When most people think of building endurance, running and other somewhat intense physical activities come to mind. But what if boosting your stamina was as simple as consuming a rather common kitchen ingredient? One that you likely have in your pantry right now?
What Ingredient Has This Effect?
If you’re wondering what muscle and energy stretching ingredient you could be holding onto that can provide you these types of results, wonder no more. It is baking soda.
That’s right. One recent study published in The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research has revealed that individuals who ingest baking soda approximately one hour before working out (specifically, doing squats) had just over a 25% improvement in their performance. How does this happen?
How It Works
Baking soda decreases the acidity in your body. This is huge when it comes to physical endurance because exercise usually raises the prominence of acids in your body, which is one reason that your performance declines as you work out.
How Much Do You Need?
So, how much baking soda do you need to enjoy the benefits of increased endurance? This particular study involved participants taking in 0.3 grams of baking soda. They dissolved it in something sweet when consuming it, likely to make it more palatable and easier to get down.
One Word of Caution (Actually Two)
One thing you need to know about baking soda is that it has the ability of affecting your digestive tract, causing a little stomach upset. Therefore, you may want to work up to this amount slowly to give your body time to get used to it.
Second, baking soda is actually called sodium bicarbonate, which means it is high in salt. This is important to realize if you have blood pressure issues or are trying to limit your sodium intake. If this is you, you may want to discuss this particular remedy with your doctor before trying it as you may do more harm than good.
Who says that all baking goods are bad for you? Here’s one that isn’t!
