Caffeine stimulates the central nervous system, resulting in increased alertness and focus has been shown to increase endurance performance. In a systematic review of studies involving athletic performance enhancement and caffeine, 11 of 17 studies revealed significant improvements in team sports exercise and power-based sports with caffeine ingestion, yet these effects were more common in elite athletes who do not regularly ingest caffeine. Improvements in performance ranged from 1.0 to 20.0%, with an average of 6.5%. Six of 11 studies revealed significant benefits of caffeine for resistance training. Studies measured outcomes including times on repeated sprint exercises, cycling wattage output and swim lap times.
The review also looked at dosing in the studies and found that lower doses typically ingested via commercially available energy drinks or supplements seem to be as effective as higher doses and may minimize onset of negative symptoms experienced with doses greater than 6 mg that are deleterious to training or athletic performance. Two studies found that caffeine in capsule form improved performance, whereas coffee or decaffeinated coffee plus caffeine did not.
Caffeine may alter performance differentially based on subjects’ training status. On the studies in the review, some revealed significant improvements in trained athletes (competitive cyclists, football players, elite athletes, and competitive swimmers) and not untrained, recreationally active, or strength-trained subjects.
Different people also metabolize caffeine differently. A single substitution in a single gene causes some persons to be slow caffeine metabolizers, whereas those who are homozygous for the allele metabolize caffeine more rapidly.
Remember, if you aren’t used to using caffeine you may be unaccustomed to its cognitive and physiologic effects. Make sure you test its effects before implementing a caffeine strategy for training or competition. Effects are also strongest on athletes who do not regularly use it. If you decide to stop taking it, make sure to reduce caffeine consumption at least 1 week before competition to be completely free from withdrawal effects. To avoid potential negative symptoms, the dose should be gradually reduced over 3 to 4 days, instead of quitting abruptly. Resuming caffeine on the day of competition will again provide the desired effects, as it would for a nonuser.
Verdict: I’m definitely using it. It’s cheap, safe (in recommended doses) and widely researched.
References:
1. Graham, TE, Hibbert, E, and Sathasivam, P. Metabolic and exercise endurance effects of coffee and caffeine ingestion. J Appl Physiol 85: 883–889, 1998.
2. McLellan, TM and Bell, DG. The impact of prior coffee consumption on the subsequent ergogenic effect of anhydrous caffeine. Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab 14: 698–708, 2004.
3. Sokmen, B, Armstrong, LE, Kraemer, WJ, Casa, DJ, Dias, JC, Judelson, DA, and Maresh, CM. Caffeine use in sports: Considerations for the athlete. J Strength Cond Res 22: 978–986, 2008.
4: Astorino TA, Roberson DW. Efficacy of acute caffeine ingestion for short-term high-intensity exercise performance: a systematic review. J Strength Cond Res. 2010 Jan;24(1):257-65. PubMed PMID: 19924012.
5: Sökmen B, Armstrong LE, Kraemer WJ, Casa DJ, Dias JC, Judelson DA, Maresh CM. Caffeine use in sports: considerations for the athlete. J Strength Cond Res. 2008 May;22(3):978-86. Review. PubMed PMID: 18438212.
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