You feel powerless? Smell this food (unexpected) before training

You feel powerless? Smell this food (unexpected) before training

Don't you see results after practice? There's an olfactory technique that you really need to try before you go training. You'll just need to smell this food. See here how this can improve your physical performance.

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25/09/2026
by

Inês Morais Monteiro

Itake this scenario: She got up early, she got up tight and went to exercise in the gym. Does it seem tiring just to think about it? So think about the very moment you're already sweaty and powerless.

 

Now imagine they put a chocolate cube in front of you – although it seems contradictory, and even tempting, know that if you smell this unlikely food in the middle of training, performance can improve.

It is not a superstition or a ritual – science proves it!

A study published in the journal Frontiers in Physiology, cited by Science Alert suggests that given the aroma of a chocolate with 90% cocoa, sports practice, specifically in bodybuilding training, on average can yield 18 more repetitions.

To carry out this investigation, three types of olfactory stimuli were presented, which were related to appetite alterations, affective responses and exercise performance through psychobiological processes.

Still, note that this tactic does not apply to all athletes, you have to have a good self-control!

Limitations of research

Although the results were clear, the participants clarified that this did not make the exercises seem “easier to perform”.

In addition, researchers reinforce that this study has preliminary data, especially since they could not determine whether the effect was related to hunger, motivation, expectations or simply psychological association with the smell of chocolate.

“ Appetite is a plausible mechanism, but the present study cannot establish causality,” adds Mohamed Nashrudin, the physical exercise physiologist and one of the authors of the University of Malaysia.

“ Some participants may have realized that they were facing a condition of control and, consequently, had different expectations about the effects of their behaviors”, says the specialist.

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