This post will continue the fight sport theme so far this week by giving an overview of a piece from this month’s Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research that covers the use of sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO₃) as an ergogenic aid during boxing performance (full reference below). As an introduction, the reasoning for using NaHCO₃ is to improve blood buffering capacity through an increase in the electrochemical intra/extra cellular gradient facilitating the removal of protons that are thought to inhibit the mechanisms of muscle contraction. In essence, it is thought that supplementing NaHCO₃ will allow performance of high intensity exercise for longer.

In this reviewed piece by Siegler & Hirscher, participants consisted of 10 national standard boxers that were all in pre-competition training for upcoming bouts.  They were randomly paired and sparred twice separated by the space of a week and completed their usual pre-fight routines. Participants arrived in their pairs 1.5 hours prior to their bouts and were tested for pre-exercise blood acid-base balance and ingested either 0.3g.kg^-3 bodyweight of NaHCO₃ or 0.045g.kg^-3 bodyweight of a sodium chloride placebo. Sparring consisted of 4 3minute rounds each separated by 1 minute seated recovery.

As expected, an elevated blood buffering capacity was seen prior to the bout as a result of NaHCO₃ ingestion and this was maintained throughout the four rounds of boxing. The main point of interest flagged was the significantly greater punch efficacy seen in the NaHCO₃ group. The conclusion is made that the use of NaHCO₃ as an ergogenic aid may improve boxing performance over 4 rounds and that future research into use over longer bouts may have wider implications on boxing perfomance.

Siegler, J.C. & Hirscher, K. (2010). Sodium bicarbonate ingestion and boxing performance. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research 24(1) pp. 103-108.

I spent last week working with the British alpine development ski team in Italy. After 2 weeks technical training on the snow in Switzerland I met the guys at their base in San Sicario for a week of dryland training. After a little organisation including setting up a makeshift gym (see photo), we got down to work. The guys trained and tested really well all week and I’m happy with their progress as they move into the race season at the beginning of December.

The main benefit from the week for me was a clear demonstration that the difference even a small amount of education can make to how quickly a point is taken on board. The team won’t mind me saying too much that their diet was a little less than perfect and some of the culinary skills on display might have made a masterchef outtakes show. Meal times, instead of being a relaxed social gathering sometimes became a heated debate on the best way to prepare the food, in the same way A-level physics students might debate the intricacies of the latest quantum mechanics theories. Either way, food made its way onto the plates and everyone was fed, even if the fat content on offer was a little on the high side.

It got me thinking about the best way to elicit some change in habits, having tried the ‘not that way, this way’ approach in the past with limited success, I instead found a little education went a long way. First, a discussion on fat mass and lean muscle mass drew some attention and a chat on what constituted a high fat content in food in relation to what was in the cupboards also saw some interest. Then a reminder that it all starts at the supermarket, ‘if you don’t buy rubbish, you won’t eat rubbish’. By the end of the week porridge and poached eggs had made their way onto the breakfast menu, and the fat was trimmed from bacon when it was cooked. Progress indeed.

Sometimes it easy to forget that shopping for a household and preparing meals for a group is a skill in itself, especially for an elite athlete population and even more so for a younger set of athletes on the road for the majority of the season. It is definitely an area that shouldn’t be neglected as we all know the importance of good nutrition to support the needs of a full time athlete.