Skip to main content

Will a coffee help your bench press?




There is a fair bit written about caffeine intake for athletes. Often it is recommended to increase endurance performance, although I recently put up a post that indicated that caffeine supplementation could enhance the chance of muscle damage in football players. In that post I also noted the potential blood sugar effects of taking caffeine as it can case an insulin spike.

What about strength performance? Will a coffee make you stronger or at least more aroused to boost your performance in the squat rack or the deadlift platform?

This article says no, it won't:

Effect of caffeine ingestion on one-repetition maximum muscular strength


Abstract

Multiple studies corroborate the ergogenic properties of caffeine (CAF) for endurance performance, yet fewer investigations document the efficacy of acute caffeine intake for intense, short-term exercise. The aim of the study was to determine the ergogenic potential of caffeine during testing of muscular strength and endurance. Twenty-two resistance-trained men ingested CAF (6 mg/kg) or placebo (PL) 1 h pre-exercise in a randomized, double-blind crossover design. They refrained from caffeine intake and strenuous exercise 48 and 24 h, respectively, pre-visit. Initially, resting heart rate and blood pressure were obtained followed by one-repetition maximum (1-RM) testing on the barbell bench press and leg press. Upon determination of 1-RM, participants completed repetitions to failure at 60%1-RM. Heart rate, blood pressure, and rating of perceived exertion (RPE) were measured after the final repetition. Compared to PL, there was no effect (P > 0.05) of caffeine on muscular strength, as 1-RM bench press (116.4 ± 23.6 kg vs. 114.9 ± 22.8 kg) and leg press (410.6 ± 92.4 kg vs. 394.8 ± 95.4 kg) were similar. Total weight lifted during the 60% 1-RM trial was 11 and 12% higher for the bench press and leg press with caffeine compared to placebo, yet did not reach significance. RPE was similar at the end of resistance exercise with CAF vs. PL.

Acute caffeine intake does not significantly alter muscular strength or endurance during intense bench press or leg press exercise, yet the practical importance of the increased muscular endurance remains to be explored.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Dry January

I mentioned a few weeks ago that I was taking part in "Dry January".  I didn't make a big song and dance about it, but I decided to go for a calendar month or so with no alcohol.  A few people have asked me about my experience, so here are a few points. Why take a break from drinking? Alcohol is an interesting topic.  As a drug it is widely accepted in society, central to so much of our socialising and leisure.  There seem to be lots of health benefits - so we are told - yet there are also a lot of problems in terms of health, relationships and lifestyle that come from drinking. Over a few years I'd begun to become aware and then concerned that I was drinking too much and too regularly.  I am in a busy and stressful job and sometimes a glass of wine after work to relax is really helpful.  But over time, one glass became two.  Two glasses became ....I might as well finish the bottle.  A habit got established....and was starting to get too e...
7 comments
Read more

So where have I been?

You will have noticed that this blog has been quiet for a while....  There are a few reasons for that, reasons that I thought I'd list here: WORK -  my day job has been incredibly busy and stressful this year. Working 10-14 hour days the last thing on my mind when I got home was putting something on here.  FACEBOOK/TWITTER - I suppose I've been using other channels to do some of what I used to do here. Quick fire posts pointing to interesting studies or news etc tend to get posted to Twitter (@chrishighcock) or to the Facebook Hillfit group http://www.facebook.com/groups/263083947097000/  REASSESSMENT - I've found myself less comfortable with some of the positions I've taken in the past. Sometimes I'm embarrassed by some of the things I've promoted. I'm not Paleo or low carb. I think Tabata and intervals are misunderstood and misapplied. I cannot really claim to be HIT.   I find myselfunable  honestly to post things on here and pretend that I am some sort o...
12 comments
Read more

Taking up space for a brief update

I've a couple of posts in draft that I will get up soon -  an update / reflection on Dry January and some thoughts on the scheduling benefits of short workouts if your life is busy.  Before that though, I am pointing to something else. However, I wanted to highlight something that is coming this weekend that I've been involved in.   Amber Rogers (Gokaleo and author of Taking Up Space ) has been pulling together a bundle of books from various authors with a common theme, one that I've been pushing here recently.   Keep it simple, avoid the hype, be patient, be consistent and flee the gurus.   I've talked before about how we get obsessed with pushing for more and more, when enough is OK.  I've given my view that so much of the health and fitness internet world is more like a gnostic religion than something that will benefit your life. There are other voices out there saying similar things and I'll be pointing to a bundle of books later this week ...
1 comment
Read more