LAUSR

On the basis of several recent meta-analyses synthesizing the effects of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) on sport performance (Lattari et al., 2018; Machado et al., 2018; Holgado et al., 2019a), Holgado et al. (2019b) concluded that there is insufficient evidence to support an ergogenic or “brain-doping” effect of tDCS on sport and/or physical performance. The authors also highlighted that the exact neuro-modulatory mechanisms through which tDCS may improve human performance remain largely unclear. We describe here more explicitly several important limitations of the majority of tDCS research to date. We also examine potential mechanisms of action, and provide recommendations that we believe are needed to more robustly study the ergogenic effects of tDCS moving forward.