Caffeine Before Workout: Ideal Dosage and 5 Tips To Power Through Your Session

  • By Performance Lab
  • 7 minute read
Caffeine Before Workout: Ideal Dosage and 5 Tips To Power Through Your Session

When you wake to the jarring sound of your alarm going off at 5 am, the first thing on the agenda after rolling out of bed is usually knocking back a cup of coffee.

It’s warm, comforting, and (hopefully) shoots your energy levels from 0-100 in the next half hour. But for anyone hitting the gym first thing, is knocking back some caffeine a good idea before training?

The short answer—yes.Whether in the form of a cup of coffee, an energy drink, or a pre-workout supplement, caffeine is the one thing that consistently increases alertness and powers you through even the most exhausting workout.

But there’s one thing about caffeine that can be an even bigger buzzkill than people stealing your equipment—overdoing it. While you may think that more caffeine means a better workout, it’s not usually the case.We’re giving you the scoop on what you should know about taking caffeine before a workout—the benefits of caffeine for athletic performance, the ideal timing and dose, what happens when you take too much, and the best tips to power you through your training session.

Want to find out more about the best caffeine pills to take before your workout? Then click here!

Benefits Of Caffeine For Performance

Caffeine and workouts go together like peanut butter and jelly. Although hydrating with water before, during, and after a workout is number one, caffeine before training can be beneficial—that is, when taken in the appropriate dose. Before we get into the benefits of caffeine, let’s first look at how caffeine works in the body.

After consumption, caffeine is absorbed into the bloodstream relatively quickly and reaches peak plasma concentrations within 30 to 90 minutes 1. Once absorbed, it elicits powerful effects on the central nervous system by blocking adenosine receptors and stimulating sympathetic activity.

Because adenosine is responsible for initiating drowsiness, blocking the receptors with a stimulant can help to ward off fatigue and increase energy 2. As such, we get more energy, better focus, and overall enhanced athletic performance.But there’s more. Caffeine can also increase the release of catecholamines, specifically epinephrine, to, directly and indirectly, enhance exercise performance by inducing secondary metabolic changes 2, 3.

Here’s what it can help with 4:

  • Energy
  • Alertness
  • Attention and focus
  • Concentration
  • Cognitive function
  • Reaction time
  • Productivity
  • Perceptions of fatigue

But you don’t have to be a high-level athlete to reap what caffeine offers.

Studies find that supplements containing caffeine can also benefit the speed of resistance exercises 5. It can enhance movement velocity for low, moderate, and heavy loads and upper and lower body exercises.

Timing And Dosage Of Caffeine Pre-Workout

If you’re planning to use caffeine to power you through your workout, relying on your morning cup of coffee isn’t going to cut it—you need to time it strategically.

Because it takes anywhere from 30 to 90 minutes to reach peak plasma concentrations, with an average of 45 minutes, you need to be consuming caffeine at least 30 minutes before a workout to achieve maximum absorption 6.But how much do you need to experience the benefits? While many pre-workout supplements choose to mega-dose caffeine with a whopping 300mg plus per scoop, you don’t need anywhere near that to reap the benefits of caffeine.

Studies suggest that low-moderate doses (3-6 mg/kg) of caffeine are equally effective, without all of the downsides of excessive consumption 1; moderate doses have been shown to promote up to an 8% increase in performance of aerobic exercises, sports, and exercises with high glycolytic demand 7.

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Apart from the nasty effects of mega-dosing caffeine—anxiety, nervousness, jitters, adrenal burnout, etc.—research suggests that higher doses of caffeine exceeding 9 mg/kg don’t provide any further performance enhancements than lower doses.Doses of 1–3 mg/kg of body mass don’t elicit the same physiological response in the body that high doses do but still appear to deliver many of the same ergogenic effects such as better vigilance, alertness, mood, and cognitive function during and after exercise 8, 9.So, if you’re looking for maximum performance benefits, doses between 3-6mg per kg of body weight are effective. For someone that’s 150 lbs., the optimal caffeine intake would be between 204mg and 408mg, although lower doses of 1-3mg per kg of body weight are equally as effective (68mg to 204mg).

The Problem With Too Much Caffeine

Here’s the thing with caffeine—too much of it can tank your workout.

Although you may be under the impression that more caffeine will increase alertness and give you boundless energy, it seems to do the opposite.

Excessive caffeine consumption can result in some nasty side effects like nervousness, jitters, racing heart rate, and anxiety, which will decrease your performance. The other problem commonly encountered with frequent caffeine consumption is habituation or dependence. Your body becomes reliant on caffeine for arousal and energy.

When you’re not consuming it—or not consuming enough of it—it can lead to significant performance decrements, as well as a slew of caffeine withdrawal symptoms7:

  • Headache
  • Fatigue
  • Depression
  • Irritability
  • Decreased alertness
  • Lack of productivity
  • Nausea
  • Stiffness

On top of that, excessive caffeine intake can also lead to sleep disruptions, which interfere with your body’s ability to recover.

While you may think that recovery happens when you’re not training, a lot of it happens when you’re sleeping—including the secretion of anabolic hormones like testosterone and growth hormone 10, 11.

Five Tips To Boost Your Training Session

On top of timing your caffeine consumption right, follow these tips to maximize your workout session!

Get enough sleep

Caffeine is a great crutch to help boost your energy and focus, but you can’t caffeinate to make up for poor sleep habits.

Sleep is critical not only for mental function but also for your recovery. For men specifically, testosterone and growth hormone—the two major anabolic hormones—are secreted primarily during slow-wave sleep.

If you’re not getting sufficient sleep, you’re not getting enough of the hormones needed to build and maintain lean mass 12.

And for everyone, lack of sleep also interferes with your body’s ability to recover from exercise by modifying its inflammatory and hormonal responses 13, 14.

Eat a pre-workout meal

Although caffeine may be beneficial for improving exercise performance, your body still needs a good amount of fuel in the tank if you’re thinking about doing heavy lifting or anything super strenuous—caffeine can only do so much in these situations. Having a meal containing complex carbs and protein with a tiny bit of healthy fat can help to provide sufficient glucose for an intense workout without causing significant blood sugar fluctuations.

Don’t over-do it on caffeine

As we said, too much caffeine can do more harm to your workouts than good. Opt for a small cup of coffee or supplements that don’t overdo the caffeine to avoid any potential decrements.

Performance Lab® Caffeine+ is an ultra-smart energy supplement designed to turbocharge your workouts without going overboard. It supplies 50mg of smart caffeine per capsule for peak stim benefits with fewer side effects. You’re getting cleaner, healthier, more relaxed energy without the risk of burnout.

And if you want to avoid caffeine altogether, Performance Lab® Energy is the ultimate stim-free formula that optimizes mitochondrial function to boost mental vitality and exercise intensity. It’s an intelligent stack of advanced form nutrients that naturally boost energy production for clean, jitter-free, crash-free energy.

Stay hydrated

If you want to perform, you need to stay hydrated.

Proper hydration is essential for regulating blood volume, body temperature, muscle contraction, and many more functions. Improper hydration can lead to reductions in blood volume, blood flow to the skin, and sweat production, along with increased body temperature and glycogen use rate.

Poor hydration status impairs performance by reducing the amount of blood entering the heart, which decreases cardiac output and maximal aerobic power (VO2 max) 15.

Support your recovery

Whether it’s foam rolling, massage, stretching, meditation, sleep, or proper nutrition, your performance in the gym is dictated by what you do outside of the gym.

The “no days off” mentality may tout your ego, but it’s not doing anything for your body. Allow yourself sufficient rest between workouts and follow with active recovery techniques. And every so often, consider taking a de-load week—your body will thank you!

References

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  2. Graham TW. Caffeine and exercise: metabolism, endurance and performance. Sports Med. 2001;31(11):785-807.
  3. Anderson DE, Hickey MS. Effects of caffeine on the metabolic and catecholamine responses to exercise in 5 and 28 degrees C. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 1994;26(4):453-458.
  4. Lara B, Ruiz-Moreno C, Salinero JJ, Del Coso J. Time course of tolerance to the performance benefits of caffeine. PLoS One. 2019;14(1):e0210275.
  5. Raya-González J, Rendo-Urteaga T, Domínguez R, Castillo D, Rodríguez-Fernández A, Grgic J. Acute Effects of Caffeine Supplementation on Movement Velocity in Resistance Exercise: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Sports Med. 2020;50(4):717-729.
  6. Adan A, Prat G, Fabbri M, Sànchez-Turet M. Early effects of caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee on subjective state and gender differences. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry. 2008;32(7):1698-1703.
  7. Martins GL, Guilherme JPLF, Ferreira LHB, de Souza-Junior TP, Lancha AH Jr. Caffeine and Exercise Performance: Possible Directions for Definitive Findings. Front Sports Act Living. 2020;2:574854.
  8. Costill DL, Dalsky GP, Fink WJ. Effects of caffeine ingestion on metabolism and exercise performance. Med Sci Sports. 1978;10(3):155-158.
  9. Spriet LL. Exercise and sport performance with low doses of caffeine. Sports Med. 2014;44 Suppl 2(Suppl 2):S175-S184.
  10. Leproult R, Van Cauter E. Effect of 1 week of sleep restriction on testosterone levels in young healthy men. JAMA. 2011;305(21):2173-2174.
  11. Davidson JR, Moldofsky H, Lue FA. Growth hormone and cortisol secretion in relation to sleep and wakefulness. J Psychiatry Neurosci. 1991;16(2):96-102.
  12. Davidson JR, Moldofsky H, Lue FA. Growth hormone and cortisol secretion in relation to sleep and wakefulness. J Psychiatry Neurosci. 1991;16(2):96-102.
  13. Leproult R, Van Cauter E. Effect of 1 week of sleep restriction on testosterone levels in young healthy men. JAMA. 2011;305(21):2173-2174.
  14. Dáttilo M, Antunes HKM, Galbes NMN, et al. Effects of Sleep Deprivation on Acute Skeletal Muscle Recovery after Exercise. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2020;52(2):507-514.
  15. Watanabe K, Stöhr EJ, Akiyama K, Watanabe S, González-Alonso J. Dehydration reduces stroke volume and cardiac output during exercise because of impaired cardiac filling and venous return, not left ventricular function. Physiol Rep. 2020;8(11):e14433.

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