The Wonders of Caffeine

Hooked on your cup of joe? Feel like you ought to give up caffeine? Not so fast...

People who know me know best than to approach me in the morning before I’ve had my first cup of coffee. Actually if I could have it on an IV drip, I would! Since my pregnancies, where I had to forgo coffee altogether, I have tried to be a bit more mindful of my intake, especially in the afternoon so as to improve the quality of my sleep. I didn’t consider quitting altogether because I love my coffee way too much. But also, because it makes me a better runner. If Mo Farah relies on it before he runs (as mentioned in his autobiography), it has to be a good thing, surely! So what exactly are the benefits of caffeine on long distance running?

Caffeine is good for performance!

Caffeine is known as an ergogenic aid, which means it is considered to be an athletic performance enhancing substance.  It was shown to affect performance in different ways.

The first one is by decreasing the Rate of Perceived Exertion. In other words you will be able to run at a higher speed than normal and it will not feel any harder. Sounds easy, right?

Secondly caffeine increases neuromuscular coordination. What it means is that it takes less time for the signal sent by your brain to travel to your muscles telling them to contract or relax. It is both beneficial to sprinters and long distance runners because it increases running efficiency, enabling you to run faster with less effort.

Last but not least, caffeine may increase fat utilisation. Typically in distance running the glycogen stores (= carbohydrates) are used first. Once your glycogen stores are depleted then your body switches to fat as an energy source. However the body is typically inefficient at converting fat to fuel (unless you have specifically trained it to do so). But caffeine is though to speed up this energy conversion so that fat becomes a primary energy source and your glycogen stores are spared for longer. This is particularly important for long distance running such as marathon as it will help avoid hitting the wall by being able to access these glycogen stores later in the race!

Caffeine is not dehydrating

Another myth to be debunked is about caffeine promoting dehydration. Studies have shown that contrary to popular beliefs caffeine does not lead to dehydration.

However a few words of caution...

Caffeine is not for everyone

If you have a heart condition or are pregnant for example, the risks to your health (or to your baby) will definitely outweigh the benefits. Also, you may want to avoid caffeine if you run late in the afternoon unless you are willing to risk a sleepless night.

Also bear in mind my previous post: most of your training should be performed at easy pace, so there is definitely no need for caffeine supplement then. Taking caffeine supplement prior to or during races will be all you need to potentially reach that PB.

What and How Much?

Caffeine can be found in a number of sources including coffee (!), Coke, Red Bull, energy gels etc. The amount you need for optimum performance depends on your typical consumption level but the recommendation from the American College of Sports Medicine is to consume between 3mg and 6mg per kg of bodyweight approximately 60min prior to exercise although some research suggest this may be better consumed 3 to 4 hours prior to exercise (however, beware of ACSM's latest position on the risks associated with energy drinks).

So go and enjoy that cuppa!