To Caffeinate or Not to Caffeinate?

coffee beansA fellow caffeine addict myself, the way I see it, the more caffeine the better, and the idea of using it to supplement my workouts is no exception.  Being on the track team for all four years of high school eventually took its toll on me, mentally and physically.  Caffeine, in nearly any form, became my strongest supporter, assisting me in not only staying awake for workouts, but thriving in their duration.

Not surprisingly, I am no exception to the positive effects of caffeine.  A recent Canadian study supports the claim of caffeine being a beneficial addition to one’s fitness regimen, with comparing running times and levels of exhaustion between those who did and did not take caffeine pills previous to exercise. Nine men participated in five trials, with each ingesting either a placebo, caffeine capsules, de-caffeinated coffee with caffeine added,  or regular coffee one hour before exercise. The study resulted in demonstrating that the men that took the caffeine capsules increased their performance by up to 10 times, with more information concerning the results of this study being located in the article <a href=”http://www.weightlossresources.co.uk/exercise/workouts/caffeine-performance.htm“> “The Effects of Caffeine on Exercise Performance.” </a>

Although the experiment supports my claim, it does not automatically ensure that it is correct.  A small sample size of nine men was mentioned in the experiment, limiting the experiment both in number and gender.  Also, there seems to only have been one given instance of the experiment, with no given suggestion of any replications having been made.  Although seemingly effective in supporting one’s hypothesis, realizing such limitations and conditions in an experiment are necessary.

Though I have personally benefitted from consuming caffeine before many variations of workouts, there are still many more advancements and conclusions that can be made on this subject.  Such conclusions can be derived through the implementation of more research, conducting of experiments and so on.

 

 

Olsen, Kelly. “The Effects of Caffeine on Exercise Performance.” Caffeine and Exercise Performance. Weight Loss Resources, n.d. Web. 15 Oct. 2014.

5 thoughts on “To Caffeinate or Not to Caffeinate?

  1. Maryann Deanna Valentine

    Although you mention many great benefits from consuming caffeine, there are many negative effects as well! Caffeine makes people very dehydrated. Obviously, dehydration is never good for our bodies because water provides us with healthy skin, nails, bones, muscles, joints, etc. Caffeine also makes people a bit jittery when consuming too much! This is never a pleasant feeling, and can result in major problems like fainting. Some more drawbacks of caffeine include calories! Its not the caffeine that is high in calories, but the additives that we put inside. Additives such as coffee mate, honey, sugar, sweet N low, and stevia are all used in caffeines like coffee and tea. These are high in chemicals and calories. And lastly, caffeine can be abused. After a while, our bodies become so dependent on the caffeine that we can not function without it! From personal experience, I receive a massive head ache if I don’t have my daily cup of coffee in the morning! To learn more about the negative effects about caffeine, read this article: https://www.health.arizona.edu/health_topics/nutrition/general/caffeine.htm

  2. Richard Michael Francis

    This is really interesting because I live off of caffeine all day long and have never even thought about it effecting my workouts. As stupid as it sounds I’ve only thought of it as something to keep me awake so I can get my work done and not fall asleep in class. After I read this article I went and checked the nutrition label on pre workout and it turns out that there actually is caffeine in it. Guess I’ve been relying on it this whole time without even realizing it. Oh well. But what I then wanted to find out was if caffeine was something you can get addicted to since I rely so heavily on my pre workout. Turns out you can get addicted to caffeine. However, it’s not as addictive nor does it take as serious of a tole on your body as other harmful drugs do. http://www.webmd.com/balance/caffeine-myths-and-facts -this website here explains the details of the medical aspect of that.

  3. Nick Jacoubs

    I too am a caffeine addict. It helps sharpen my focus and ups the intensity of my workouts. However, my workouts are more weight lifting oriented, not cardiovascular oriented such as running. Caffeine can take it’s toll on the runner; it can increase chances of muscle tightness, muscle cramping, and dehydration. Caffeine has also proved to cause nausea, cramping, anxiety, fatigue, headaches, and gastrointestinal instability. That been said, some of those side effects only occur to those who consume too much caffeine or simply don’t have a strong caffeine tolerance.

  4. Alyssa Mackenzie Inman

    I was also on the track team for all four years of high school and I lived off of caffeine all day long. I would drink it in the morning and then at lunch and then I would always save a little for right before practice after school. I always thought it made me feel worse for practice because I would feel kind of shaky and light-headed when running. I decided to look it up and in this article I found this: “Case reports of excessive caffeine consumption, coupled with strenuous physical activity resulting in serious adverse events, have been published. Cardiac arrest in a 28-year-old, otherwise healthy man, followed his consumption of a high number of caffeinated energy drinks and participation in a day of motocross riding.”

  5. Jiayi Wang

    I used to do a project on caffeine back in high school. I found this topic very interesting because most of us consume coffee regularly.So it’s important to know more about caffeine. After reading your blog, it’s good to know that there are some positive effects on caffeine. But I was wondering what are some negative effects from caffeine. Here is a fun video on caffeine.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YuJOhpNS0IY

Leave a Reply