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From:	Leland (giskard.res.cmu.edu)
Subject:	Re: Does Caffeine Boost Your Athletic Performance
Date:	March 22, 2006 at 11:46 pm PST

In Reply to: Does Caffeine Boost Your Athletic Performance posted by Robin K on February 28, 2006 at 5:26 am:

Oh man, caffeine is great. I'm rather a fan of it, though I do know that I need to manage my intake.

Caffeine does have some interesting effects for athletic endeavor--I know that there was a study a couple years ago that looked at runners on caffeine. For every distance up to 5k, low doses of caffeine before running definitely improved performance, and the general negative effects were fairly minimal, namely the dehydration that can result. That said, caffeine is still a diuretic, and thus can dehydrate you if you're not careful. Monitoring fluid intake before, during, and after exercise is always a good idea.

So, drink the Coke if you want to. I generally avoid caffeine before exercising because I feel like it affects my focus, but I know that it does make me feel more energized and upbeat.

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