Source credit: Based on the PubMed-indexed Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition review, PubMed 42338317, DOI 10.1080/15502783.2026.2692003.
A new sports-nutrition review puts a familiar training problem in focus: performance is not only about fuel availability, but also about how hard the work feels while an athlete is trying to sustain it.
The brief narrative review, indexed in PubMed and published in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, examines dietary interventions that may interact with perceived effort and endurance exercise tolerance. The authors frame perceived effort as one pathway through which nutrition strategies can influence whether an athlete maintains pace, extends duration, or backs off when fatigue builds.
That does not turn any single food, supplement, or pre-workout routine into a guaranteed performance enhancer. The more useful takeaway is narrower: nutrition choices that affect comfort, alertness, hydration, carbohydrate availability, gastrointestinal tolerance, or fatigue perception may matter most when the session is long enough for effort to become the limiter.
Why it matters for lifters
Lifters often think of endurance nutrition as a runner or cyclist issue, but perceived effort also shows up during high-volume leg days, conditioning blocks, strongman medleys, long bodybuilding sessions, and hybrid programs that mix lifting with intervals or zone 2 work.
The practical angle is not to chase a bigger supplement stack. It is to test repeatable basics: enough carbohydrate for demanding sessions, fluid and sodium that fit sweat rate, caffeine used conservatively if tolerated, and meal timing that supports effort without creating stomach problems. If a nutrition plan makes the same workload feel less punishing, it may help the athlete complete higher-quality work.
What to watch next
Because this is a narrative review, the next important step is more controlled work comparing specific interventions, doses, timing, athlete types, and training contexts. Strength athletes should be especially cautious about borrowing endurance findings when the goal is hypertrophy, maximal strength, or weight-class performance.
Watch for research that measures both performance output and perceived effort during mixed training sessions. That would be especially useful for lifters who need conditioning capacity without compromising strength work.
Health disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and is not medical advice. Talk with a qualified health professional before changing supplements, caffeine intake, diet, hydration strategies, or treatment plans, especially if you have a medical condition, take medication, are pregnant, or are preparing for competition.