How Much Could Sodium Bicarbonate Help in a 5KM Race?

Sodium bicarbonate has been studied as a sports supplement for decades, and the evidence is compelling: for high-intensity exercise, bicarbonate can improve performance by up to around 3% in some athletes.

More recent research suggests that the benefits may extend beyond short, maximal efforts, with endurance events potentially seeing improvements in the region of 1–2%.

But, not everyone responds to sodium bicarbonate in the same way.

At FLYCARB, we've seen this first-hand. Josh appears to respond particularly well to bicarbonate and feels that his improvements are towards the upper end of what the research suggests is possible.

Jack, meanwhile, considers his response to be much closer to average.

And that's an important point. You don't need to be a huge responder for bicarbonate to make a meaningful difference.

Consider what a 1% improvement could mean over 5K:

5K time	1% improvement
20:00	12 seconds
17:00	10.2 seconds
15:00	9 seconds
14:00	8.4 seconds

In a sport where races can be decided by fractions of a second, those are significant gains.

For a 15-minute 5K runner, a 1% improvement is the equivalent of finding nine seconds.

Why doesn't everyone respond the same way?

Sodium bicarbonate works by increasing the body's ability to buffer the hydrogen ions produced during high-intensity exercise.

As exercise intensity increases, acidity inside the working muscles rises. This contributes to the familiar burning sensation and, ultimately, limits how long you can sustain very high intensities.

By increasing blood bicarbonate levels before exercise, you can increase your extracellular buffering capacity and help manage this accumulation of acidity.

The result can be a greater ability to sustain high-intensity efforts.

However, the size of the effect varies from person to person. Factors including the dose, timing, exercise protocol and individual physiology can all influence the response.

Is sodium bicarbonate worth trying?

If you're competing in an event where high-intensity efforts matter, it's certainly worth considering.

You might be a particularly strong responder and see a substantial improvement.

You might have a more modest response.

Or you might find that bicarbonate doesn't make a noticeable difference to your performance at all.

The only way to know is to test it properly in training.

But if the potential upside is even 1%, it's a meaningful amount of time.

And when you're chasing a PB, a qualification time, a podium or simply trying to find every possible advantage, that's a lot of time to leave on the track.

SHOP BICARRB

If you're unsure about how much to take or when to take it, get in touch. We're always happy to help.