Caffeine in Sports Performance

As you sip on your morning coffee, it’s funny to realise that caffeine is the most widely used drug in the world. We find most of our caffeine in tea, coffee, cola and energy drinks. It’s been used by many people for that morning ‘perk up’, and in more recent years the world anti doping agency (WADA) cleared caffeine for use in sports.

With AFL star Ben Cousin’s recent hospitalisation following taking caffeine tablets to boost his performance, the spotlight has been cast on the drug and questions raised about its safety. If you, or a loved one take caffeine to boost performance, or you are thinking of taking caffeine to boost performance, it is important to know why you would take it, and how you should take it.

For athletes considering caffeine as a performance supplement, it has been shown to have positive effects on endurance sports and some sprint events. Even small doses (70 – 150mg caffeine, which could be found in a cup of coffee) can have positive effects on some athletes. However, like all supplements, caffeine can produce different effects in individual athletes.

If you are considering using caffeine as a supplement to help your sports performance, consider the following:

• Caffeine is a stimulant and may affect sleep patterns, which could be an issue if you need to be at your peak for a few days in a row.
• Energy drinks that contain caffeine are carbonated, and the bubbles can upset your stomach before a sporting event. Also, they have a different concentration of sugar to sports drinks, and they don’t have electrolytes, so ultimately these energy drinks can make you feel sick and do not hydrate you as well as a sports drink could!
• So far research has only found benefits for short duration high intensity events (1-5 min), prolonged high intensity events (20-60 min), endurance events (90 min + continuous exercise), ultra-endurance events (4 hours +), and prolonged intermittent high intensity protocols (team and racquet sports). The effect on strength/power and brief sprints (10-20 sec) is unclear.
• For exercise lasting more than 60 minutes, you may only need a small amount of caffeine, but take this at regular intervals through the event. (1-3 mg/kg BM or 70-150 mg caffeine)

As with any supplement, it should not be used in children, as their performance improvements will come naturally over time with training and growth.

In Ben Cousin’s situation, Ben took caffeine to boost his performance, and because of the stimulant effects, took sleeping medication in the evening so he could sleep. Like all medication, it is important not to mix caffeine with other medication before speaking with your doctor. A Sports Dietitian, Sports Physician or Sports Doctor can assist you in determining how much caffeine you need to be effective, and most importantly – safe.

Tags: caffeine, cola, energy drinks