Oral but Not Topical Sodium Bicarbonate Improves Repeated Sprint Performance During Simulated Soccer Match Play Exercise in Collegiate Athletes

This study investigated the effect of oral and topical sodium bicarbonate (SB) on soccer-specific performance during simulated soccer exercise. In a block randomized, double-blind, crossover design, 10 collegiate male soccer players (stature: 181.7 ± 3.2 cm, body mass: 81.7 ± 10.5 kg) performed soccer-specific performance tests (countermovement jumps, Illinois agility, 8 × 25 m repeated sprints) throughout a 90-min soccer-specific aerobic field test (SAFT90) following 0.3 g/kg body mass SB in capsules (SB-ORAL), 0.9036 g/kg body mass PR Lotion (SB-LOTION), or placebo capsules and lotion (PLA). Soccer-specific performance tests were conducted pre-SAFT90, during half-time and post-SAFT90. Blood samples were analyzed for acid-base balance (pH; bicarbonate, HCO3-) and strong ions (sodium, Na+; potassium, K+). Average sprint times were quicker for SB-ORAL than PLA during half-time (3.7%; p = .049; g = .57) and post-SAFT90 (4.9%; p = .041; g = .66). SB-ORAL increased pH and HCO3- prewarm-up and during half-time (p < .05), and lowered K+ during half-time (p = .035) compared with PLA. SB-LOTION increased pH (p = .019) and lowered K+ (p = .012) during half-time compared with PLA. SB-LOTION increased Na+ postexercise compared with PLA (p = .008). Repeated sprint times during simulated soccer exercise improved for SB-ORAL, which might have been mechanistically underpinned by elevated blood buffering capacity and greater regulation of strong ion concentration. Consuming SB in capsules is a more effective strategy than topical SB application for improving blood buffering capacity and repeated sprint performance throughout competitive soccer matches.