TweetBodybuilders and other strength athletes can squeeze more reps out of their sets if they consume the amount of caffeine contained in three cups of coffee before doing a workout. It can also reduce the muscle soreness that plagues some athletes after training. Sports scientists from the University of Rhode Island write about the effect in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research.
Bodybuilders and other strength athletes can squeeze more reps out of their sets if they consume the amount of caffeine contained in three cups of coffee before doing a workout. It can also reduce the muscle soreness that plagues some athletes after training. Sports scientists from the University of Rhode Island write about the effect in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research.

Caffeine is a mild, legal and harmless stimulant that has been shown in dozens of scientific studies to improve sports performance. This is not only because a dose of caffeine gives athletes extra energy, which makes their training easier, but also because caffeine makes muscle contraction easier. This means for example that strength athletes have more strength in their hands, and therefore can grip their weights better.

In some studies caffeine has also been shown to boost maximal strength, and most studies confirm that it boosts the number of reps that strength athletes can complete per set. [Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. 2007 Oct;17(5):468-77.]

On top of this, caffeine can also help reduce muscle soreness. Caffeine interferes with adenosine, and as a result can weaken pain signals that travel through the nervous system to the brain. [Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol. 2003 Feb;284(2):R399-404.]
The researchers wanted to know more about the effect of caffeine on the muscle pain that athletes experience during the first few days after an intensive workout. They did an experiment with nine male students who did weight training at least twice a week. The researchers asked the students to stop using caffeine for a week prior to the start of the experiment.

The students had to train their biceps twice: they first did four sets of 10 reps at 75 percent of the weight with which they could just manage 1 rep; then did another set doing as many reps as they could.

On one occasion the students took 5 mg caffeine per kg bodyweight before training. This is the amount of caffeine you’d find in three strong cups of coffee. On the other occasion the students took a placebo.

As a result of the caffeine supplementation the number of reps the students managed during their last set increased, as the figure below shows.


The figure below shows the amount of muscle soreness the students reported after doing the workout. The soreness was significantly less after the workout with caffeine.



“Caffeine consumption can enhance resistance training performance and yet decrease soreness following resistance training despite doing more work”, the researchers conclude. “For an athletic population, this may translate to the ability to perform subsequent exercise sessions with less perceived soreness and possibly increase total work. In addition, the findings of this study suggest that caffeine does act as an ergogenic aid during upper-body resistance training exercise.”
The Effect of Caffeine Ingestion on Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness

Hurley, Caitlin F.; Hatfield, Disa L.; Riebe, Deborah

Abstract
The beneficial effects of caffeine on aerobic activity and resistance training performance are well documented. However, less is known concerning caffeine’s potential role in reducing perception of pain and soreness during exercise. In addition, there is no information regarding the effects of caffeine on delayed onset muscle soreness. The primary purpose of this study was to examine the effect of caffeine ingestion on muscle soreness, blood enzyme activity, and performance following a bout of elbow flexion/extension exercise. Nine low caffeine consuming males (body mass: 76.68 +/- 8.13kg; height: 179.18 +/- 9.35cm; age: 20 +/- 1 yr) were randomly assigned to ingest either caffeine or placebo one hour prior to completing 4 sets of 10 bicep curls on a preacher bench, followed by a fifth set in which subjects completed as many repetitions as possible. Soreness and soreness on palpation intensity was measured using three, 0-10 visual analog scales prior to exercise, and 24, 48, 72, 96 and 120 hours post exercise. Following a washout period, subjects crossed-over to the other treatment group. Caffeine ingestion resulted in significantly (p < =0.05) lower levels of soreness on day 2 and day 3 compared to placebo. Total repetitions in the final set of exercise increased with caffeine ingestion compared to placebo. This study demonstrates that caffeine ingestion immediately before an upper-body resistance training out enhances performance. A further beneficial effect of sustained caffeine ingestion in the days following the exercise bout is an attenuation of delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS ). This decreased perception of soreness in the days following a strenuous resistance training workout may allow individuals to increase the number of training sessions in a given time period.


Source: The Effect of Caffeine Ingestion on Delayed Onset Muscle Sor... : The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research
Better strength training and less muscle pain after three cups of coffee

TweetI cant go a day without caffeine. on the ride to work and on the way to the gym