Is caffeine good for running?

Caffeine may support a runner as an ergogenic aid. An ergogenic aid being a performance enhancer, something which may support you in achieving a physical or mental edge whilst training or competing. Ergogenic aids can be foods, supplements, training techniques or equipment. Caffeine is well researched in sports science as far back as the 1920’s and is known to;

·      Enhance various aspects of exercise performance in runners such as muscular endurance and sprinting

·      Appears to improve physical performance in trained and untrained individuals

·      Has an ergogenic effect on cognitive function i.e. attention, vigilance and may induce a decreased perception of effort/fatigue (rate of perceived exertion RPE), so your training may feel easier and you may be able to maintain pace longer

 We are going to look at:

1.    How does caffeine support running performance as an ergogenic aid

2.    Are there any downsides to consuming caffeine (as a runner and for general health)

3.    Sources of caffeine you may consider as a runner

Show Notes

(07:20)

How much caffeine should someone consume to experience the ergogenic benefits?

Quoting from a review published in January 2021 - International Society of Sports Nutrition ISSN position stand: caffeine and exercise performance

Research indicates Caffeine has consistently been shown to improve exercise performance when consumed in doses of 3–6 mg/ kg body mass.

We’ve never really considered how much caffeine is in a cup of coffee, but to give you an idea an espresso (75mg/shot), black tea (30-80mg/8oz), green tea (35-60mg/8oz), and some energy gels and sports/soft drinks include caffeine – varying from 25g – 100g per sachet

So for example if you are 70kg you’d be looking at consuming between 210g and 420g to potentially get these benefits – so the equivalent of 3- 6 espressos – that seems an awful lot of caffeine to us!!

Minimal effective doses of caffeine currently remain unclear, but they may be as low as 2 mg/kg body mass. That means the smallest dose that will produce the desired outcome.

 (10:45)

How much caffeine would be too much and how should you time caffeine consumption for optimal results?

Very high doses of caffeine (e.g. 9 mg/kg) are associated with a high incidence of side-effects and do not seem to be required to elicit an ergogenic effect. So their message is you don’t need to over consume for results.

Caffeine is rapidly absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract and it appears in the blood within minutes, with peak caffeine plasma concentrations ranging from 30 to 120 mins. Typically, the most common timing of caffeine supplementation is 60 min PRE-EXERCISE. The effects of caffeine last for three to five hours, so you don't have to try to drink it or consume a supplement immediately before your run.

Caffeine’s effects will last for several hours, depending on how quickly or slowly it is metabolised by the body. Caffeine has a half-life of approximately four - five hours. That means amount of time it takes for caffeine to be reduced to half the original amount. So if you've consumed 10 milligrams (mg) of caffeine, after 5 hours, you'll still have 5 mg of caffeine in your body.

This timescale may be reduced or extended in certain groups of individuals such as pregnant women, those who smoke and people with impaired liver function.

 (13:50)

 Are there any benefits to consuming caffeine during exercise or training?

Some runners prefer to delay their caffeine intake until they're running so they can get a mid-race...

Podden och tillhörande omslagsbild på den här sidan tillhör Runners Health Hub. Innehållet i podden är skapat av Runners Health Hub och inte av, eller tillsammans med, Poddtoppen.