Can Coffee Boost Performance?

THE SCOOP

Have you ever been sitting at your desk, about to leave for CrossFit after a long day, thinking that you really needed a coffee to get through this WOD? Well, turns out your instincts were half correct. Coffee is just about the best pre-WOD you can take and not just for its pick me up effects.

OK, TELL ME MORE.

Let’s get the obvious out of the way; it’s an energy booster and improves your focus. But you already know that otherwise you wouldn’t be drinking a cup while reading the Morning Chalk Up.

Caffeine also helps you lose weight — not by suppressing your appetite — but when consumed before a WOD. A study in the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism discovered that athletes who consumed caffeine burned about 15% more calories for three hours post WOD.

In another study, caffeine reduced perceived muscle pain, as in more reps at a higher weight. Fran anyone? Grace? Helen?

Finally, it was found to help athletes “train at a greater power output and/or train longer.”

OK, YOU CONVINCED ME. WHAT NOW?

The CrossFit Open starts on Thursday. Take a shot and fuel your open with a nice bold cup of coffee. Oh and by the way, everyone’s favorite functional fitness coffee company Caffeine & Kilos is offering $5 off a bag of coffee with code “FUELYOUROPEN.”