The best-supported way to improve mitochondrial function is regular exercise. Aerobic training, interval exercise, and resistance training can help your muscles build, remodel, and use mitochondria more effectively. Sleep, good nutrition, daily movement, and certain nutrients may support the same cellular energy systems. (1)(2)

Supplements can play a part, but there is an important catch. Taking something linked to mitochondria does not automatically mean your cells will make more ATP or grow more mitochondria. The strongest results still come from giving your body a reason to adapt.

Key Takeaways:

• Exercise has the strongest human evidence for improving mitochondrial health.

• Your body can increase mitochondrial content through a process called mitochondrial biogenesis.

• Aerobic exercise, intervals, and resistance training can all support mitochondrial adaptations.

• Creatine, CoQ10, NAD+ precursors, magnesium, and other nutrients affect cellular energy in different ways, but they are not substitutes for exercise, sleep, and good nutrition.

What Does Improving Mitochondrial Function Mean?

Mitochondria are tiny structures inside your cells that help turn nutrients into adenosine triphosphate, or ATP. ATP is the usable energy your cells need for muscle contraction, brain activity, repair, movement, and countless other jobs.

So when people talk about "improving mitochondria," they may mean several different things.

One is making more mitochondria, known as mitochondrial biogenesis. Another is improving how much energy existing mitochondria can produce. Your cells also need to maintain mitochondrial quality by repairing, recycling, and replacing damaged components.

These processes overlap, but they are not interchangeable.

For example, a supplement may help maintain ATP availability without causing your cells to produce more mitochondria. That distinction matters when comparing "mitochondrial support" supplements.

How to Improve Mitochondrial Function

Improving mitochondrial function is less about finding one magic supplement and more about creating the right conditions for your cells to make and use energy efficiently. Exercise has the strongest evidence, but sleep, nutrition, daily movement, and metabolic health also play a role.

1. Exercise Regularly

If you only pick one thing from this list, make it exercise.

Exercise places extra energy demand on muscle cells. In response, the body activates signals that help mitochondria adapt to that demand.

Human research gives us a good look at how quickly this process begins. In one study, a single session of high-intensity interval exercise increased muscle levels of PGC-1α mRNA by more than tenfold four hours later. 

PGC-1α is an important signal involved in mitochondrial biogenesis. Those short bursts of activity kept appearing during repeated training sessions, while mitochondrial proteins gradually increased. (1)

The interesting part is that your body seems to respond to repeated exercise like adding bricks to a wall. One workout creates a short signal. Then another does it again. Over time, those small signals add up to physical changes inside the muscle.

Aerobic training is especially well studied, but you have several options:

• Brisk walking

• Running

• Cycling

• Swimming

• Rowing

• Interval training

• Resistance training

You do not need to destroy yourself with every workout either.

A systematic review covering 164 older adults found that endurance, resistance, and combined exercise programs were linked with improvements in several mitochondrial measures, including density, oxidative capacity, antioxidant capacity, and mitochondrial dynamics. The researchers also pointed out that the studies varied in quality, so there is still more to learn. (2)

2. Include Some Harder Exercise, If Your Health Allows

Easy and moderate exercise is valuable, but higher-intensity sessions can provide a strong mitochondrial stimulus too.

A human training study followed 10 healthy men through different amounts of high-intensity interval cycling. During the high-volume phase, mitochondrial respiration and citrate synthase activity rose by roughly 40% to 50%. Several proteins involved in mitochondrial biogenesis and the electron transport system also increased. (3)

There was another useful finding.

When training volume dropped, many of those adaptations moved back toward baseline within just two weeks. (3)

That makes consistency more important than chasing the hardest possible session once in a while.

A sensible routine could combine easier aerobic activity with one or two harder sessions each week, based on your fitness level and health.

If you have heart disease, joint problems, another medical condition, or have been inactive for a long time, speak with your healthcare provider before jumping into high-intensity exercise.

3. Keep Moving Outside Your Workouts

A gym session is great. Sitting for most of the remaining day is a different story.

Muscles are metabolically active tissue. Every time you walk, climb stairs, carry groceries, or move around the house, they need ATP.

That repeated energy demand gives your cellular energy systems something to do.

You do not need to turn every hour into a workout. Small habits work well here:

• Walk after meals.

• Take short movement breaks during desk work.

• Use stairs when practical.

• Walk short trips instead of driving.

• Spend more time on your feet during the day.

Think of formal exercise as the training session and daily movement as keeping the engine warm.

4. Get Enough Sleep

Your mitochondria do not work in isolation. They sit inside cells that respond to sleep, hormones, glucose levels, inflammation, and recovery.

Poor sleep can disturb several parts of metabolism tied to mitochondrial health.

One small human study found that extreme sleep deprivation reduced the activity of several skeletal muscle enzymes involved in aerobic energy metabolism, including citrate synthase and malate dehydrogenase. The study involved only seven people and used five full days of sleep deprivation, so it does not tell us what one bad night does to your mitochondria. Still, it provides a useful reminder that sleep and cellular energy metabolism are connected. (4)

For most adults, the practical goal is not to "hack" mitochondrial recovery overnight. It is simply to keep a steady sleep schedule and give your body enough time to recover.

5. Eat Enough Protein and Nutrient-Dense Foods

Mitochondria need raw materials too.

Energy production depends on enzymes, minerals, vitamins, amino acids, fats, and carbohydrates. Extreme food restriction or a poorly balanced diet can make it harder to supply everything those pathways need.

Focus first on a varied diet containing foods such as:

• Eggs, fish, poultry, dairy, legumes, or other protein-rich foods

• Whole grains and other minimally processed carbohydrate sources

• Nuts and seeds

• Leafy vegetables

• Fruits and berries

• Olive oil, avocado, and other unsaturated fat sources

• Foods rich in magnesium and B vitamins

Protein matters because muscle itself is closely tied to metabolic health and physical function. Resistance exercise plus adequate protein also helps maintain muscle as you age.

There is little reason to chase huge doses of individual micronutrients when you already get enough. Correcting a deficiency is a different situation and may make a meaningful difference.

6. Maintain Good Metabolic Health

Mitochondria respond to the metabolic environment around them.

Insulin resistance, excess body fat, poor cardiorespiratory fitness, and long periods of inactivity can all influence how muscle cells handle energy.

That does not mean you need perfect blood sugar or a certain body shape before your mitochondria can improve.

Quite the opposite. Exercise itself can help improve several of these systems at once.

Walking after meals, resistance training, aerobic exercise, eating enough fiber and protein, sleeping well, and maintaining a healthy weight all support the bigger metabolic picture.

7. Use Supplements as Support, Not the Foundation

"Mitochondrial support" has become a popular supplement category, but the products inside it work in very different ways.

Some provide nutrients used directly in energy metabolism. Others affect NAD+, antioxidant systems, or ATP recycling.

Evidence also varies widely.

A supplement can influence one mitochondrial pathway without producing a measurable improvement in mitochondrial function. That is why it helps to look beyond the front of the bottle.

Can You Increase the Number of Mitochondria?

Yes. Your cells can increase their mitochondrial content through mitochondrial biogenesis, and regular exercise is one of the clearest ways to stimulate this process in human muscle. (1)(3)

One of the major signals involved is a protein called PGC-1α.

There is no need to memorize the name. Think of it as part of the cellular messaging system that tells muscle, "We are asking for more energy here. Time to adapt."

Exercise can switch on this signaling within hours. Repeated training gives the body repeated signals, which can eventually lead to changes in mitochondrial proteins, enzymes, DNA, and respiratory capacity. (1)

More is not automatically better, though.

The goal is not to pack as many mitochondria into your cells as possible. Healthy mitochondria also need to function properly, communicate with the rest of the cell, and replace damaged components.

Supplements That May Support Mitochondrial Function

No supplement can replace the effect of regularly challenging your muscles and cardiovascular system.

Still, several compounds have legitimate roles in cellular energy metabolism.

CoQ10

Coenzyme Q10, or CoQ10, helps transfer electrons inside the mitochondrial electron transport chain. Your body makes it naturally, and it also acts as an antioxidant.

That biological role makes CoQ10 sound like an obvious mitochondrial supplement. Human outcomes are less straightforward.

A 2026 randomized trial gave 40 older adults either 400 mg of CoQ10 daily or placebo for 12 weeks. Supplementation increased blood CoQ10 levels, but researchers did not find an improvement in the mitochondrial function measures they tested. (5)

That's a useful lesson. Higher levels of a mitochondrial nutrient do not necessarily equal better mitochondrial performance.

CoQ10 may still have value in certain groups or medical settings, but claims that it broadly "supercharges mitochondria" go further than current evidence supports.

Creatine

If your main interest is ATP, creatine deserves attention. Creatine helps store high-energy phosphate as phosphocreatine. When cells need energy quickly, the creatine kinase system can use phosphocreatine to help regenerate ATP from ADP. (6)

In plain English, creatine acts a little like a rechargeable energy buffer.

That is one reason creatine monohydrate has such strong evidence for supporting repeated high-intensity exercise and muscular performance.

Still, creatine should not be described simply as a "mitochondria builder." Its best-established effect involves ATP buffering and regeneration, rather than directly increasing mitochondrial number.

NAD+ Precursors

NAD+ is a molecule involved in cellular energy metabolism and hundreds of enzymatic reactions.

Your body can make NAD+ from several precursors, including nicotinamide mononucleotide, or NMN, and nicotinamide riboside, or NR.

Human research is growing, but it is important to separate changes in NAD-related biology from proven improvements in mitochondrial performance.

For example, a 10-week randomized trial studied NMN supplementation in postmenopausal women with prediabetes who were overweight or obese. NMN improved muscle insulin sensitivity and insulin signaling and altered genes related to muscle remodeling compared with placebo. (7)

The study did not establish that NMN makes healthy people's mitochondria produce more ATP. The findings are much narrower than that.

This is why NAD+ precursors make more sense as one part of the mitochondrial research conversation, rather than a replacement for exercise or a guaranteed energy fix.

Magnesium

Magnesium is involved in hundreds of enzyme reactions and plays a basic role in cellular energy metabolism.

ATP inside cells commonly works as a magnesium-ATP complex, which means magnesium is closely tied to how ATP functions.

That does not mean taking extra magnesium will automatically increase ATP. If you already get enough magnesium, taking more may not provide an additional mitochondrial benefit.

People who do not get enough from food, however, may need to address that gap.

Alpha-Lipoic Acid

Alpha-lipoic acid is another compound frequently marketed for mitochondrial support.

Your body naturally uses it as a cofactor for enzymes involved in mitochondrial energy metabolism. It also participates in antioxidant systems.

Much of the interest makes sense biologically. Human evidence for noticeably improving mitochondrial function in otherwise healthy adults is far less established.

That same principle applies to many "mitochondrial" supplements: a compound can participate in a pathway without supplementation improving the entire system.

What Is the Best Supplement for ATP Production?

There is no single ATP supplement that is best for everyone. Creatine has some of the strongest evidence for supporting rapid ATP regeneration during high-intensity activity, while nutrients such as magnesium, CoQ10, and NAD+ precursors play different roles in cellular energy metabolism. (5)(6)(7)

Creatine is particularly interesting because its role is direct and easy to explain.

During intense muscular work, ATP gets used quickly. Phosphocreatine can donate a phosphate group to ADP, helping recreate ATP. Creatine supplementation can increase muscle creatine and phosphocreatine stores, giving this system a larger energy buffer. (6)

That still does not make creatine the universal "best mitochondrial supplement."

A runner trying to improve aerobic endurance, someone with a nutrient deficiency, and an older adult trying to maintain muscle all have different needs.

There is also an important distinction worth remembering:

An ATP-supporting supplement is not automatically a mitochondrial-function supplement.

Creatine can help recycle ATP without needing to create more mitochondria. CoQ10 participates inside mitochondria, yet raising CoQ10 levels did not improve measured mitochondrial function in the recent trial mentioned earlier. (5)

What Can Damage Mitochondrial Function?

Mitochondrial health can change with age, disease, lifestyle, and environmental stress.

Factors that may work against healthy cellular energy metabolism include:

• Long-term physical inactivity

• Poor cardiorespiratory fitness

• Chronic sleep disruption

• Smoking

• Heavy alcohol intake

• Poor metabolic health

• Certain nutrient deficiencies

• Some medications and medical conditions

One thing to avoid is obsessing over vague lists of "mitochondrial toxins."

Your cells already have complex systems for dealing with normal metabolic stress. The biggest opportunities for most people are far less exotic: move more, exercise, sleep well, eat enough nutrients, and manage your general health.

A Simple Mitochondrial Support Routine

You do not need a complicated biohacking schedule.

A solid routine could look like this:

• Walk and move throughout the day.

• Do regular moderate-intensity aerobic exercise.

• Include resistance training around two or three days per week.

• Add some higher-intensity work if it suits your health and fitness.

• Eat enough protein and a varied mix of nutrient-rich foods.

• Keep a consistent sleep schedule.

• Address known nutrient deficiencies.

• Treat supplements as an extra layer, not the starting point.

You can make this fancy later if you want. Getting the boring basics right does most of the heavy lifting.

Final Words

Your mitochondria respond to what you repeatedly ask your body to do.

Exercise gives them a reason to adapt. Food supplies the raw materials. Sleep gives your body recovery time. Daily movement keeps energy demand from dropping to zero for most of the day.

Supplements sit further down the list.

Creatine can support ATP recycling. CoQ10 has a direct mitochondrial role, although supplementation does not guarantee better mitochondrial function. 

NAD+ precursors such as NMN are being studied for metabolic and cellular effects, but human research is still developing. (5)(6)(7)

For most people, the best mitochondrial strategy is surprisingly unglamorous: move, train, recover, eat well, and repeat.

If you want to support NAD+ metabolism as part of that bigger routine, Omre NMN + Resveratrol combines 500 mg of more than 99% pure NMN with 500 mg of micronized resveratrol. 

FAQs

Can you really increase mitochondria?

Yes. Human muscle can increase mitochondrial content through mitochondrial biogenesis. Exercise is one of the strongest known triggers, with repeated aerobic and interval training activating signaling involved in producing and remodeling mitochondria. (1)(3)

What exercise increases mitochondria the most?

Aerobic and interval training have strong evidence for stimulating mitochondrial adaptations, while resistance training can also improve several measures of mitochondrial health. There is no single workout proven to be best for everyone. A combination of aerobic and resistance exercise makes sense for broader health and fitness. (2)(3)

What foods support mitochondrial function?

Foods that provide adequate protein, healthy fats, carbohydrates, magnesium, B vitamins, iron, and other micronutrients support the normal pathways cells use to make energy. A varied diet built around minimally processed foods is more useful than relying on one supposed "mitochondrial superfood."

What supplements help mitochondria produce ATP?

Creatine, CoQ10, magnesium, and NAD+ precursors are linked to cellular energy metabolism in different ways. Creatine has particularly strong evidence for helping regenerate ATP during high-intensity activity, while the evidence for directly improving mitochondrial function with supplements is more mixed. (5)(6)(7)

How long does it take to improve mitochondrial function?

Some molecular signals involved in mitochondrial adaptation can change within hours of a single workout. Measurable changes in mitochondrial proteins, enzymes, content, or respiration require repeated training. Research has detected adaptations within several exercise sessions or weeks, depending on the training program and measurement used. (1)(3)

References

1. Perry CGR, et al. Repeated transient mRNA bursts precede increases in transcriptional and mitochondrial proteins during training in human skeletal muscle. The Journal of Physiology. 2010. Read the study on PubMed.

2. Lippi L, et al. Impact of exercise training on muscle mitochondria modifications in older adults: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials. Aging Clinical and Experimental Research. 2022. Read the systematic review on PubMed.

3. Granata C, et al. Mitochondrial adaptations to high-volume exercise training are rapidly reversed after a reduction in training volume in human skeletal muscle. The FASEB Journal. 2016. Read the study on PubMed.

4. Opstad PK, et al. Effects of sleep deprivation on the activity of selected metabolic enzymes in skeletal muscle. European Journal of Applied Physiology. View the study on PubMed.

5. Knuiman P, et al. Coenzyme Q10 supplementation raises plasma levels without improving mitochondrial function in older adults. 2026. Read the randomized controlled trial on PubMed.

6. Marshall RP, et al. Role of Creatine Supplementation in Conditions Involving Mitochondrial Dysfunction: A Narrative Review. Nutrients. 2022. Read the review on PubMed.

7. Yoshino M, et al. Nicotinamide mononucleotide increases muscle insulin sensitivity in prediabetic women. Science. 2021. Read the human trial on PubMed.