• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Click here to download the  free ebook of Alberto Juantorena’s  detailed training workouts leading up to the 1976 Montreal Olympics

SpeedEndurance.com

Success in Track & Field ... and Life

  • Home
    • About
    • Contact
  • Track & Field
    • 400 meters
    • 800m & Mile
    • 1/2 & Full Marathons
    • Long & Triple Jump
    • Hurdles
  • Training
    • Weight Training
    • Abs & Core
    • Injury Prevention
    • Shoes & Spikes
    • Masters
  • Coaching
    • Freelap Friday Five
    • Interviews
    • Sports Nutrition
    • Sport Psychology
  • Archives
  • Shop
    • My account
    • Checkout
    • Basket

Benefits of Caffeine and Multiple Sprint Running Performance

You are here: Home / Fitness Testing / Benefits of Caffeine and Multiple Sprint Running Performance
6
SHARES
FacebookTwitter

March 2, 2009 by Jimson Lee 2 Comments

When was the last time you drank 2 cups of strong Starbucks coffee and did a 12 × 30 m, repeated at 35 second intervals?

Doing a 2 x 6 x 30 meter sprints with blocks (or standing pike start) is a common workout providing you have a full recovery for quality sprinting. Technique and ground contact times degrades with fatigue and lactic acid.

The most I ever did was a speed/special endurance “split” workouts of 2 x 200m (60 second recovery) or 3 x 100m (45 second recovery).

To emulate the above workout indoors, we would do 3 or 4 sets of 60 meters. After 60 meters, you slow down (which takes about 20 meters, or before the smashing into the wall), come to a complete stop, turn around, then accelerate again. This would ensure 180 – 240 meters of high quality running. In my early days of track, we would run a 200 or 300 meters on the indoor track but the tight curves caused injuries. It is better to run in a linear fashion for the sake of speed training, at least on the indoor track.

So, when I read this study, I was a bit baffled by the running protocol. What were they trying to achieve?

Benefits of Caffeine

What can you improve from excess Caffeine Supplementation?

  • reaction time?
  • acceleration?
  • top end speed?
  • speed endurance?
  • special endurance?

The study was performed at the School of Human Sciences, St Mary’s University College, UK. The abstract can be found here.

The protocol was an indoor multiple sprint running trial (12 × 30 m; repeated at 35-s intervals)

Caffeine was administered orally at 5 mg/kg body mass. For me, that’s 85kg or 187 lbs = 425 mg of caffeine! That’s a bit less than 2 Tall cups of Starbucks coffee (at 260mg per Tall cup) or over 4 “No-Doze” pills! Wow!

With that much caffeine supplementation, I hope there was a toilet nearby.

The result?

Conclusion: Although the effect of recovery duration on caffeine-induced responses to multiple sprint work requires further investigation, the results of the present study show that caffeine has ergogenic properties with the potential to benefit performance in both single and multiple sprint sports.

See also  A Systematic Approach To Developing Individual Success Within A Dynamic Team Culture

Category iconFitness Testing,  Supplements,  Track & Field Tag iconspeed,  speed endurance

About Jimson Lee

I am a Masters Athlete and Coach currently based in London UK. My other projects include the Bud Winter Foundation, writer for the IAAF New Studies in Athletics Journal (NSA) and a member of the Track & Field Writers of America.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. adarian says

    March 3, 2009 at 9:46 am

    They did a study to see if caffeine could enhance performance?
    No wonder energy drinks are selling like fire.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Primary Sidebar

Recommended

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xbs-aWxyLk

Shop Our Store

  • Bud Winter (9)
  • Championship Productions (6)
  • Clyde Hart (2)
  • Derek Hansen (1)
  • Electrical Muscle Stimulation (2)
  • Jim Hiserman (6)
  • Jimson Lee (4)
  • Uncategorised (0)

Articles by Category

Products

  • Jim Hiserman - Developing 800m Runners: Identifying, Categorizing and Developing 400m-800m Type Athletes $42.99 $39.99
  • Private Coaching - Monthly Plan $600.00 $525.00
  • Jim Hiserman-Developing-Distance-Runnersv2 Jim Hiserman - Developing Distance Runners Volume 2: A Systematic Approach to Developing Individual Success within a Dynamic Team Culture $34.95 $29.95
  • Feed-the-Cats-Clinic-3-Pack-701 'Feed the Cats' Clinic 3-Pack $64.99
  • Tony Holler's Feed the Cats": A Complete Sprint Training Program Tony Holler's "Feed the Cats" Complete Sprint Training Program $49.99
  • Bud Winter and Speed City presents Arthur Lydiard 509x716 Bud Winter & Arthur Lydiard MP3 [Download only] $9.99

RECENT POSTS

  • IFAC 2022: The Return of In-Person Conferences (with Virtual option)
  • Here is our 400m Discussion Recording… over 2 Hours Long
  • The Best Free Coaching Book – post Beijing 2022 Olympics
  • The Ultimate 400m Track Webinar for Coaches & Athletes
  • NACAC Athletics Coaching Science Series 2022
  • Top Six 400m Predictor Workouts (Number 4 is my Favourite)
  • Best 6 Podcasts for 2021 (and Beyond)
  • Why Karsten Warholm’s 45.94 400mH WR is my Highlight of 2021
  • Sprinting: 10 Research Articles for Effective Sprint Training [Part 23]
  • Pressure in Sports – Reflections from Tokyo 2020 Olympics

Copyright © 2023. SpeedEndurance.com is owned and operated by Aryta Ltd. Privacy Policy
Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy