It sounds too good to be true — and it might be. But a new study out of the academic journal Nutrients is suggesting exactly that; if you want to increase your strength in the weight room, you might not need to double-up on your favorite pre-workout supplement.
You might just need to swish some soda around before attempting a new 1-rep max. At least, that was among conclusions offered in the Apr. 2024 randomized crossover study, which examined the performance-boosting effects of “carbohydrate mouth rinsing” on strength and power.
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We’re going to break down the methods, findings, and limitations of this study in 500 words or less so you can decide whether carbohydrate mouth rinsing can help you fast-track your strength and muscle gains.
What the Study Says
The paper from Nutrients is titled, “Carbohydrate Mouth Rinses before Exercise Improve Performance of Romanian Deadlift Exercise: A Randomized Crossover Study” (1) and was authored by Yang & colleagues.
The researchers set out to determine “effect of carbohydrate mouth rinsing (CMR) on … resistance exercise performance,” specifically measured by strength and power during the Romanian deadlift.
[Op-Ed: Can Everybody Stop Mixing Up the Romanian and Stiff-Leg Deadlifts?]
Methods & Findings
The authors recruited 20 “healthy adult” males around age 22 who had resistance training experience, competence in the hip hinge Romanian deadlift (RDL) movement pattern, and no contraindicative health conditions.
Subjects were sorted into a CMR group and a placebo group; the carb-rinse group swished a sugary 6% maltodextrin beverage, while the placebo group received mineral water. Both groups then performed 5 sets of 6 repetitions of RDLs.
- The carb-rinse group displayed “significantly higher peak concentric power” compared to the control group.
- The CMR group also showed higher eccentric force production while lowering the weight.
- Both groups exhibited similar patterns in heart rate and RPE, or rate of perceived exertion.
Authors Yang et al. began the discussion portion of their reporting by saying, “The results indicate that mouth rinsing with the carbohydrate solution … significantly improved exercise performance.”
Limitations
At a glance, this study paints a compelling picture of the potency of sugary swishing, but no study is without limitations. Before you start backwashing a bottle of Gatorade in the gym, consider some of these confounding factors:
- While the authors describe their findings as “significant,” know that this word does not mean the same thing in academia as it does colloquially. It merely describes a distinction; the “effect size,” which refers to magnitude, was categorized as moderate.
- Notably, the authors remarked that half of all participants were able to differentiate between the sugary beverage and the placebo, which they described as “unsatisfactory.”
- The study was not longitudinally designed, meaning any changes were not observed over a long period of time. It is thus unclear if CMR suffers from diminishing returns in efficacy.
- Authors Yang et al. acknowledge that their research was unable to deduce a specific mechanism explaining how CMR affects the nervous system.
- Only 20 participants were recruited, all of whom were males around the same age and weight.
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What You Should Do
More than anything, this study by Yang & colleagues deserves praise for taking an innovative approach to boosting gym performance. Intra-workout supplementation is nothing new — electrolytes, anyone? — but swish-and-spitting a sugary drink is a fresh take on enhancing workouts.
- This study may present a convincing argument for anyone who competes in strength sports like powerlifting, weightlifting, or strongman. Performing CMR before attempting a max could be worth experimenting with.
There’s a use case for bodybuilders here as well. Physique athletes, especially those in contest prep, must rigidly control their food intake to maintain a calorie deficit. Prolonged deficits often impair gym performance, an effect which a bodybuilder may mitigate by incorporating CMR — without the consequences of raising their caloric intake.
Give CMR a shot and see if it works for you; just be prepared to catch a few dodgy looks from other gymgoers here and there.
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References
- Yang T-J, Shiu Y-J, Chen C-H, Yu S-Y, Hsu Y-Y, Chiu C-H. Carbohydrate Mouth Rinses before Exercise Improve Performance of Romanian Deadlift Exercise: A Randomized Crossover Study. Nutrients. 2024; 16(8):1248.
Featured Image: carlesmiro / Shutterstock
