almost anything you can throw at it.”
running for extensively prolonged periods of time. For example,
d in the multisport world, supporting large
if he skips his morning coffee, or those later in the day, the lack
Kokoda Challenge, parkrun Australia and
of caffeine leaves his normally caffeinated body feeling lethargic
. They were also proud to be the official
and stagnant. Utilising a caffeinated gel during these lower
o the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth
periods makes a lot of sense, albeit carefully ensuring that enough
0 defibrillators for use at official venues
energy is also replaced to combat its stimulating effects. This is
imperative to avoid crashing and burning later.
of our involvement with local community
e message out regarding the importance
CAFFEINE
AND “So
WOMEN
sible AEDs onsite,”
Scott continues.
far
Fascinatingly,
studies
are
e had two successful
resuscitations
due
to now coming to light about the role of
caffeine
on a woman’s
body,
nd access to an onsite
defibrillator,
which
is and how the effect varies depending
her
hormonal
status.
hey are incidents on
that
could
so easily
end For example, information shows that the
metabolism of caffeine during the first two weeks of a woman’s
cycle to
is sink
similar
men, but then in the second two weeks
ssage we really want
in is to to that
not of
wait
women show
higher peak
ou act,” Scott concludes.
“Be proactive,
not levels following ingestion, meaning that
the caffeine
will stay in or
her body for longer. This is also true
r a death to happen
in your workplace
for many women
certain forms of birth control. I would
y purchase a defibrillator.
We want using
to stop
recommend that if you are a woman and are sensitive to caffeine,
ning in the first place.”
begin
to notice
and of
document its effects on your body at
rillators, FAAE also
provide
a range
different
times
of your
menstrual cycle. You may observe that
outh East QLD and
Northern
NSW
including
your low
sensitivity
this stimulant may go up and down with the
ed resuscitation and
voltage to
rescue.
changes
in your hormonal
at their Varsity Lakes
and Coomera
locations levels, thus requiring you to adapt your
during
ailable!) and can approach
be booked
online exercise.
at
com.au
CAFFEINE AND STRESS
Some athletes are highly susceptible to pre-race exercise stress or
anxiety. For these athletes, I would strongly recommend steering
clear of caffeine prior-to, or in the early phases of a race as it has
the potential to enhance the cortisol stress response. Too much
stress too early on can lead to burning more calories than desired,
leading to a potential deficit later in the event.
CAFFEINE FOR PAIN
Interestingly, one of the greatest benefits of caffeine during
exercise is that is becomes a potent masker of pain. That is, during
exercise, it can have an effect of similar proportions to that of
taking two Panadol tablets. There have certainly been occasions
when I have had to tap into this during the depths of a long,
difficult ultra-distance run. For example, on one such adventure
I had a sudden, sharp onset of ITB syndrome with symptoms of
jabbing pain in the front of my patellar. No amount of hobbling
helped and deep down I knew that this compensation would
only make the problem worse. Within 10 minutes of consuming
a caffeinated gel, I had not just climbed out of this hobbling
hole, but the pain had completely disappeared! I believe that
this was also due to my heightened ability to improve my motor
patterning, once again tapping into the strength of my gluteal
muscles that had become lazy and non-responsive due to mental
and physical fatigue. Amazingly, I experienced no more knee pain
for the remaining six hours of this long mission.
In summary, caffeine certainly does have a role during exercise.
It can help us to feel alert, agile and responsive to the demands
of the challenges we have set ourselves, and not to forget its
effects on pain. However, it is imperative to remember that it is a
stimulant. For these reasons, I would urge all athletes to develop
insight into how it affects them on an individual level, and also to
consider keeping it up your sleeve as a trump card for later in the
race. This will help you to experience that sensation of finishing
with fire, whilst also helping to prevent digging energy deficits due
to overexertion too early in an event.
For all distance trail runners who
want to Perform Wilder
HANNY ALLSTON
MULTISPORT MAGAZINE | 33