Abstract
PURPOSE: Surfing is a sport in which the intensity and duration of training varies. Therefore, strategies that contribute to muscle attenuation may be efficient to improve surfers' performance. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of sodium bicarbonate on surfers' performance. METHODS: Eighteen male volunteer surf athletes participated in the study, in which they were instructed to perform up to twenty shots of twenty meters of paddling under their own surfboard in a swimming pool. The method was carried out twice, with an interval of 72 hours between them, being randomized between previous supplementation of sodium bicarbonate diluted in water, alternating with placebo containing sodium chloride and water. The blood lactate (Bla) was collected immediately before and after the rowing tests. RESULTS: The longest twenty-meter paddling shot time in the placebo group was 13.08 seconds (Bla 13.7 mg/dL after exercise) and the shortest was 9.89 seconds (Bla 15.1 mg/dL). On the day of bicarbonate ingestion, the longest time was 12.5 seconds (Bla14 mG/dL) and the shortest time was 9.1 seconds (Bla 15.5 mg/dL). CONCLUSIONS: The study showed that the administration of sodium bicarbonate positively affected the performance of surfers, resulting in a maximum improvement in paddle time and an increase in blood lactate.