Intra-Competition Caffeine as an Advanced Tool

Caffeine is undoubtedly one of the supplements with the most scientific evidence for increasing performance in various sports disciplines. Its intake improves reaction time, speed, muscle strength, muscle endurance, alertness, cognition, and different aerobic and anaerobic variables.1. 

It is recommended to supplement about 45 – 60 min before exercise at a dose of 3 – 6 mg/kg of body weight (e.g. 60kg = 180 – 360 mg; 80kg = 240 – 480 mg) because maximum peak of caffeine it reaches the 45 – 60 min, being able to maximize performance there2,3. However, the performance-enhancing effect has a duration of up to 2 hours. Therefore, your effects they would be seen reduced in longer-duration disciplines than those 2 hours, especially in the final moments of the competition (cycling, Ironman, ultra-distance races…). 

In these prolonged exercise disciplines, there is an accumulation of fatigue that becomes noticeable as the competitive event progresses. Therefore, the use of caffeine during exercise could be beneficial for performance depending on the duration of the event. In fact, supplementation with low doses of caffeine during exercise has been shown to improve performance in long-duration disciplines of more than 2 hours such as running or cycling3.

Therefore, in these disciplines we will be able to assess the caffeine intake every 2 hours, always in doses lower than those mentioned above. Specifically, doses of 2 – 3 mg/kg of body weight are recommended every 2 hours (60kg = 120 – 180 mg; 80kg = 160 – 240 mg)1–3. In order to supplement ourselves correctly it is important to take into account the last intake and the end of the competition due to the peak that occurs at 45 – 60 min. Therefore, in very long tests (> 5 – 6 h), it could to ingest a dose of caffeine for the final part1–3. Additionally, a dose can be administered halfway through the test right at the beginning of the drop of the ergogenic effect (2 h after its supplementation). In the case that the intake can be divided, it can also include a dose of caffeine of strategic form in a key moment of the competition: for example, in the case of a climb to a mountain pass, a dose could be included 30 – 45 minutes before the start of the climb.

Supplementation can be carried out by using coffee, capsules of caffeine or even gels or bars of carbohydrates that they contain caffeine. However, it is worth noting that the caffeine dose in coffee can be very variable, so using capsules or gels with standardized caffeine content may be more useful.

In addition, it is important to test the supplementation regimen before the competitive event (in similar training sessions) since it is necessary to train intestinal tolerance to avoid possible gastrointestinal issues1–3. Therefore, both the amounts and the sources of caffeine supplementation should be tested before taking it in the competition.

Examples of a supplementation guideline for a 4-hour event for an athlete weighing 50, 60, 70 or 80kg.

Finally, it should be noted that these guidelines are indicative based on scientific evidence, so they will need to be adapted a to individualize the requirements for each of the cases.

Author

Lucas Jurado Fasoli
PhD in Biomedicine
Dietitian-nutritionist and postdoctoral researcher at the University of Granada

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References:

1. Guest, N. S. et al. International society of sports nutrition position stand: caffeine and exercise performance. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition vol. 18 (2021).
2. Burke, L. M. Caffeine and sports performance. in Applied Physiology, Nutrition and Metabolism vol. 33 1319–1324 (2008).
3. Spriet, L. L. Exercise and Sport Performance with Low Doses of Caffeine. Sports Medicine vol. 44 175–184 (2014).

Autor

Lucas Jurado Fasoli