Thursday, November 13, 2008

Coffee is my recovery drink of choice

There is a great article in Velonews about the first study to evaluate caffeine's potential benefits in the recovery phase of a workout. The researchers theorized that because pre-workout caffeine intake increased availability of glucose (a sugar used by the body for energy), post workout intake may help an athlete more quickly replenish their muscle glycocen stores.

The results of the study were promising; the researches found that in a 4 hour recovery period, the amount of glycogen stored in the muscle when the athlete consumed both carbohydrates and caffeine was 60% higher than those athletes that consumed the carbohydrates alone. The conclusion; caffeine can help an athlete recover more quickly between sessions.

Excellent news for my caffeine addiction, but there was one initial drawback to the study; the caffeine does used to reach the increased recovery level was 560 milligrams, about the equivalent of 6 cups of coffee (or about 2 of those crazy new NOS energy drink bottle that makes your pee glow in the dark and allows you to vibrate between dimensions).


1 comment:

Unknown said...

Jeffrey!! I just heard some very exciting news. Evidently McDonald's is now serving the fancy "coffee house" drinks that you're so fond of. From this day forward you'll be able to enjoy "one stop shopping" for your post-workout recovery meal and beverage. No more shouting into the broken drive-thru speaker before rushing off to the Starbucks on the other end of town. No more shame over smuggling your Happy Meal into the dimly lit corner of the 'Bucks. Never again will you have to ask that snobby barista if she has any ketchup packets. It's as if the product development guru's over at Mickey D's HQ formed a special task force geared towards earning your business. Serendipity!!

Now if only Illegal Pete's would add kombucha to their menu I think that I would have my own personal version of caloric nirvana.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cg87E1tjTOE

-Craig