Urolithin A did not establish a running-performance benefit during altitude training
The supplement lowered perceived exertion and an indirect muscle-damage marker compared with placebo, while performance and aerobic-capacity comparisons did not establish an added training benefit.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
The trial found lower perceived exertion and an indirect muscle-damage marker with urolithin A, but did not establish better running performance. Aerobic capacity rose significantly within the supplement group, yet the difference in change between groups was not statistically significant. That distinction prevents treating the within-group increase as evidence of supplement superiority.
Only subsets of runners completed the performance test or muscle biopsies. The short trial involved highly trained men at altitude, limiting what this abstract can establish about longer use or other populations.
What researchers found
3000 m track time-trial performance
After 4 weeks, neither the urolithin A group nor the placebo group improved significantly from baseline; this does not establish equivalence.
Exertion and laboratory signals
After the time trial, runners receiving the supplement reported less exertion and had lower creatine kinase measurements than those receiving placebo. Creatine kinase was an indirect muscle-damage measure, separate from the actual running-performance outcome.
Muscle findings were mixed
Muscle protein analyses showed changes in pathways related to mitochondria and inflammation. However, mitochondrial function did not change, and the reported increase in markers of mitophagy was not statistically significant. These findings do not establish improved performance.
The original publication
Evaluating the Impact of Urolithin A Supplementation on Running Performance, Recovery, and Mitochondrial Biomarkers in Highly Trained Male Distance Runners.
Whitfield J, McKay AKA, Tee N et al.
Sports Med · 2025
- PubMed ID
- 40839339
- Record checked
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