Posted by: Curt | Under: 40's/fit, 50's/fit, Diet and Weight Loss, General Fitness, Health, Ladies/fit, Prime/fit, Seniors/fit, Sports, Supplements, Travel/fit | (0) Comments
Someone asked me about this the other day in the gym and I told him I doubted it. I guess I was wrong! After I did a little search, I found that this double blind placebo study does in fact show that caffeine helps the body with glycogen uptake when taken with carbs after exercise. That is good news for me since I often times have coffee right before I go to the gym and right after while I’m eating. I love coffee, so this makes me feel a little better about how much I drink! At any rate, for most people, the caffeine prior to a workout acts as a stimulant and helps with fatigue. But the post workout glycogen boost is also important- especially for endurance athletes like runners and cyclists. It would be interesting to see the effect on different sports and activities. By the way, this doesn’t mean that your pre and post workout meals should be at Dunkin Donuts!
…
Glycogen, the muscle’s primary fuel source during exercise, is replenished more rapidly when athletes ingest both carbohydrate and caffeine following exhaustive exercise, new research shows. Athletes who ingested caffeine with carbohydrate had 66% more glycogen in their muscles four hours after finishing intense, glycogen-depleting exercise, compared to when they consumed carbohydrate alone, according to the study.
It is already established that consuming carbohydrate and caffeine prior to and during exercise improves a variety of athletic performances. This is the first study to show that caffeine combined with carbohydrates following exercise can help refuel the muscle faster.
“If you have 66% more fuel for the next day’s training or competition, there is absolutely no question you will go farther or faster,” said Dr. Hawley, the study’s senior author. Caffeine is present in common foods and beverages, including coffee, tea, chocolate and cola drinks.
…
I recommend not making a habit out of getting your caffeine from Coke and chocolate. Stick to coffee and tea to avoid the sugar. If you want to eat carbs with it (which you should), eat a half bagel or something with more complex carbs and less sugar. Remember that everyone has a different tolerance to drugs like caffeine, so don’t go crazy with this. Try a single cup of coffee before your workout and see how you feel. Then perhaps add a cup after with some carbs. Train hard!
You must be logged in to post a comment.
