So what is this magical lotion? It’s essentially nothing more than a topical delivery of sodium bicarbonate, more commonly referred to as baking soda. As it turns out, athletes have used baking soda for decades – it’s one of the most extensively studied ergogenic aids out there. But why would baking soda of all things improve performance? The studies involving human participants were reviewed and approved by the Institutional Review Board at the University of Oregon. The patients/participants provided their written informed consent to participate in this study. Author contributions One user states: “Most weeks I would race Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday. Crazy? Not with this stuff. I can go hard on the bike day after day. Never getting that soreness that forced me to rest. I also used to struggle with leg cramps and while I still get them sometimes, using PR lotion has drastically reduced them.” Final Thoughts More bicarb in the muscles neutralises lactic acid as it’s created, enabling the athlete to go harder for longer, with faster recovery Brad Wilkins. Ph.D. is VP of Science and Innovation at Amp Human and Chairman of Amp Human's Scientific Advisory Board. Dr. Wilkins has over 25 years of research experience with over 40 published scientific articles and patents. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Oregon and trained as a post-doctoral fellow at the Mayo Clinic. As an accomplished scientist at Nike, he founded the Nike+ Sport Performance Laboratory, and led the scientific team in Nike’s quest to break the two-hour marathon barrier (Breaking2). You can learn more about him and the rest of our Scientific Advisory Board members here.

All applicable customs and import duties and any other charges are the responsibility of the customer.Sodium bicarbonate is easily dissolved in water and water-soluble molecules cannot easily penetrate the skins defenses. The innovative technology in PR Lotion creates a temporarily pathway between skin cells, without the use of harsh solvents, while maintaining the integrity of the skin. At the same time, the sodium bicarbonate is encapsulated within fatty acid salts (which also naturally occur in the body) to aid in transport through the skin. The combination of creating a temporary pathway between skin cells and the encapsulation of the water-soluble sodium bicarbonate, allows absorption through the skin and into the body’s tissues and blood stream. Delivery timescales are esimates in working days; Public Holidays, Saturday's and Sunday's are NOT classed as working days. Used by Tour de France winners, MTB World Champions, IronMan professionals and marathon world record holders Even though the performance benefits of bicarbonate are clear, the potential for negative side effects in the gut can significantly discourage athletes from ingesting sodium bicarbonate. In fact, to combat the negative side effects, athletes include extensive and sometimes tedious protocols or strategies for sodium bicarbonate consumption into their pre-training or pre-competition routine. The timing of ingestion before exercise, the quantity of sodium bicarb ingested, and the “loading” strategy are all necessary considerations to carefully plan before ingesting sodium bicarbonate for the performance benefits without the negative side effects. Adding to the complexity, ingestion strategies need to be highly personalized to each athlete, as individuals can have varying responses or sensitivities to oral sodium bicarbonate.

Brandon M. Gibson Karen Wiedenfeld Needham Brendan W. Kaiser Brad W. Wilkins Christopher T. Minson John R. Halliwill* The lotion comprises 33% sodium bicarbonate and this active ingredient, when absorbed into the muscles, neutralises the high levels of burning, fatigue-inducing lactic acid that is produced during intense and enduring exercise. By managing the acidity levels in the muscles, research has shown this lotion to increase training capacity, improve muscle efficiency and lower soreness post-exercise. I typically do two hard training rides (60-120 minutes) per week, plus a long ride on Saturday. These are the rides where I’ve been consistently using PR Lotion this year. (It isn’t needed for my recovery rides since the goal then is to not push myself hard.) BG, KN, BW, CM, and JH conceived and designed the experiment. BG, KN, BK, and JH performed experiments. BG, KN, and JH analyzed data. BG, CM, and JH interpreted results of experiments. BG and JH prepared figures and tables. BG and JH drafted the manuscript. All authors edited or revised the manuscript. All authors approved the final version of the manuscript. FundingThe main active ingredient is sodium bicarbonate, or bicarb for short, and this natural electrolyte supports muscle function by buffering the acid created by the muscles during exercise Since then, I apply Amp Human lotion before every leg workout. For me, it works. Workouts are easier (no they’re not. they’re always hard) and recovery time is cut down too. I have not tried it on my upper body for arms/chest days yet, but I’m anxious to give it a go. Does Bicarb Lotion Actually Work? Studies Say So. Let’s look at the results again in a little more detail. Poster presentations from the study reveal DOMS was significantly (P=0.007) reduced following the short intensity series, but this was not observed following the 1-hour time trial session. The reductions in heart rate and RPE were significant (P<0.05) for PR Lotion compared to placebo at the 15-minute mark of the 1-hour time trial, but not at any other time points (i.e., at 30, 45, and 60 minutes). Lactate was significantly (P<0.05) higher after the short intensity series, but no difference was observed after the 1-hour time trial. (Recall, this study was not published in a peer-reviewed journal.)

The Topical Edge investigators recruited eight volunteer competitive cyclists and put them to the test: each of the participants completed two sessions of high-intensity intervals two days apart. For the first session, half were randomized to PR Lotion and the other half to a control lotion that contained all the ingredients of the PR Lotion except the active ingredient. For the second session, the participants “crossed-over” to the alternate lotion so that each participant performed one session using the PR Lotion and the other session using the control lotion. Neither the investigators nor the participants knew which lotion they received in both instances. In other words, this was a double-blinded, randomized, controlled crossover trial, which is a particularly rigorous study design. Amp Human's Science Advisory Board chairman Dr Brad Wilkins helps explain the science of bicarb, why PR Lotion works and why it's a must have training product for any athlete. In a similar study, an elite cycling training center (Source Endurance) in Northern Colorado performed a placebo controlled, blinded, and randomized research study on the performance benefits of PR Lotion. A group of competitive cyclists rode at 140% of a predetermined 20 min time trial power for 30 seconds with 20 seconds of rest; then repeat the interval until exhaustion. They observed a 20% increase in the number of intervals completed before exhaustion when the cyclists used PR Lotion compared to applying a placebo control lotion. Following baseline sampling, in the primary study, 40g of PR Lotion (Momentous, Park City, UT, United States) was applied by an investigative team member over the entire surface area of each leg from ankle to groin. As PR Lotion is 33% sodium bicarbonate, a total of 26.4g of sodium bicarbonate were applied. For the follow-up placebo control study, 40g of a placebo version of PR Lotion, which included all the ingredients of PR Lotion except for sodium bicarbonate, was applied to each leg. As expected, only using the lotion on my lower muscles, I got nearer the upper number of applications from the bottle – 14, to be precise.A less known, and less understood, benefit of bicarbonate or an enhanced buffering potential is improved recovery by reducing post-exercise or delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) following heavy exercise or training sessions. Pre-exercise application of PR Lotion can aid in recovery between training sessions in two ways. First, adequate bicarbonate levels in the muscle can reduce post-exercise inflammation. Bicarbonate creates an alkaline environment surrounding the muscle cells, which can reduce the chemical stress caused by acid production during intense exercise. This, in turn, can reduce the post-exercise inflammatory response following intense exercise [4]. It is this inflammatory response which, in part, contributes to DOMS experienced following a competition or intense training session. Second, PR Lotion may decrease edema or tissue swelling that occurs following heavy or long training sessions. Both sodium and bicarbonate concentrations in the extracellular space (and in the blood) can modulate fluid shifts between the inside and the outside of the muscle cells. It is the buildup of fluid or edema that contributes to the pain we sense as muscle soreness. Anything that can reduce the fluid accumulation in the muscle can reduce DOMS. One of the limitations to a white paper like this is that it’s a good example of the sharpshooter fallacy. The term refers to the story of a Texan who shoots holes in the side of the barn and then draws targets around the bullet holes. Another way to put it: it’s important to call your shots before you take them. Trials often presented as hypothesis-testing are actually hypothesis-generating because of this bias. Initially, I’m not certain I felt much of a difference. This being all new to me, I honestly don’t know what I should expect either.

Note: if you didn’t read the series of articles I wrote last year you can get them here. They include a lot of specific performance numbers which may be of interest. What Is It? The challenge with oral supplementation or ingestion of sodium bicarbonate is absorption and delivery through the gut without significant gastrointestinal distress. A well-known side effect for athletes who ingest sodium bicarbonate before competition or training can be significant GI distress. It is common for athletes to feel nausea, bloating, have diarrhea, or have significant stomach “cramping” when consuming sodium bicarbonate before workouts or competition. PR Lotion sidesteps the ingestion issue: instead of eating it, you rub it on your legs. No gastrointestinal distress. How Do You Use It?Comments requesting medical advice will not be responded to, as I am not legally permitted to practice medicine over the internet.