Smelling chocolate helped men complete more reps without feeling more tired

A tough leg day may have an unexpectedly simple boost: the smell of chocolate. According to a new study published in Frontiers in Physiology , exposure to chocolate aromas before and during resistance exercise helped participants complete more repetitions without making the workout feel more difficult.

"Exposing moderately trained men to chocolate odors right before and between sets of resistance exercise significantly increased their overall training volume without increasing their perceived exertion," said senior author Dr. Mohamed Nashrudin bin Naharudin, an assistant professor at the Faculty of Sports and Exercise Science at the University of Malaya. "Seeing a substantial increase in repetitions without the athletes feeling like they were exerting themselves any harder is a fascinating psychobiological outcome."