In 2004 I attended a marathon as a vendor, distributing samples of whey protein, L-Glutamine, and shaker cups. Most attendees—race participants and supporters alike—asked the same questions: “What are these, and what are they for?” How dramatically the knowledge and use of sports nutrition products for runners have evolved. Back then, sports nutrition belonged exclusively to bodybuilders and strength athletes. Products like protein powder and creatine were considered anathema to elite runners and their coaches.
Today, those same running coaches and experts recommend numerous sports nutrition products from BCAAs to Beta-Alanine, L-Carnitine to L-Glutamine. In this “Best Of” article, we review today’s top supplements for runners across pre-workout, intra-workout, and post-workout categories. These products help you prepare for exercise, reduce injury potential, and aid workout recovery. We’ll examine the results of an exhaustive study by the International Association of Athletics Foundation and their endorsed supplements for runners.
With countless sports nutrition products on the market today and conflicting data about which perform best, confusion is inevitable. Today we’ll discuss supplements for runners, examining what supplementation runners may need and presenting our choices for the best supplements. Let’s dive in!
Vitamin And Mineral Supplements To Address Dietary Deficiencies In Runners
Whether you’re a sprinter, middle-distance, or long-distance runner, your workouts can be exceptionally taxing on your body. To perform consistently at a high level, your body needs appropriate nutrients. With today’s typical American diet, heavy in nutrient-poor processed foods, refined grains, and added sugars, many people have vitamin or mineral deficiencies. Even those eating healthy diets may have gaps due to today’s depleted farming soil drastically reducing our foods’ nutrient content. From a general wellbeing and maintenance perspective, consider a multivitamin/mineral as insurance against dietary deficiencies.
Certain vitamins and minerals play essential roles in the runner’s body and may enhance endurance, prevent injuries, and accelerate recovery:
- Vitamins C and E are potent antioxidants that protect against free-radical cell damage from exercise.
- Vitamin D3, along with calcium, is essential for healthy bones. D3 also supports immune function, muscle performance, and has anti-inflammatory properties.
- B12 produces energy from carbohydrates, plays a role in red blood cell production, and aids workout recovery.
- Calcium helps ensure strong bones capable of withstanding workouts and preventing stress fractures.
- Magnesium is vital for bone health, energy production, muscle contraction, and hormonal balance—it transports energy to your muscles for endurance performance.
- Zinc, along with C and D3, is essential for a healthy immune system. Endurance exercise appears to reduce zinc levels in the body and may stress the immune system.
- Iron improves performance, stamina, and speeds recovery by increasing oxygen to your muscles. Runners tend to have lower iron levels, thought to be attributable to repetitive impact.
Sports Nutrition Supplements For Runners
Sports nutrition supplements are considered ergogenic aids—substances that enhance energy production, reduce training injury potential, and improve recovery to provide athletes a competitive edge.
The products detailed below have successfully transitioned from the weight room to the track and open road.
BCAAs
For background, amino acids are organic compounds that serve as protein’s building blocks. Your body requires twenty different amino acids to develop and function properly. Of these twenty, nine are essential as they cannot be produced in your body, so you must obtain them through diet or supplementation.
BCAAs, Branched Chain Amino Acids, are three essential amino acids: leucine, isoleucine, and valine. BCAAs are crucial for muscle development. They’re required for synthesizing other amino acids and proteins. The BCAAs, particularly leucine, stimulate protein synthesis and reduce protein breakdown rate.
BCAAs are essential for runners to help maintain their muscle mass. Endurance athletes tend to operate in calorie-deficient states, and as they become leaner, they burn more muscle. BCAAs used pre-workout or intra-workout help spare muscle and aid repair and recovery.
When selecting a BCAA supplement, we recommend a product with the optimal 2:1:1 ratio: 2 parts Leucine, 1 part Isoleucine, and 1 part valine.
Quality BCAA supplements abound, but some solid brands we recommend include Clean BCAA, K-Nutri BCAAs + Collagen, and Promix BCAA Powder.
Caffeine
Caffeine is an evidence-based aid for cognitive function, energy, and boosting endurance performance. Although caffeine is often a component of pre-workout and energy drinks, you can readily achieve your intake through your favorite coffee or tea.Cautions: Health experts recommend no more than 400 mg/day of caffeine—roughly equivalent to four cups of brewed coffee—and caffeine is a diuretic, not ideal for staying hydrated during long runs.
When supplementing with caffeine, we recommend capsules or tablets versus powder to ensure proper dosages.
L-Glutamine
Glutamine is another favorite amino acid for runners. Glutamine is the most prevalent free amino acid found naturally in the body. Although running experts contend glutamine isn’t beneficial for distance or endurance, alongside creatine, glutamine is among the most widely used ingredients in the gym. It’s a favorite for repair and recovery and helps alleviate muscle soreness after intense exercise. Glutamine also plays an essential role in gut health and immune function.
Beta-Alanine
Another amino acid included in many pre-workout supplements due to its ability to buffer lactic acid. Beta-Alanine increases endurance by lowering the muscle’s acidity level, allowing runners to go harder, longer.
The recommended dosage is 2 – 5 grams per day, up to 6.4 grams for elite athletes, typically taken either pre-or intra-workout. Beta-Alanine is the ingredient in pre-workout drinks responsible for the tingling sensation (paraesthesia).
Whey Protein
Whey protein has finally made it onto the recommended supplement list for runners. That said, debate rages among registered dieticians, nutritionists, and athletes about optimal protein consumption. The RDA for protein intake is 0.8 grams per kg of bodyweight. (To determine your RDA, multiply your weight in pounds by 0.36). The RDA represents the nutrient amount needed to meet basic nutritional requirements.
Strength athletes have long argued you need at least double that amount to build and maintain muscle and recover from intense exercise. We concur and believe this applies equally to runners. Endurance athletes run the real risk of burning hard-earned muscle. Protein supplementation aids recovery, repairs micro-trauma incurred in muscle during exercise, and helps build and maintain lean muscle mass.
We agree your primary protein source should be dietary; however, most people don’t consume sufficient protein from foods they eat, making supplementation necessary. We recommend a post-workout shake of twenty grams of fast-acting hydrolyzed whey. If you’re still not meeting your targeted intake, a slower-digesting protein such as casein is an excellent choice before bed.
Some top whey protein choices worth noting include Gnarly Whey Protein, 1UP WHEY Protein, Ladder Whey Protein, and High Impact Whey Protein.
Electrolytes
As a runner, we assume you understand the importance of staying hydrated. Hydration involves more than just H2O. During exercise, when sweating, your body eliminates essential electrolytes; see list below. The electrolytes—sodium, magnesium, potassium, and calcium—help maintain the body’s fluid balance.
- Sodium
- Potassium
- Calcium
- Bicarbonate
- Magnesium
- Chloride
- Phosphate
Supplementing with electrolytes in combination with BCAAs is an excellent strategy for distance runners. This combination supports everything from muscle function to regulating fluid balance to immune function and cell growth.
Some popular electrolyte supplements include Celarity Electrolytes, Keto Charge, and Perfect Keto Electrolytes.
Caution: Simply rehydrating with water, without electrolytes, during a long race can lead to a dangerous condition called hyponatremia, where blood sodium levels drop too low.
L-Carnitine
L-Carnitine has long been popular in the bodybuilding domain for weight loss. This amino acid-like chemical helps build muscles and breaks down body fats for ATP/energy. L-Carnitine helps your body achieve maximal oxygen consumption by creating more red blood cells. For distance runners, L-Carnitine is rapidly gaining credibility for increasing energy and expanding endurance.
Creatine
Creatine is the most clinically tested supplement ingredient of all time. It is and has been the number one performance supplement in the gym. Bodybuilders use creatine to improve exercise performance, gain muscle, and enhance strength. Although there’s little evidence creatine benefits lower intensity endurance training, creatine does improve performance in more explosive, higher intensity exercises, such as sprinting.
If you’re seeking a solid creatine option, popular choices include CON-CRET Creatine, Bulk Supplements Creatine Monohydrate, and Creatine X3.
Nitric Oxide
Nitrates improve blood flow through vasodilation, delivering more oxygen to muscles and enhancing athletic performance. NO is another staple in the strength athlete’s arsenal. L-Arginine, beet juice, and Montmorency Tart Cherry Extract are examples of nitrates used to initiate vasodilation and improve endurance.
L-Arginine
L-Arginine is among the most popular forms of Nitric Oxide in supplements. In addition to being a vasodilator, Arginine stimulates the release of growth hormone, insulin, and other substances in the body.
Other supplements mentioned by running coaches and industry experts tend to fall into general health categories, such as Omega3 fatty acids, Krill Oil, and prebiotics/probiotics.
Given the repetitive nature of running and stress on the joints of the feet, ankles, knees, and hips, we consider joint supplements a worthwhile area for exploration. Some of our favorite joint supplements include:
- Glucosamine
- Chondroitin
- Hyaluronic Acid
- Turmeric
- Boswellia
- Methylsulfonylmethane (MSM)
Many popular joint relief brands formulate their products using several of these ingredients in combination.
The IAAF’s Take On Supplements For Runners
The IAAF (International Association of Athletics Federation) recently published their Consensus Statement on Nutrition for Athletics. Unsurprisingly, the statement begins with, “Runners are encouraged to get the bulk of their nutrition from whole foods and to avoid excessive supplementation, but the report does outline five supplements that have an evidence base of contributing to performance. Those five supplements are: caffeine, creatine, nitrate/beetroot juice, beta-alanine and bicarbonate. For distance runners (5,000m and over), caffeine and nitrate are the two supplements that the consensus review recommends.”
Like us, the IAAF recognizes that knowledge and practice of nutrition for endurance athletes have evolved. The report cites a range of new developments in sports nutrition, recognized by expert bodies such as the American College of Sports Medicine, Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, and Dietitians of Canada. The study identified strategies used by competitors to enjoy long, healthy, and successful careers in their chosen events.
The chart below summarizes their findings by activity type, the needs/demands of the activity, and potentially beneficial supplements.
| Sprints | Performance determined primarily by reaction time, acceleration, maximum running velocity, and the ability to sustain this in the presence of increasing fatigue | Some evidence to support the use of a small number of supplements (e.g., caffeine and creatine, plus beta-alanine and bicarbonate for longer sprints) to assist in the training and/or competition environment |
| Jumps/throws/combined events | An emphasis on speed and explosive movements along with technical proficiency to convert forward or rotational movement into the highest jump or longest jump or throw | Appropriate use of ergogenic aides, such as creatine, beta-alanine, and/or caffeine, depending on event, stage of season, and performance goals |
| Middle Distance | Exceptional aerobic and anaerobic bioenergetic development, with emphasis on sprint biomechanical/ structure performance components | Potential use of exogenous (sodium bicarbonate) and endogenous (beta-alanine leading to carnosine) buffering approaches |
| Distance | Key factors for success are high aerobic power, the ability to exercise at a large fraction of this power, and high economy of movement | • Event-specific hydration plan before and during race to find individual balance between rates of sweat loss and opportunities to drink – electrolytes
• Well practiced use of evidence-based performance supplements (e.g., caffeine) |
| Ultra-Distance | Large dependency of endogenous fat energy substrate but requires a constant supply of exogenous CHO energy substrate for synergistic energy provisions and prevention of metabolic fatigue | Ad libitum fluid intake for protection against dehydration and overhydration. Assess gastrointestinal tolerance to race food and fluid, and adjust accordingly |
Protein Statement By IAAF
In addition to those supplements highlighted in the above table, the IAAF study addresses athlete protein use. To summarize:
“There is now clear evidence of the benefits of consuming high-quality proteins (those providing relevant amounts of all essential amino acids).
Overall, dietary protein intakes of 1.3–1.7 grams/kg per day represent optimal targets for the physique and adaptation goals of weight-stable Athletes.
Athletes who wish to achieve effective weight loss, which promotes the retention or even an increase in lean mass, are advised to engage in resistance exercise and to consume dietary protein in quantities of 1.6–2.4 g/kg.
Protein-rich whole food sources are the preferred source of protein; however, protein supplements may sometimes provide a valuable option when it is impractical to transport, prepare, or consume food sources of protein.
This means that protein consumption from amino acid-rich sources is beneficial—and that protein supplementation may be valuable. More importantly, it indicates that weight-stable athletes should consume 1.3 – 1.7 grams/kg of protein per day, while those wishing to maintain or gain lean muscle should consume 1.6 – 2.4 grams/kg per day. This contrasts with the current RDA of .08 grams/kg per day. Perhaps strength athletes have been right all along.
IAAF’s Position On Electrolytes
Beyond recommending sodium bicarbonate (an electrolyte) for sprints and distance runners, the IAAF acknowledges the universal need for (re)hydration by replacing electrolytes lost in sweat. They also suggest sports drinks and gels may be used to achieve hydration and fueling strategies.
In Summary: Supplements For Runners
Running of all types tests your body’s endurance limits and requires proper nutrients. What are the best supplements for runners? We think you need to assess your needs, identify supplements that best address those needs, and try one or two so you can monitor results. As we stated early in this article, no runner needs all these supplements.
Some needs to consider and our supplement recommendations:
- Energy Caffeine – Vitamin B12
- Endurance – Beta-Alanine, Beet juice, Tart Cherry Extract
- Hydration – Electrolytes
- Addressing Dietary Deficiencies – Multivitamin/Mineral, specific vitamins, or minerals
- Maintenance/Injury Avoidance – Vitamin D3, Calcium, Magnesium
- Repair & Recovery – L-Glutamine, BCAAs, Protein
- Body Composition – BCAAs, Whey Protein, L-Carnitine, Creatine
- Immune Function – Zinc, Vitamin D3, Vitamin C, L-Glutamine
