Caffeine: better performance guaranteed?
It's an open secret: at Vélo Cartel, we love coffee. In our eyes, this drink made from roasted Arabica beans is the glue that binds cycling pelotons together. We are convinced that every adventure on two wheels worth its salt involves a cup of this sweet nectar.
Coffee, however, is more than just a social lubricant: it is also a substance that improves athletic performance, and does so completely legally. The reason? Caffeine, a bitter, crystalline white powder found in large quantities in coffee, as well as in tea and certain products intended for athletes, such as energy drinks and gels.
How does it work?
Several hypotheses have been proposed over the years to explain the ergogenic effect of caffeine. The most widespread concerns adenosine receptors, a substance that accumulates in the brain stem and causes feelings of fatigue. Caffeine bypasses this mechanism by taking the place of adenosine, with which it shares a very similar structure.
This maximizes the production of excitatory neurotransmitters and delays the onset of the first symptoms of fatigue. In short, it's like placing a brick under one of the brain's main brake pedals. The result is a significant improvement in the ability to push on the pedals.
Expected benefits
When caffeine is consumed in moderation, endurance athletes can see their power increase by an average of around 3%, according to a recent literature review. For a cyclist with an FTP of 300 watts, this represents a small but noticeable gain of around 9 watts.
This same review of 46 studies published on the subject reports a performance improvement of around 2% in time trial events. Thus, during a solo 40 km effort, a cyclist under the influence of caffeine can expect to "steal" several tens of seconds, or even a few minutes, off the clock. That's no small feat.
A few caveats
However, not all cyclists benefit from caffeine in the same way. While the average performance improvement is around 3%, the variability is also ± 3%. Some cyclists see their power increase by an average of 6% under the effect of the substance, while others see no difference on their Power Meter.
This variability is largely due to genetics, according to researchers in a study on the subject published last August. The main culprit is believed to be the CYP1A2 gene, which affects caffeine metabolism. In individuals with the AA genetic variant, caffeine has positive effects on performance. In contrast, people with the AC genotype derive no benefit from it, while those with the CC genotype respond negatively: their performance deteriorates!
Instructions for use
Since there is no way (yet) to know where you fall on this spectrum, the best thing to do is to try caffeine during training. It is estimated that three milligrams of caffeine per kilogram of body weight (mg/kg) are sufficient to see noticeable effects on performance. Note: the effect is at its maximum about one hour after consumption.
For a 70 kg individual, 3 mg/kg of caffeine is equivalent to a medium to large cup of filter coffee or four cans of cola-type soft drink—which we obviously do not recommend. Depending on the brand and flavor, this represents 2 to 7 (!) energy gels. In our opinion, the best choice is a manual filter: V60 or Chemex.