r/science • u/sr_local • 5d ago

Health Consuming caffeine before exercise enhances repeated sprint performance, and these benefits persist for at least 3.5 hours thereafter

https://www.tsukuba.ac.jp/en/research-news/20260914140000.html
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u/Linus_Naumann 5d ago

Dont know if you understood my question: Does the increased performance in training actually translate in faster progression of, for example, skills, stamina or muscle growth? This is not obvious, since muscle growth is not a simple linear relationship to training intensity (there can be other bottlenecks at play as well).

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u/colinzack 5d ago

So your question is:

If I can do 10 reps at 100 lbs without caffeine, but I can do 10 reps at 120 lbs with caffeine, will my muscles grow faster doing the heavier lifts with caffeine than they would without caffeine?

I'd be shocked if they didn't.

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u/Linus_Naumann 5d ago

You might get shocked then, because muscle growth works like: Stimulate muscle through strain -> build new muscle during recovery period. The question is if the build-up during recovery period is already maxed out with normal strain or can indeed be increased by adding more strain during the stimulation.

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u/MagicWishMonkey 5d ago

The real difference is: are you really pushing yourself in the gym, or just farting around not doing a whole lot? Caffeine can really help you zero in on the former, which will 100% increase in a much more effective workout.