Glugging a piping hot cup of coffee in morning is a ritual for many across the globe. One of the most popular and loved caffeine-based drinks, coffee can help refresh your mind and body to a great extent. From classic cappuccino to Americano or other iced coffees, there is no dearth of coffee options out there. While various previous studies have found high stimulating properties in coffee, another study, published in the journal Nutrients, has shed light on the link between consumption of coffee and improvement in sports performance. For the study, the researchers from Coventry University in the UK picked 38 participants (19 men, 19 women) and found that drinking caffeinated coffee improves speed of cycling.
The participants of the study restricted coffee consumption for 12 hours before drinking either coffee providing (3mg.kg minus one) of caffeine, a placebo in water or nothing as a control.
Following the coffee ingestion, in a 5 km cycling time trial, study's findings suggest that both men and women respond similarly to coffee and the performance of both men and women improved by approximately nine seconds and six seconds, as compared to placebo and control, respectively.
No difference in performance was observed between the placebo and control.
The finding also contributes to the growing body of research that highlights the ergogenic benefit of coffee ingestion. To date, much of the research on this topic has focused only on anhydrous caffeine and men, said the researchers.