Lactate: Friend or Foe in Performance?

You know that feeling when you sprint flat out, and suddenly your legs feel like concrete? Most of us blame it on “lactic acid.” Coaches shout it, commentators repeat it, and athletes fear it.

But here’s the twist: lactic acid isn’t the villain — in fact, what your body actually produces is lactate, and it’s one of your best friends in sport.

The Myth of “Lactic Acid Build-Up”

For years, people thought fatigue came from lactic acid flooding your muscles. The idea was simple: push hard, lactic acid builds up, your legs burn, and you slow down.

The problem? Science has shown this is wrong. At the pH of the human body, lactic acid doesn’t even exist. Instead, the body produces lactate — and it turns out lactate is not a poison, but an energy source.

So What Is Lactate?

Think of lactate as a kind of recycled energy. When you train at high intensity and your muscles need fuel fast, your body breaks down glucose. A by-product of this is lactate.

Now, here’s the cool part:

• Other muscles can grab lactate and burn it as fuel.

• The liver can turn it back into glucose to be used again.

• Even your heart and brain love lactate as a source of energy.

So instead of being “toxic waste,” lactate is like a backup battery that keeps you going when things get tough.

What About the Burn?

That burning sensation in your legs? It’s not lactate.

It’s caused by a build-up of hydrogen ions — tiny particles that make your muscles more acidic and mess with how they contract. Lactate actually tries to fight back against this, helping delay fatigue.

So lactate isn’t your enemy. It’s trying to help you.

Lactate Threshold: The Game-Changer

One of the most useful things about lactate is how it tells us about performance.

The point at which lactate levels start to rise sharply during exercise is called the lactate threshold. Athletes with a higher threshold can hold a faster pace for longer before hitting the wall.

That’s why coaches in endurance sports like cycling and rowing use lactate testing to fine-tune training. It’s a reliable way to measure how fit and efficient you really are.

What This Means for Training

Here’s how athletes can use lactate to their advantage:

• Endurance sessions just below your lactate threshold improve efficiency.

• Interval training above threshold teaches your body to handle and clear lactate faster.

• Strength and power athletes also benefit, as managing lactate helps recovery between repeated efforts.

Why It Matters in Malta

Too many athletes here still say things like “flush out the lactic acid” after a game or “get rid of it with an ice bath.” The reality? You don’t want to get rid of lactate. You want to train your body to use it better.

For Maltese athletes, especially those in endurance sports, learning to work with lactate — not against it — could mean moving from just finishing a race to competing at the highest level.

Key Takeaways

• Lactate = fuel, not waste.

• The burn = hydrogen ions, not lactate.

• Lactate threshold = one of the best ways to measure endurance fitness.

• Smarter training = learning to use lactate more effectively.

References

• Brooks, G. A. (1986). The lactate shuttle during exercise and recovery. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 18(3), 360–368.

• Robergs, R. A., Ghiasvand, F., & Parker, D. (2004). Biochemistry of exercise-induced metabolic acidosis. American Journal of Physiology-Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology, 287(3), R502–R516.

• Faude, O., Kindermann, W., & Meyer, T. (2009). Lactate threshold concepts: how valid are they? Sports Medicine, 39(6), 469–490.