Vitamin C for Post-Exercise Soreness Reduction
High-dose vitamin C does not reliably reduce soreness and may interfere with training adaptation.
Overview
Verdict
How It Works
Dosing & Protocol
Typical dose
- Recommended dose
- Not recommended at high doses around training
- Expected timeframe
- n/a
Protocol
- form
- Ascorbic acid; the negative adaptation findings come from this dose range taken daily around training
- duration
- Trials ran 4-12 weeks of training
- co factor
- Evidence indicates no benefit and possible harm to training adaptation. Meta-analyses of antioxidant supplementation for delayed onset muscle soreness find no meaningful reduction in soreness or muscle damage markers. More importantly, Ristow and colleagues showed vitamin C 1,000 mg plus vitamin E 400 IU prevented the exercise-induced improvement in insulin sensitivity, and Paulsen and colleagues found the same combination blunted increases in mitochondrial biogenesis markers during endurance training and impaired strength adaptations, because the reactive oxygen species produced during exercise are part of the adaptive signal.
- titration
- Not applicable - the studied doses did not reduce soreness and impaired adaptation
- starting dose
- Not recommended around training. Trials used 500-1,000 mg/day of vitamin C, often with 235-400 IU of vitamin E
Evidence
What the studies say
Antioxidant vitamin supplementation prevents oxidative stress but does not enhance performance in young football athletes
de Oliveira DCX, Rosa FT, Simões-Ambrósio L +1 more
Antioxidant vitamin supplementation prevents oxidative stress but does not enhance performance in young football athletes.
Does combined antioxidant vitamin supplementation blunt repeated bout effect?
He F, Hockemeyer JA, Sedlock D
Overall, DOMS of the quadriceps was lower in S (1.1±0.3) than P (2.2±0.5) (P<0.05).
Safety
Caveats
Dietary intake is fine; it is gram-level supplementation around training that is the problem.
Less likely to help if
Medical Disclaimer
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Individual results may vary. The statements on this website have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. Products and information are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.