Top 7 Facts about Caffeine and Athletic Performance

Caffeine improves endurance and exercise capacity. Many athletes tend to use Caffeine as a non-chemical supplement for a performance boost.

The International Olympics Committee has a directive that there should be an allowed limit on Caffeine consumption for athletes. The range is limited to 9-13mg/kg, relatively one hour before an exercise takes on. With adherence to this directive, the concentration limit of 12pg of Caffeine per ml of urine is arrived at.

Factors like gender and body weight determine caffeine intake and its effects. In parallel, the National Collegiate Athletics Association considers urinary concentrations exceeding 15pg/ml illegal. On the other hand,  the world Anti-doping Agency does not suppose Caffeine to be a banned substance. Instead, it uses it in its monitoring programs to determine the sequence of abuse in athletic competitions.

What is Caffeine?

Caffeine comes from cocoa beans, kola nuts, tea leaves, and coffee beans. It is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant classified into methylxanthine. Caffeine is deemed the most consumed psychoactive drug worldwide.

Among other psychoactive substances, Caffeine is considered legal. It activates the central nervous system, heart, and muscles. To be accurate, it’s no wonder that athletes use it for energy boost and muscles endurance.

Facts about Caffeine and Athletic Performance

• Improves strength performance

One of the crucial benefits of Caffeine is that it boosts strength and endurance in athlete performance. Caffeine helps the body utilize fats by making them the primary fuel source during exercise.

By burning fats and converting them into energy, an athlete can increase performance in sports activities that require a high power range.

• Better alertness and recovery

Caffeine acts as the central nervous system stimulant. Once it reaches the brain, caffeine causes a palpable sense of alertness that makes the athlete feel more alert and less fatigue.

Caffeine-consuming athletes have been observed to depict great concentration and sustenance of high intense exercise levels.

• Enhanced endurance

Athletes who participate in sports that involve strenuous activities over a prolonged time can benefit from a proportioned dosage of Caffeine.

Endurance and stamina are the fundamental aspects of a successful career for an athlete.

• Increase metabolism

Caffeine is believed to increase the metabolic rate at which the body burns energy. This occurs when Caffeine is ingested, and it also prolongs for about three hours, where the rate of metabolism is significantly marked up.

• Reduces muscle pain

Active athletes can experience post-exercise muscles soreness and delayed recovery. Still, thanks to the findings of a study done on Caffeine, ingesting Caffeine before exercise reduces lactic acid build-up in the body.

This mitigates fatigue and hastens body recovery after sporting activities.

• Enhances body temperature

Caffeine is often used by athletes who participate in sporting activities in places that experience extremely cold temperatures.

It enhances the body’s thermogenesis, increasing your body temperature while still helping burn calories.

• Can cause addiction

With all the immense benefits of Caffeine ingestion by athletes, we can’t deny that, to some point, consumption gradually becomes a habit.

This may lead to physical and psychological dependency, which, in the end, might affect an athlete’s performance and health.

Summary

Moderate or regulated Caffeine consumption has proven to be of immense benefit to athletes. It helps maintain high standards of performance during exercise and sporting activities.

However, too much Caffeine can lead to side effects, either physically or psychologically. This makes it crucial to consume Caffeine in moderate proportions to get positive results.