustain repeated maximal efforts
The bicarb advantage
The biggest technological advances in sport don't necessarily provide huge improvements.
A 0.4% gain from an improved rowing blade can be decisive. A 1% aerodynamic advantage can change a cycling result. A 1–2% improvement from running shoes can transform a race.
Bicarb isn't a piece of equipment. It doesn't make your shoes lighter, your bike more aerodynamic or your swimming stroke more efficient.
Instead, sodium bicarbonate supplementation supports your body's ability to buffer the acid load associated with high-intensity exercise, potentially helping you maintain performance when the effort starts to hurt.
And the best bit is that bicarb can be used alongside these technological marginal gains!