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Elite athletes are using sodium bicarbonate—ordinary baking soda—to improve performance. Research suggests it can provide an advantage during certain high-intensity efforts. But does that benefit translate to everyday endurance athletes, and what are you giving up to get it?

In this episode, Coach Justin and Coach Katie examine the science behind sodium bicarbonate supplementation, its potential benefits for runners, cyclists, and triathletes, and the costs and side effects that rarely make it into promotional videos. They also challenge a bigger question: When does chasing marginal gains distract from the training and nutrition fundamentals that actually drive performance?

What You'll Learn

• Where sodium bicarbonate may improve performance—and why the evidence is less convincing for longer endurance events.
• The real tradeoffs of supplementation, including gastrointestinal distress, high sodium intake, and expensive products.
• Why copying elite athletes can be misleading, especially when your racing demands and performance limitations are different.
• How to decide whether a marginal gain is worth pursuing before investing money, time, and effort.

Timestamps

• 00:19 – Why are athletes consuming baking soda?
• 03:02 – How sodium bicarbonate works during exercise
• 05:51 – Which types of efforts benefit most?
• 14:28 – Why bicarbonate can't prevent every type of fatigue
• 20:41 – Should recreational athletes follow the professionals?
• 23:06 – Gastrointestinal side effects and race-day risks
• 29:23 – Research, dosing protocols, and practical challenges
• 38:12 – Maurten and other bicarbonate products: convenience versus cost
• 46:39 – What does a potential 1–3% performance improvement really mean?
• 55:24 – Why training, fueling, and recovery still matter more
• 59:24 – Sodium intake and other health considerations
• 01:05:33 – Is chasing marginal gains taking the joy out of racing?

The Endurance Athlete Journey Podcast explores the training, nutrition, racing, and decision-making that shape endurance performance.

For coaching inquiries:

Coach Katie → https://fuel2run.com

Coach Justin → https://tabularasaracing.com

Podcast Email → theenduranceathletejourney@gmail.com