This Just IN...

I found the following blurb in "Muscle & Performance" magazine from the Vitamin Shoppe.  And I have to say that the research has been around for a while -- people are just now beginning to pay attention.  As exercise science majors in undergrad, my friend Abby and I would pound black coffee before our runs.  Weird?  Maybe.  But it always got the job done! 

Article Title: Critical Caffeine

"Everyone who has ever had a cup or two of coffee in the morning can attest to caffeine's ability to boost energy.  What you may not know is that caffeine provides a host of other benefits, proved by research.  These  include helping to reduce body fat, improving strength and endurance in the gym, and enhancing mental focus.  An epidemiological study from Portugal even reported that subjects who consume caffeine daily have less risk of cognitive decline with aging.


In addition to supplying energy, caffeine helps reduce body fat by boosting the body's metabolic rate-- the amount of calories burned per day without factoring in activity-- and increasing the amount of fat that gets released from fat cells.  Research demonstrates that athletes also can lift more weight or lift the same weight for more reps when they supplement with caffeine.  One study from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln reported that trained subjects taking caffeine one hour before workouts were able to bench-press 5 pounds more than they could when taking a placebo.


While you can continue to drink your coffee, studies show that the best results from caffeine are achieved by supplementing with 200 to 400 milligrams of caffeine anhydrous one to two hours before hitting the gym."

My first issue with this little article, is that "proved" should actually be "proven," but I'm willing to overlook it at the moment.

Back on-topic, the caffeine supplementing idea is one that I have tried before a few of my workouts and the result is always a lot more energy and a better lift (and sometimes a better time for my mile-pace on my runs as well).  So it's definitely worth a try.  I just have to caution you to try to find something that doesn't have too many different things in it - you don't want to overload your body with things it doesn't need.  And once again, if you don't know what something is, don't consume it until you've asked someone knowledgable, or researched it yourself.  The last thing you want is to mess up your body or your metabolism due to ignorance of the facts.  Be informed, be safe, and get a great workout in! :)