Post-exercise recovery strategies influence the body’s ability to restore physiological homeostasis, replenish energy stores, repair muscle damage, and promote desired adaptations, which improve exercise performance. This narrative review examines the impact of nutritional strategies commonly used for enhancing recovery and subsequent exercise performance, particularly when athletes face short recovery periods. Carbohydrate ingestion is essential for glycogen replenishment, especially within the initial hours post-exercise, with its impact dependent on the types, timing, and amount. Protein is essential for accelerating muscle recovery and achieving a positive nitrogen balance, depending on the type and dosage. The co-ingestion of carbohydrates with proteins or fats is explored for its role in maximizing glycogen resynthesis and muscle repair, with evidence supporting the addition of protein to suboptimal carbohydrate intake for enhanced recovery. Moreover, this review addresses the potential benefits of creatine and caffeine co-ingestion for accelerating glycogen synthesis and improving subsequent performance. Hydration strategies, including the use of milk-based beverages and electrolyte solutions, are also discussed, emphasizing their importance in maintaining fluid balance and optimizing recovery. This review also highlights the emerging role of micronutrients such as omega-3 fatty acids, antioxidants, and sodium bicarbonate in reducing muscle damage and improving acid–base balance. Evidence supports the tailored use of these nutritional strategies, particularly for athletes managing tight competition/training schedules. Future research should focus on refining individualized approaches for recovery and investigating the impact of novel supplements on subsequent performance.

Carbohydrate (CHO) supplements such as bars, gels, drinks and powders have become ubiquitous as effective evidence-based CHO sources that improve endurance exercise performance. However, athletes are increasingly turning to more cost-effective ‘food-first’ approaches for CHO ingestion to improve exercise performance. Mixed CHO foods including cooked lentils, oats, honey, raisins, rice, and potatoes are all effective pre-exercise CHO food sources. Caution is advised when selecting some of these foods as a primary CHO source, as some athletes may be prone to gastrointestinal discomfort—especially regarding those foods where the quantities required for recommended CHO intake may be voluminous (e.g., potatoes). Palatability may be another barrier to the ingestion of some of these CHO-rich foods. Although most of these CHO-rich foods appear effective for exercise performance or recovery when consumed pre- and post-exercise, not all are viable to ingest during exercise due to difficulties in the quantities required, transport, and/or gastrointestinal discomfort. Raisins, bananas and honey may be particularly useful CHO foods for consumption during exercise, as they are easily transportable. Athletes should trial CHO food sources before, during and/or following training before implementation during competition.

The ergogenic properties of acute caffeine (CAF) and sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3) ingestion on athletic performance have been previously investigated. However, each sport has unique physiological and technical characteristics which warrants optimizing supplementations strategies for maximizing performance. This study examined the effects of CAF and NaHCO3 ingestion on physiological responses and rate of perceived exertion during a Karate-specific aerobic test (KSAT) in competitive karatekas. In a double-blind, crossover, randomized placebo-controlled trial, eight Karatekas underwent five experimental conditions including control (CON), placebo (PLA), CAF, NaHCO3, and CAF + NaHCO3 before completing KSAT. Capsules containing 6 mg/kg BW CAF were consumed 50 min prior to a KSAT whilst 0.3 g/kg BW NaHCO3 was consumed for 3 days leading to and 120, 90, and 60 min prior to a KSAT. Time to exhaustion (TTE), rate of perceived exertion (RPE), and blood lactate (BL) were measured before, immediately after and 3 min following KSAT. TTE was significantly greater following CAF, NaHCO3, and CAF + NaHCO3 consumption compared to PLA and CON. However, the differences between CAF, NaHCO3, and CAF + NaHCO3 were not statistically significant (p > 0.05). BL increased significantly from baseline to immediately after and 3 min following KSAT in all conditions (p < 0.01), while RPE at the end of KSAT was not significantly different between conditions (p = 0.11). Karate practitioners may benefit from the ergogenic effects of CAF and NaHCO3 when consumed separately or together.

Studies of L-carnitine in healthy athletic populations have yielded equivocal results. Further scientific-based knowledge is needed to clarify the ability of L-carnitine to improve exercise capacity and expedite the recovery process by reducing oxidative stress. This study aimed to examine the 9-week effects of L-carnitine supplementation on exercise performance, anaerobic capacity, and exercise-induced oxidative stress markers in resistance-trained males. In a double-blind, randomized, and placebo-controlled treatment, 23 men (age, 25±2y; weight, 81.2±8.31 kg; body fat, 17.1±5.9%) ingested either a placebo (2 g/d, n=11) or L-carnitine (2 g/d, n=12) for 9 weeks in conjunction with resistance training. Primary outcome measurements were analyzed at baseline and at weeks 3, 6, and 9. Participants underwent a similar resistance training (4 d/w, upper/lower body split) for a 9-week period. Two-way ANOVA with repeated measures was used for statistical analysis. There were significant increases in bench press lifting volume at wk-6 (146 kg, 95% CI 21.1, 272) and wk-9 (245 kg, 95% CI 127, 362) with L-carnitine. A similar trend was observed for leg press. In the L-carnitine group, at wk-9, there were significant increases in mean power (63.4 W, 95% CI 32.0, 94.8) and peak power (239 W, 95% CI 86.6, 392), reduction in post-exercise blood lactate levels (-1.60 mmol/L, 95% CI -2.44, -0.75) and beneficial changes in total antioxidant capacity (0.18 mmol/L, 95% CI 0.07, 0.28). L-carnitine supplementation enhances exercise performance while attenuating blood lactate and oxidative stress responses to resistance training.

Studies have shown that nitrate (NO₃⁻)-rich beetroot juice (BJ) supplementation improves endurance and high-intensity intermittent exercise. The dose–response effects on taekwondo following BJ supplementation are yet to be determined. This study aimed to investigate two acute doses of 400 mg of NO₃⁻ (BJ-400) and 800 mg of NO₃⁻ (BJ-800) on taekwondo-specific performance and cognitive function tests compared with a placebo (PL) and control (CON) conditions. Eight trained male taekwondo athletes (age: 20 ± 4 years, height: 180 ± 2 cm, body mass: 64.8 ± 4.0 kg) completed four experimental trials using a randomized, double-blind placebo-controlled design: BJ-400, BJ-800, PL, and CON. Participants consumed two doses of BJ-400 and BJ-800 or nitrate-depleted PL at 2.5 h prior to performing the Multiple Frequency Speed of Kick Test (FSKT). Countermovement jump (CMJ) was performed before the (FSKT) and PSTT, whereas cognitive function was assessed (via the Stroop test) before and after supplementation and 10 min following PSTT. Blood lactate was collected before the CMJ tests immediately and 3 min after the FSKT and PSST; rating of perceived exertion (RPE) was recorded during and after both specific taekwondo tests. No significant differences (p > 0.05), with moderate and large effect sizes, between conditions were observed for PSTT and FSKT performances. In addition, blood lactate, RPE, heart rate, and CMJ height were not significantly different among conditions (p > 0.05). However, after the PSTT test, cognitive function was higher in BJ-400 compared to other treatments (p < 0.05). It was concluded that acute intake of 400 and 800 mg of NO₃⁻ rich BJ reported a moderate to large effect size in anaerobic and aerobic; however, no statistical differences were found in taekwondo-specific performance.

Creatine (CR) and sodium bicarbonate (SB) alone improve anaerobic performance. However, the ergogenic effects of CR and SB co-ingestion on taekwondo anaerobic performance remains unknown. Forty trained taekwondo athletes (21 ± 1 y.; 180.5 ± 7.3 cm; 72.7 ± 8.6 kg) were randomized to: (i) CR and SB (CR + SB; 20 g of CR+ 0.5 g·kg− 1·d− 1 of SB), (ii) CR, (iii) SB, (iv) placebo (PLA), or (v) control (CON) for 5 days. Before and after supplementation, participants completed 3 bouts of a Taekwondo Anaerobic Intermittent Kick Test (TAIKT) to determine changes in peak power (PP), mean power (MP), and fatigue index (FI). Blood lactate (BL) was measured before, immediately following, and 3 min post-TAIKT. PP and MP increased over time (P < 0.05) following CR + SB, CR, and SB ingestion, with no changes in the PLA or CON groups. There was a greater increase over time in MP following CR + SB (Absolute Δ: 1.15 ± 0.28 W∙kg67) compared to CR (Absolute Δ: 0.43 ± 0.33 W∙kg67; P < 0.001) and SB (Absolute Δ: 0.73 ± 0.24 W∙kg67; P = 0.03). There were no significant time and condition effect for FI (P > 0.05). BL increased following exercise across all groups; however, CR + SB and SB post-exercise BL was lower compared to CR, PLA, and CON (P < 0.05). Short-term CR and SB alone enhance TAIKT performance in trained taekwondo athletes. Co-ingestion of CR and SB augments MP compared to CR and SB alone, with similar PP improvements.