Coffee, anyone?
Viagra isn’t your average performance-enhancing drug—on the football field, at least. But recent reports of NFL athletes popping everything from the ED drug to amphetamines have made us wonder: Are OTC and household-name meds the new performance-enhancers?
Before the days of steroids, amphetamines—a class of drugs promoting focus and alertness—were the drugs of choice, Michael Joyner, M.D., an exercise researcher at the Mayo Clinic, tells MensHealth.com. (Just think back to the Tour de France in the 60s and 70s.) “So, this does not surprise me at all,” Dr. Joyner says.
But what effects can these drugs have? Here are four surprising substances that do more than what they’re known for.
Adderall
It’s supposed to be used to treat ADHD, but it’s just as popular on the black market—from college classrooms to the sports world. “Adderall is an amphetamine,” says Dr. Joyner. “It’s a psychostimulant, and performance-enhancing.” (It also violates the NFL’s performance-enhancing substance policy.) But just how could it help? Physically, NFL players are pushed to their limits and need to fight fatigue, says Dr. Joyner. “And as [cyclist and Tour de France winner] Eddy Merckx once said, ‘You don’t start the Tour de France every day with a cup of coffee.’”
Football also takes a mental toll. Have you ever seen an NFL playbook? It’s extensive, and requires memorization and analysis. “It’s hard for people to believe, but there aren’t a lot of dumb people in the NFL,” says Dr. Joyner. “What they ask those people to do is very complicated.” Cue Adderall: You can train harder and focus more with the drug, Dr. Joyner says. But there’s a reason Adderall comes with a script: it has a purpose—and that’s treating ADHD, not giving your game a boost. (Plus, the side effects from the drug—including a loss of appetite to feeling easily angered—aren’t worth it if you’re ADHD-free.)
Viagra
The rumors are out there: the ED drug as a performance-enhancer. But how could it work? “[Viagra] may alter the way blood flows through your lungs, helping you oxygenate blood,” says Dr. Joyner. The drug could also improve blood flow to your muscles, which would have ergonomic effects—more so than just down there. And players who call high altitudes home (like Denver) could see the most effects. At high altitude, blood pressure in your lungs can go up, but Viagra lowers those pressures and helps the blood flow where it’s needed, Dr. Joyner says. Of course, popping Viagra for the purpose of getting your blood flowing on the football field isn’t just unconventional: it’s potentially dangerous, and not guaranteed to even do much of anything for the—err—rest of your body, says Dr. Joyner.
Caffeine
The quick and dirty: It makes you more alert. But recent research has shown it can do more. A study in The Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness found that men who drank a caffeinated drink (the equivalent of two cups of coffee), were able to push out three more bench press reps at 60 percent of their max load than those who drank a placebo drink. The caffeinated dudes also rated the lifting as easier and reported less post-workout soreness. It could be that caffeine blocks pain and fatigue signals that muscles send your brain, researchers say.
Tylenol
Research has shown that acetaminophen—that active ingredient in Tylenol—can have an effect on performance. Case in point: A 2010 U.K. study found that the ingredient boosted the performances of 13 male cyclists. In the study, cyclists took either Tylenol or a placebo, and then biked 10 miles. The results? Men who popped a pill biked faster, had higher concentrations of blood lactate, and higher heart rates than those who didn’t. Researchers believe that when you up your pain tolerance (by taking acetaminophen), you increase your performance, too.
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