New research shows that drinking a coffee before a run might help you keep going for longer.
Coffee,
the world's favorite drug-infused drink, just got slightly more wonderful - if
you are an athlete, that is.
Investigators at the
University of Georgia recently published a review study that takes a fresh look
at coffee's effects on sporting
prowess.
The work, published in the International Journal of Sport
Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, delved into the existing data from previous investigations
into coffee, caffeine and sports.
Simon
Higgins, lead author, poured over 600 studies in his search for experiments
that measured the interaction between caffeinated coffee and performance during
exercise.
A
wealth of studies looked at the impact of caffeine in tablet form, but much
fewer examined the effects of caffeine ingested through coffee.
Only
nine randomized control trials were found that specifically investigated coffee
and endurance.
Caffeine and endurance
Caffeine
is probably the most used stimulant and psychoactive drug on the planet. Each
day, Americans consume an average of 27.3 oz of coffee; an estimated 10% of
Americans consume more than 1,000 mg of caffeine on a daily basis.
Caffeine
is absorbed relatively quickly once it reaches the stomach and hits peak levels
in the blood 1-2 hours after ingestion. The stimulant is absorbed into most
types of body tissue and has an effect on a wide array of systems.
In
the 1970s, scientists believed that caffeine influenced the way energy was made
available to the body and thus enhanced performance. In the 80s, opinion
switched. The scientific consensus was that caffeine did not, in fact, improve
physical endurance.
In the 90s, the tables were turned again with new studies coming
to the fore. Investigations showed that 3-9 mg of caffeine per kg of body weight (roughly 2-5 cups of percolated coffee), 1 hour before exercise,
increased endurance in a laboratory setting.
Coffee vs. caffeine pills
Today,
scientific opinion holds that caffeine can enhance certain types of physical
performance, including endurance and time trials. It is generally believed that
caffeine in tablet form is more beneficial to performance than when consumed as
coffee.
The
exact reasons for the differences in effect between formats of caffeine are not
known, but it is presumed that coffee's other ingredients might play a part.
Coffee consists of hundreds of chemicals, some of which might either block
caffeine's positive effects or have a negative impact on performance.
Higgins
wanted to dip into the patchy literature to see if coffee did, in fact,
increase endurance to a useful degree. His re-analysis of the existing
literature unearthed some positive results. In 5 out of the 9 relevant studies,
the coffee drinker's performance was significantly enhanced.
Athletes consuming 3-7 mg of
caffeine through coffee saw an average improvement in endurance performance of
24%. He also found an average 3.1% improvement in completion trials.
Higgins
says:
"This
is helpful for athletes because coffee is a naturally occurring compound.
There's the potential that getting your caffeine by drinking coffee has similar
endurance benefits as taking caffeine pills."
Although the literature is scant at the current time, this
summary might fuel more investigation in a similar vein. Caffeine certainly
does seem to improve endurance in coffee form, at least in some circumstances.
However, if you are considering brewing another pot before your
time trial, it is worth noting that the National Collegiate Athletic
Association (NCAA) lists caffeine as a prohibited substance.
Urinary caffeine levels exceeding 15 μg/ml could result in a
ban; that equates to the consumption of around 17 caffeinated soft drinks.
However, people in the past have fallen foul of the regulation, so it is worth
noting. Interestingly, the World Anti-Doping Agency does not classify caffeine
as a prohibited substance.
Medical News Today recently covered research that showed moderate coffee drinking might prevent premature death.
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