BETA-ALANINE SUPPORTS AEROBIC PERFORMANCE
Beta-Alanine is one of those supplements that has flown under the radar compared to the common, predictable supplement trends. How does beta-alanine work? The notion is pretty simple. Beta-alanine converts to Carnosine in the body and is a major contributor to buffering hydrogen ions from lactate production that inevitably accumulates during intense, continuous exercise in the 1-3 minute range. This information would apply to a certain type and percentage of athletes (400m runners, 800 meters runners, soccer players, rowers, boxers, skiers, and basketball players), and supplementing with alanine may help with repeat athletic efforts. 1, 2, 3 Sounds great and all, but what does this information actually mean for athletes and fitness enthusiasts alike?
Leave it to Sol
Of the 29 referenced studies by the legendary Sol Orwell, there is a very small potential benefit for athletes looking to enhance muscular endurance and delay time to exhaustion from supplementing beta-alanine. Other performance factors, such as power output and V02max, showed no benefit with supplementing beta-alanine. 4 And this is the beauty of science and evergreen information like this, because it was introduced a decade ago, and it still stands today, and everything that vets the information now and in the future simply just confirms what we already know for the most part. For example, what is critical when it comes to Beta-Alanine is that a specific training duration must be attained in order for it to show promise. 1 to 4 minutes works slightly, while exercise that occurs for 4-10 minute durations definitely seems to be the sweet spot. That is why all studies of a systematic review examining the supplement's influence on strength and power clearly fail. 5 6 However, authors of the research did state that some of the studies didn't actually assess performance measures, and at least nine studies did in fact show some improvements for power. 7 So this is definitely something that needs to be considered in the future.
Aerobic Training is the ticket to success with Beta-Alanine...
"Quick summary
In this meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials, beta-alanine enhanced maximal intensity exercise performance during tasks lasting 4 to 10 minutes.
What was studied?
The effect of a beta-alanine supplement on 30 seconds to 10 minutes of maximal intensity exercise.
Who was studied?
A total of 331 trained men (ages 18–40).
The participants included runners, team sport athletes (e.g., football and basketball), downhill skiers, amateur boxers, and competitive rowers, as well as recreationally active and resistance-trained men.
How was it studied?
A meta-analysis of 18 randomized controlled trials was performed. The daily dose of beta-alanine ranged from 3.9 to 6.4 grams and was compared against a placebo. The intervention duration ranged from 4 to 10 weeks.
Maximal intensity exercise performance was measured as time taken to complete a task (6 studies), muscle strength (5 studies), power output (5 studies), or the amount of work/number of sets completed (2 studies).
Subgroup analyses were done to determine whether the dose of beta-alanine, intervention duration, or exercise test duration influenced the results.
What were the results?
Compared with a placebo, beta-alanine improved maximal exercise performance (small effect size). Subgroup analysis indicated that a high dose of beta-alanine (5.6–6.4 grams) improved exercise performance, but lower doses did not. Also, beta-alanine improved exercise performance in 4-week studies, but not in longer studies.
Beta-alanine did not improve exercise performance during tests lasting 30 seconds to 1 minute, but did improve exercise performance in tests of 4 to 10 minutes. It also improved exercise performance during tests lasting 1 to 4 minutes, but the result was statistically insignificant (p-value=0.06)." 5
BETA-ALANINE DOSAGING GUIDELINES:
*4-6 grams per day for 4 weeks to increase Carnosine saturation levels by over 50%! 7
SCIENTIFIC REFERENCES:
#1-111. Rosas, Fabián, et al. “Effects of Plyometric Training and Beta-Alanine Supplementation on Maximal-Intensity Exercise and Endurance in
Female Soccer Players.” Journal of Human Kinetics, vol. 58, no. 1, 2017, doi:10.1515/hukin-2017-0072.
#2- Hobson, R. M., et al. “Effects of β-Alanine Supplementation on Exercise Performance: a Meta-Analysis.” Advances in Pediatrics., U.S.
National Library of Medicine, 24 July 2012, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3374095/.
#3-Patel, Kamal. “Beta-Alanine - Scientific Review on Usage, Dosage, Side Effects.”Examine.com, Examine.com, 12 Apr. 2018,
#4-Examine.com. Supplement-Goals Reference Guide. Examine.com, 2011.
#5-^Georgiou GD, Antoniou K, Antoniou S, Michelekaki EA, Zare R, Ali Redha A, Prokopidis K, Christodoulides E, Clifford TEffect of Beta-Alanine Supplementation on Maximal Intensity Exercise in Trained Young Male Individuals: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab.(2024 Jul 19)
#6-Saunders B, Elliott-Sale K, Artioli GG, Swinton PA, Dolan E, Roschel H, Sale C, Gualano Bβ-alanine supplementation to improve exercise capacity and performance: a systematic review and meta-analysisBr J Sports Med.(2017 Apr)
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