Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Workout on Caffeine? Good for you?


New studies show that consuming caffeine (Get Prolab Caffeinefrom Amazon) before a workout increases your endurance and it also delays fatigue. Having a few cups of coffee after an intense workout has also been proved to reduce muscle stiffness and soreness. And me being on full steam with my body transformation workout program decided to put these studies to the test...

First a few facts about caffeine use for workouts and exercise:

  • Delays fatigue
  • Slows the breakdown of muscle glycogen, which means your body has more fuel to keep going
  • Enhances endurance
  • Keeps you more alert
  • Can reduce muscle pain during exercise
  • May lower perceived exertion, making exercise feel more comfortable
Unfortunately caffeine is also a stimulant which means that it could have some side effects:
  • Increased urination
  • Stomach upset
  • Trembling or shaking
  • Trouble sleeping
  • Increased anxiety
  • Headaches
  • Nausea
Right, so it Day 4 (week 5) of my workout split (that I got from Workout Routines at hellosixpackabs.com), so today I was doing only legs and decided I am going to consume a lot of caffeine (+- 4 cups of coffee) before I go workout and that I am also going to do some heavy cardio to see if the caffeine will increase my endurance for the cardio (running) and leg exercises (hamstrings, calves, upper legs, squad machine).

After I downed my huge cup of coffee, containing 4 teaspoons of concentrated coffee and honey, I could feel my heart rate go up, muscles starting to tremble and I started to talk a lot. (My girlfriend wasn't impressed) I knew that my ultimate caffeine rush has started, and off I went to the gym.

Full of energy and ready for anything I started on the treadmill. Usually I run on speed 10 for about 3 km, before my legs start hurting and my lungs start aching, but today, I started off at 10.5, and soon upped the speed of the treadmill to 12, (caffeine obviously working) running and maintaining my speed for 2 km, and whereas I would normally be too tired to go on, I still had a lot of energy left. I increased the gradient to 3%, setting my speed to 11, running uphill for more than a km. After this I was sweating like a pig, but still had energy left for the rest of my workout, whereas normally I would be pooped by this time.

Already realizing that a workout on caffeine works, I set off to the weights and machines section of the gym, having a 3 minute rest in between, and started with my leg workout. I did 3 sets of leg presses, 10 reps each. After that I moved on to the hamstrings machine, doing 5 sets of 10 reps each. I do all my exercises at about 80% of my max lift. Then I did the quads machine, 4 sets of 9 reps, followed by some quick super sets on the ass machine and inner thighs machine, 3 sets of 15 reps each. Finally I ended off with some calves exercises on the stair master machine, running flat out on my toes for a quick calves burn. It felt really good and I stumbled out of the gym on my way home, really feeling my legs aching all over, my legs total jelly. (Guess my caffeine level downed after the workout, hehe)

The verdict?
I could do all the exercises I usually do on a normal day and do them more intense. I ran faster, I increased the incline of the treadmill, still having enough energy after wards to give a hard workout at the weights and leg machines section. Even after a heavy leg cardio session, I increased my leg lifts by 3 kg and added a few additional sets, that I don't usually do. So, yes, I think workout on caffeine definately DOES work. It increased my endurance and speed and intensity of my workout.


Negative effects of taking caffeine? [added next day]
My muscles doesn't seem more stiff than usual. Surprisingly good actually. I did however struggle to sleep. Don't know if it could be related to the workout with the caffeine. I did take 4 coffees, so maybe that could still be in my system 3 hours later. Didn't feel any nausea or any of the other effects mentioned.

Will I go workout on caffeine again?
I will try this again, for sure, it definately worked. Caffeine rushes are awesome for exercise! I am sure it isn't very good if you take in too much caffeine at a time, so next time I will just lower my caffeine dosage, or get some real caffeine capsules like Prolab Caffeinefrom Amazon.com.

You can check out some good workout routines that I posted in a previous post, if you don't know what workout routine to do. As I have mentioned before I use a very good workout program from renowned bodybuilder Vince DelMonte. So far I have been having really good gains and I can really recommend it. It is called No-Nonsense Muscle Building and you can also read a review of this muscle building program if you want to make sure if this program is the right one for you.




Articles you may also like:

1. Before Photos and Week 1 of my Body Transformation

2. Photos and Progress report after Week 3 of my Body Transformation

3. Full Workout Routines and advice for Muscle Building

4. Best Exercises for Chest Muscles

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