Thread: Caffiene Examined

Ergogenics: Caffeine – Part Two
by Matt Cahill

The previous article discussing the ergogenic effect of two different dosing protocols of caffeine involved looking at men and leg performance. This update looks at the upper body strength of women, specifically the bench press. For those interested, the full study can be found online for free here.

This study published in the JISSN did not want to assess the difference on performance of different caffeine doses, the researchers just wanted to assess if there was any difference at all using a 6mg/kg dose. Much like the study in the previous update, fifteen participants were used. The women involved were all experienced with resistance training, which I find a significant factor. The women attended three sessions, the first to establish baseline, and then two more where they were either given the caffeine or a placebo in random fashion sixty minutes before activity.



As the table above shows, the women noted an increase in their bench press maximum, but noticed no difference in what the researchers referred to here as muscular endurance. This was their ability to press sub-maximal loads in the region of 60% of their one rep max lifts. Or in other words, caffeine helped them push themselves to their limits, but offered no benefit for a more casual set.

Like I concluded in the previous article, I personally find this dose quite high, so if you plan to try it, make sure you have some sort of basic caffeine tolerance built up before embarking on such a large acute intake.

Source: Goldstein E, Jacobs PL, Whitehurst M, Penhollow T, Antonio J. Caffeine enhances upper body strength in resistance-trained women. J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2010 May 14;7:18.

The illusion of caffeine
by Matt Cahill

Not the type of illusion I mean...

I never check for updates from the journal of Neuropsychopharmacology, so you (well, I) can thank a recent BBC article for letting me know about this study. It is somewhat relevant not only because it’s officially Coffee Week here at ST, but because it references caffeine tolerance which is apt for the previous two articles showing caffeine’s ergogenic potential.

The study itself was a collaboration between British and German researchers investigating the effect caffeine can have on different people. Specifically, they wanted to look at people with a variation of the ADORA2A gene (the gene coding for the adenosine A2A receptor) who suffer anxiety from caffeine use, and to determine whether the anxiety can be lessened with frequent use. The result of this is not the interesting part of this study however, as I will detail below. In the past two articles I avoided going into any detail about caffeine pharmacology, but I guess for this one it is required as I don’t want anyone getting lost as they read this.

Caffeine is an antagonist of the A1 and A2A adenosine receptors, thereby inhibiting the breakdown of Cyclic Adenosine Monophosphate (cAMP). Adenosine is an inhibitory neurotransmitter that slows nerve cell activity. It is also important for energy transfer as up to three phosphates can be attached to it to form adenosine triphosphate (ATP), something I discussed in more detail in the article Phosphorous an appetite regulation. By inhibiting the adenosine receptors, nerve cell activity is increased, leading to mental stimulation. This is how a cup of Joe in the morning perks you up.

The near-four hundred participants were directed to have a sixteen-hour caffeine wash-out period. Two hundred and seventeen of these participants were medium/high coffee drinkers, sinking one to six cups a day, so this must have been a pretty rough time for them! The other hundred and sixty-two participants either never or rarely drank coffee. During the experiment, the participants were randomly given a 100mg caffeine espresso shot, or a placebo. After ninety minutes, they got another 150mg shot or placebo. Here’s where it gets interesting because this is the only part of the study that may be relevant for the average bodybuilder or athlete - the medium/high coffee drinkers receiving caffeine reported alertness levels no higher than that of those who rarely drink coffee that were given the placebo! In other words, regular coffee drinkers drink coffee to make themselves “normal”!

As a regular coffee drinker I can kind of see the reality in this. And I can definitely relate to the fact that the medium/high coffee drinkers given placebo tended to get a headache. I’m sure some of you reading can relate to this also. So the take-home message for this update is that for best impact cycle your stimulant usage and take time off coffee drinking every now and then.

Source: Rogers PJ, Hohoff C, Heatherley SV, Mullings EL, Maxfield PJ, Evershed RP, Deckert J, Nutt DJ. Association of the Anxiogenic and Alerting Effects of Caffeine with ADORA2A and ADORA1 Polymorphisms and Habitual Level of Caffeine Consumption. Neuropsychopharmacology. 2010 Jun 2.

Caffeine works better if you expect it to
by Matt Cahill

This article was actually going to feature as part two to the illusion of caffeine but then I decided to make it its own little update. I know what you’re wondering based on the title, but bear with me as it turns out that your coffee will give you a better kick up the ass if you’re expecting it to.

Sounds weird I realize, and maybe this is another hit for the placebo effect, but this is the research coming out of Birmingham University in the UK. Twenty-five participants were involved in four experiments. In two of the experiments they received caffeinated coffee and the other de-caff and during both tests they were told the truth about what they were getting. The other two tests were the same, only they were told they were drinking the opposite of what they were actually drinking. In other words, the caffeinated coffee drinkers were told they had de-caff and vice versa. For all sets of experiments, mood assessment found no difference, but the performance tests yielded differing and intriguing results.



Note: An actual placebo pill, bro

The researchers found that de-caff conferred no benefits for performance, as you would expect (given that caffeine is the ergogenic compound of the beverage.) Here’s the interesting bit – caffeinated coffee improved performance when the participants knew it was caffeinated, but those drinking it that were told it was de-caff did not note the same boost in performance!

This study shows that there is a definite link between habitual coffee drinking and the mentality that the person needs their daily shot of caffeine. This attitude seems so prevalent in society that it is almost like it is a conditioned response. I have discussed the conditioned response and the reward pathway in a previous article called Eating is addictive. I’m sure you’re now thinking that there is a big difference between tasty food and a bitter-tasting beverage, but when you consider that caffeine can prolong dopamine signalling in the brain then maybe there isn’t. That being said, there is also research indicating that caffeine is psychologically addictive rather than physically addictive like amphetamines and cocaine.

Telling you to believe in your coffee to make it more effective makes me sound crazy. Other than that I have no real conclusion to this update that I haven’t already put in the previous updates during Caffeine Week. In lieu of this, I’ll end this update by letting you know that I probably have one more article on caffeine to come that will officially end the festivities. After that I’ll resume writing about random topics that I see fit.

Source: Elliman NA, Ash J, Green MW. Pre-existent expectancy effects in the relationship between caffeine and performance. Appetite. 2010 Apr 9.

the above articles are from: SteroidTimes.com

Awesome stuff, a lot of really interesting information in there.

Thank you for citing the source btw

Originally Posted by Richard Gears

I like it stacked with bronkaid

geranium

I take 400mg about 15 minutes before I workout. It's certainly not all that but it's a nice boost.