Caffeine

// What the research shows

According to the ISSN position standPosition stand An official statement by a professional society summarising the evidence on a topic. More in the glossary → (Guest et al., 2021), caffeine at 3–6 mg/kg improves performance, especially endurance, but also muscular endurance, strength, sprinting and jumping. The minimal effective dose may be as low as about 2 mg/kg. Very high doses (around 9 mg/kg and up) cause more side effects without extra benefit. How strongly someone responds depends partly on genetics and habitual intake.

// In practice

• For 80 kg that's about 240–480 mg; many people do fine at the lower end.
• Typically taken about 60 minutes before training.
• Training in the evening? Caffeine can disrupt sleep, and poor sleep costs performance too.

// Limitations & open questions

Effects on strength and muscular endurance are smaller and less consistent than for endurance.

// Sources

• Positionspapier 2021Guest et al. – ISSN position stand: caffeine and exercise performance (JISSN) ↗

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