I am a coffee snob.

When a headline comes around suggesting coffee is actually good for your health I am all over it as I look to somehow provide confirmation for my overconsumption.

One such paper came out this month in the British Journal of Sports Medicine that sought to provide a definitive opinion on whether caffeine actually improves athletic performance. It is widely known that caffeine helps aerobic performance, but this review looks at caffeine’s effects across all sporting domains.

This article is something called an ‘umbrella review’ that groups a bunch of previous reviews (in this case 21) to draw more definitive conclusions. In short, you can trust what it says.

In 2004 caffeine was removed from the World Anti-Doping Agency list of within competition banned substances. Cue the dramatic uptick in caffeine consumption by athletes at all levels. In fact, between 2004 and 2008, a full 74% of ALL URINE SAMPLES collected by athletes for doping had caffeine. Now just because everyone is doing it, does not mean that it works…..or does it?

Overall the review concluded that caffeine definitively improves performance in:

1. Muscle endurance
2. Muscle strength
3. Anaerobic power
4. Aerobic endurance

This was surprising to me. As a rabid Raptors fan I still remember watching a game on TV and the announcers saying that Del Curry (father of Steph Curry) drank a full pot of coffee before every game. The announcers thought this was ridiculous. Now we know Del was ahead of his time as caffeine improves strength, power, and even vertical jump. In fact, of the 21 studies reviewed, caffeine had a positive effect on SOMETHING in every single one of them. EVERY. SINGLE. ONE.

It is important to note that not all facets of athletics are equal. Caffeine had a small improvement on items such as vertical jump heigh, but there is a large effect on aerobic endurance performance.

A few great questions that this review answered are below:

• Is there an ‘optimal dose’ of caffeine?

In short no. This is still elusive and undefined. Most studies use a single dose of caffeine (typically around 6mg/kg) about an hour before whatever was studied. Applying this to myself; I weigh 212lbs (96kg). I would need about 575mg of caffeine if I were a study participant.

• How much is needed to be ‘performance enhancing’?

It is generally agreed upon that you require 3-6mg/kg to be performance enhancing. Therefore for me, I would require somewhere around 300-600mg to enhance my performance across any sport.

• Is coffee the best way to ingest caffeine?

Nearly all studies use a highly concentrated caffeine powder called caffeine anhydrous. Only one study looked at coffee versus this powder and they yielded similar results on performance but one study is not enough to draw conclusions. The caffeine content in coffee differs greatly depending on the type of bean, the method of preparation, the size of cup, and even the flavor so it is difficult to make broad coffee based recommendations. That said, the ‘average’ cup of coffee has around 100mg of caffeine. The average person is around 70kg.   Two cups of coffee has 200mg of caffeine which is the equivalent of 3mg/kg for a 70kg person. This is the threshold for performance enhancement. For a guy my size I need 3 cups minimum.

• When should I take caffeine?

Most studies supplement with caffeine 60 minutes prior to testing for whatever variable is being measured. This does not mean this is ideal, it is just what is commonly used. There are no good studies on in-sport supplementation like caffeine laced gels while running. Putting #’s 3 and 4 above together, having 2 cups of coffee about an hour before performance is ideal for most people.

• What about caffeine habituation? If I’m “used to” drinking coffee will this have an effect?

Some studies do show that lower habitual caffeine users experience more of an effect then high habitual users.

A few other issues to note:

• Of the 21 studies looked at, they were between 72 and 100% male. Where’s the studies on women? One issue is that women may metabolize caffeine differently then men due to changes in circulating steroid hormones during different phases of menstruation making this really hard to study. But just because it’s hard to study doesn’t mean they shouldn’t study it!
• All studies were on young people. This is also important as in animal models, there is reduced effects of caffeine as we age (though it does help with mood and cognitive performance in older people).
• We have heard waaaay too many stories of people drinking caffeine before races for the very first time. This is a bad idea. Instead of a guaranteed performance enhancement, you are only guaranteeing that you will make use of the portapotties along the race route. Like any training effect, you need to practice caffeine intake during training runs, preferably starting small and dosing up slowly.

CONCLUSION:

Before your next athletic endeavor, try 2-6 cups of coffee about an hour before (depending on your size) and you can be assured this will positively improve your performance. ***This is more definitive if you are male and young***