Hope you have your Trident handy.
Chew on this: Caffeinated gum can improve your athletic performance—if you start chewing it at the right moment, finds a new study from Kent State University.
Multiple studies have shown caffeine can improve both running and cycling performance and can reduce the amount of pain and exertion you feel during physical activity. For that reason, caffeinated gum has become a popular performance aid among recreational and highly-trained endurance athletes. But the KSU team wanted to find out exactly when athletes should start chewing.
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Researchers recruited a small group of trained bike riders and asked each man to complete a series of four cycling trials spread out over several weeks. At different points before each of the time trials, the researchers had the men chew either a piece of gum containing 300 milligrams of caffeine or a placebo gum. (Learn what else you can chew on to boost your power.)
When the riders chomped on caffeinated gum five minutes before the cycling trial, they shaved more than two minutes off their times compared to the placebo chewers—dropping from an average of roughly 40 minutes to 38 minutes, according to the study. Chewing the caffeinated gum one or two hours before the trial did not result in performance benefits.
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“Caffeine is absorbed significantly faster when administered in chewing gum versus a capsule,” explains study author Edward Ryan, Ph.D., an exercise scientist now at Chatham University in Pittsburgh. That means it’s best to chew the gum just before or during an athletic event, Ryan says.
How does the gum work? Caffeine blocks a specific type of neurotransmitter called adenosine, which calms your central nervous system and may therefore limit athletic performance, according to the study. Caffeine may also increase your body’s levels of adrenaline, a hormone that helps supercharge your nervous system during physical activity. (Here’s how to add adrenaline to any workout.)
If you want to enjoy the performance-boosting power of caffeine gum, Ryan suggests chewing 8 to 10 milligrams per 5 pounds of body weight. That means one piece of gum with 300 mg of caffeine is enough for a man weighing between 150 and 185 pounds. The caffeine boost lasts for about an hour, Ryan says, so have a few pieces on hand for longer competitions.
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