What is a supplement? A clear definition

According to the definition of an international sports committee, a supplement is a food, food component, nutrient, or non-food compound that is intentionally ingested, in addition to the diet usually consumed, with the aim of achieving a specific health and/or performance benefit. It is crucial to understand that supplements should only be considered when there is strong scientific evidence supporting their use as safe, legal, and effective, and after ensuring the adequacy of sports nutrition dietary practices.

The key is in the name: supplement. These products are designed to complement, not replace, a well-established diet and lifestyle. You will not get a "mega benefit" from any supplement if you do not first address the most important dietary or health issues.

Classification of supplements

We can categorize supplements in several ways:

Fortified foods: Vitamins or minerals added to foods.
Formulated foods: Sports products like drinks, recovery shakes, gels, and bars.
Single-nutrient supplements: Individual vitamins or compounds like creatine monohydrate.
Multinutrients: Complex blends often found in large containers and rarely recommended.

They can also be divided into:

Food-based nutrients: Those found in foods, like vitamins and minerals.
Substances with pharmacological effects: Those that act more like drugs, such as caffeine, with more potent and often faster effects.

Good reasons to use supplements

There are valid reasons to consider supplements:

Correcting nutritional deficiencies: That may affect health and performance.
Convenient provision of energy or nutrients: Especially useful during competition or prolonged training.
Direct performance benefits: During competition.
Indirect performance benefits: Improving recovery or training capacity.

Bad reasons to use supplements

On the other hand, there are poorly founded reasons for their use:

"Just in case" mentality: Believing that more is better, especially with vitamins, or taking them without a proven need.
Because an athlete uses them: Supplement companies often sponsor elite athletes after they reach the top, not before. Their success is due to a combination of genetics, hard work, training, nutrition, and lifestyle.
The latest market trend: The search for instant results can lead to falling for marketing of products without scientific backing.

The right mindset: the cherry on top

Supplements are not a magic pill. Their greatest benefit is allowing you to push a little harder, train a bit more, or recover a bit faster. These are incremental benefits, often so small they are not noticeable in a single day, but accumulate over time. By improving slightly faster than others, you gain an advantage. For this to work, the foundation must be solid: an excellent and consistent training plan, good nutrition (with the right macronutrients), enough sleep, and stress reduction.

Supplement safety: a not-so-regulated field

You should not assume that supplements have the same safety controls as whole foods. In some countries, like the United States, regulation is lax, described as a "Wild West".

Key safety tips:

Check the research: Resources like examine.com can guide you on research data.
Anti-Doping (for competitive athletes): Athletes competing under anti-doping codes (like the World Anti-Doping Agency - WADA code) should review the list of prohibited substances. Contamination in supplements, especially multinutrients, is a real problem; traces of anabolic steroids have been found in up to 15% of certain types of supplements in one study.
Tested products: To minimize the risk of contamination, it is recommended to look for products certified by programs like Informed Sport or Informed Choice. These programs test products in batches to ensure they are free of banned substances. Although usually more expensive, the investment protects your health, reputation, and sports career.

Key supplements for climbers (and why)

Below are the supplements that, based on evidence, may be most useful for climbers:

1. Sodium Bicarbonate (baking soda)

Function: Acts as an extracellular pH buffer in the blood. During high-intensity exercise that produces a lot of lactic acid (and hydrogen ions), bicarbonate helps neutralize that acidity, delaying fatigue.
Benefits: Can improve performance in high-intensity, repeated glycolytic efforts, such as sprints or intense moves in sport climbing.
Dosage: About 4-6 teaspoons (4-5 grams) taken 1-2 hours before the event.
Considerations: Can cause severe gastrointestinal discomfort if taken incorrectly (osmotic diarrhea). To minimize it, dilute in plenty of water, take gradually over an hour or with food. Its taste is very unpleasant (like seawater).
Recommendation: Always try it in a non-critical training session before using it in competition. Do not combine with acidic substances. More useful for sport climbing than pure bouldering.

2. Beta-alanine

Function: An amino acid that becomes carnosine, an intracellular pH buffer inside muscle cells. Helps neutralize hydrogen ions produced during intense exercise, allowing you to maintain intensity longer.
Benefits: Similar to bicarbonate, delays fatigue and improves performance in high-intensity activities. It is more physiologically relevant at the pH levels reached in muscles.
Dosage: Requires chronic loading (not immediate effect). 4-6 grams per day, divided into doses of 2 grams or less, for at least 2-4 weeks to increase muscle carnosine concentrations by 40-60%. Then, a maintenance dose is sufficient.
Considerations: Causes paresthesia (tingling or redness in the skin), a harmless effect that can last up to an hour. Can be minimized by taking smaller doses (less than 800 mg) or with food.
Recommendation: An effective supplement for those doing high-intensity training, especially sport climbers, though boulderers can also benefit from consistent use during training. Do not expect an acute benefit; its effect is cumulative.

3. Caffeine

Function: A stimulant that acts mainly on the central nervous system. Blocks adenosine receptors in the brain, which normally promote sleepiness and fatigue, resulting in increased alertness and vigilance. Also speeds up heart rate and has a slight diuretic effect.
Benefits: Improves focus, reduces perception of pain and fatigue, and enhances mood, allowing you to train harder and longer. The benefits are mainly mental, not a direct increase in strength or endurance.
Dosage: 2-6 milligrams per kilogram of body weight (mg/kg), taken about 30 minutes before exercise or competition. A cup of filtered coffee has ~120 mg; a double espresso ~80 mg.
Considerations: Caffeine has a half-life of 4-5 hours, so consuming it late can affect sleep. Tolerance can develop, meaning higher doses are needed for the same effect. Sensitivity varies genetically. High doses can increase anxiety.
Recommendation: A potent acute performance supplement, but it is crucial to test the dose and timing to avoid adverse effects like nervousness or insomnia, especially if not habitually consumed. Avoid purified caffeine powder due to the high risk of overdose. For competitive athletes, there is an upper limit of 9 mg/kg in doping tests, a quantity that exceeds the effective dose and would make you feel terrible.

4. Vitamin D

Function: Although not a direct performance enhancer, vitamin D is crucial for overall health, affecting gene transcription, neuromuscular function, the immune system, and reducing inflammation, in addition to its well-known role in bone health.
Deficiency: Common, especially in regions with little sun exposure (like the UK) or for those who mostly train indoors or use sunscreen.
Benefits: A deficiency can affect overall health, and supplementation can improve it, which indirectly supports sports performance.
Dosage: A dose of 1000-4000 IU (international units) per day is generally safe and effective.
Considerations: A blood test (25-hydroxyvitamin D) can determine baseline levels. Toxicity is extremely rare and almost always associated with improper food fortification, not normal supplementation.
Recommendation: An "easy win" for health, economical and safe, and often universally recommended for most athletes.

5. Creatine

Function: Creatine is fundamental for the phosphocreatine system, the body's fastest energy system, which recycles ATP (energy) for intense, short-duration muscle contractions. Supplementation can increase muscle phosphocreatine levels by 20-50%, improving immediate energy reserves.
Benefits:
- Improves maximum power and the ability to perform repeated explosive efforts.
- Increases muscle relaxation speed, especially in the forearms, allowing faster recovery between grips.
- Acts as a hydrogen ion buffer, which can prolong anaerobic performance.
- May improve post-exercise recovery (reduction of DOMS), cognitive function, and has potential benefits in brain injury recovery.
Controversy (Weight Gain): Creatine causes minor weight gain (typically 1-3 kg or 2-5 lbs) due to water retention in the muscles. This is not a direct increase in muscle mass but hydration. Training with this extra weight causes the body to adapt, and the power benefits far outweigh the slight weight gain. Additionally, greater muscle hydration can help with thermoregulation.
Dosage: You can "load" with 20 grams per day (divided into 4 doses) for 1-2 weeks to quickly saturate the muscles, followed by a maintenance dose of 3-5 grams per day. Or simply take 5 grams per day chronically, reaching saturation in 2-3 weeks.
Type: Creatine monohydrate is the most researched and effective form; other more expensive versions offer no additional benefits. Look for brands with "Creapure" for high quality.
Safety: It is the most researched supplement and is considered extremely safe with a large amount of data supporting long-term use.
Recommendation: Considered the "king" of performance supplements, especially beneficial for power athletes and those on vegetarian/vegan diets, who tend to have lower creatine levels.

6. Carbohydrates (as a supplement)

Function: Although mainly obtained from the diet, carbohydrates can be considered a "supplement" at strategic times due to their potent acute effect on performance. They are the main energy source for high-intensity exercise and maintain blood glucose and muscle glycogen levels.
Benefits: Provide quick energy, improve longevity, power, focus, and reduce perceived effort during exercise. Allow you to train harder, longer, and facilitate better recovery.
Application: Consuming carbohydrates before and during climbing sessions is a simple and very effective strategy. This can be through sports drinks, gels, energy bars, or even candies like "Sour Patch Kids" or butter cookies for a quick glucose boost.
Considerations: A common mistake is to fear carbohydrates for fear of gaining weight or diabetes. For an athlete, adequate carbohydrate intake is fundamental and does not cause these problems in the context of a balanced diet and physical activity.
Recommendation: The simplest and most effective strategy to improve performance. Many climbers underestimate their need for carbohydrates during training.

Other supplements briefly mentioned:

Whey or plant protein: Highly recommended, not so much as a direct performance enhancer, but as a convenient and effective way to meet daily protein intake goals.
Citrulline Malate: May improve blood flow and nitric oxide production, but there are fewer studies and likely less benefit than the above. Can improve the taste of sports drinks.
Alpha GPC (L-alpha-glycerylphosphorylcholine): May improve choline and acetylcholine levels in the nervous system, acting as a nootropic and potentially enhancing power. Considered safe.
Taurine: Taken for general health benefits, not for specific sports performance.

Conclusion: synergy is key

The effectiveness of supplements lies in their strategic use to complement a solid foundation of training and nutrition. Starting with a diet rich in well-distributed carbohydrates, ensuring adequate protein intake (with the help of supplements if necessary), considering creatine for power and recovery, and using caffeine occasionally for focus, can make a notable difference.

Always buy single-ingredient supplements instead of complex blends, as they are easier to dose, cheaper, and reduce the risk of contamination.

Supplements for Climbers