![]() Summary of benefits and drawbacks of using caffeine pre-workoutĬaffeine is undoubtedly a worthwhile addition to your pre-workout supplement regimen, but it behooves you to use it according to your goals and specific training plans. That being said, caffeine does certainly appear to benefit those looking to shed off fat due to its aforementioned performance-enhancing benefits and a greater capacity to perform work. On a more physiological (as opposed to psychological) level, caffeine may promote the thermic effect of meals and enhance carbohydrate and fatty-acid metabolism during exercise, however the literature on this is a bit underwhelming at this point. Obviously this is great for gym-goers as this often results in training improvements, such as more total weight lifted and increased calorie expenditure. ![]() (3, 4)Įssentially, you feel more able to work harder, longer and thus performance increases. (1, 2) In turn, this leads users to “feel” more amped up when they train and their rate of perceived exertion (RPE) decreases. Studies suggest that many of the performance-enhancing benefits of caffeine come from its arousing effects via increases in catecholamine production and bronchodilation. How caffeine can enhance athletic performance Some of these above effects are desirable, while others may not be very beneficial for performance enhancement (specifically vasoconstriction and frequent urination). The half-life of caffeine is rather short (about 3-6 hours) so it needs to be properly timed (which will be discussed further later on). Increased (albeit not significantly) metabolic rate.The primary short-term effects of this are: Upon ingestion of PDE inhibitors/CNS stimulants, such as caffeine, degradation of cAMP and cGMP is decreased and the body is sent into a sort of “overdrive” mode. Many readers may recall that the CNS is comprised of the spinal cord and brain in humans, and it is the route to send and receive signals between every part of the body. Overview of the effects from stimulating the CNS Therefore, when PDE enzymes are inhibited, cAMP and cGMP levels increase and the metabolic processes in the cell are more rapid, and thus you feel stimulated. PDE enzymes are responsible for the breakdown of key cell messengers called cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) and cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP). Physiologically speaking, methylxanthines serve as acetylcholinesterase and phosphodiesterase (PDE) enzyme inhibitors–the latter of which is where we derive most of the performance benefits from. The chemical nomenclature for caffeine is “1,3,7-trimethylxanthine” so some companies may use that on their ingredient label instead. Methylxanthines serve to stimulate the central nervous system (CNS) and heart, and they are naturally occurring in coffee beans, tea leaves, some fruits and other foods/plants. carbon-based) compound that belongs to a class of substances called methylxanthines. On a molecular level, caffeine is an alkaline, organic (i.e. Read on as this guide will bring you everything you need to know about caffeine: What it is, how it works, the benefits and risks of it, and how to use it optimally. That being said, if you use caffeine prudently and methodically it can be one of the most beneficial compounds to help you reach your performance and physique goals. Many individuals just sort of nonchalantly sip on caffeine throughout the day, since coffee is pretty much the beverage of choice in everyday society. ![]() Not surprisingly, when you walk into most any grocery or convenience store you’ll come across a plethora of “energy drinks” infused with copious amounts of caffeine. Caffeine is one of the most commonplace stimulatory drugs ingested in everyday society, and with that often comes misuse and misinformation.
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