• Welcome to Phoenix Rising!

    Created in 2008, Phoenix Rising is the largest and oldest forum dedicated to furthering the understanding of, and finding treatments for, complex chronic illnesses such as chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), fibromyalgia, long COVID, postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS), and allied diseases.

    To become a member, simply click the Register button at the top right.

Why Would Exercise Increase Urinary pH?

pemone

Senior Member
Messages
448
I am convinced that a lot of the post exercise malaise has to do with acid that accumulates in the muscle and does not metabolize away properly. I have had a lot of luck so far treating by drinking alkaline solutions like sodium bicarbonate and potassium citrate. For reasons I don't understand, taking vinegar also seems to improve the condition. (Vinegar is quite confusing because no one online seems to agree on whether it is acid or alkaline.)

I ran across a study today that claims that after intense exercise urinary pH goes UP:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12498312

Can someone explain why this should be so? I would think after exercise that acids from the muscle (lactate and carbonic acid) would get into the blood and that somehow some of this might get into the urine, making the urine more acid. That would require pH to go down. pH going up requires the urine to become more alkaline. Why would exercise cause the urine to be more alkaline?