Its no surprise that caffeine is essential for many people to get them going before a run or workout. But too much of it could have seriousand even deadlyconsequences.
Last July, a 21-year-old from Australia died of a caffeine overdose when he mixed one teaspoon of pure, concentrated caffeine powder into his protein shake. This isnt the first time this has happeneda 2018 study published in the journal Nutrients found that 91 people have died in the past 50 years from consuming too much caffeineover half were from powders or pills.
Sometimes, though, caffeine is already added in to supplements such as protein powder and preworkout mixes. This begs the question: How much is too much? And how can you figure out if other common ingredients pose the same risk?
We spoke with Paul R. Thomas, Ed.D., R.D.N., scientific consultant for the Office of Dietary Supplements at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), to find out.
There are hundreds of thousands of preworkout, workout, and recovery products out there that have many combinations of ingredientsand none are alike, Thomas tells Runners World.
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While the ingredients of these products are studied individually or in small combinations, most products are larger combinations that arent studied specifically, he says.
Heres where we encourage you to get all of your macronutrient needs from whole food sources. But we know that some people will still turn to using supplements to further fuel their workouts. Its important to note that the supplement industry is not regulated, which can make the marketing and labels at best confusing, and at worst, misleading.
Manufacturers arent required to study products before marketing, so many products dont have good evidence as to if they work or not, Thomas says. Even worse, for many of these products that contain many ingredients, they are put together in proprietary blends where you learn the amounts in their combinations, but not individually. Without knowing the amount in individual ingredients, you cant look up information as to if it will be effective or harmful.
And, even if there is research done, the studies usually include small groups of people during limited amounts of time with artificial lab conditions, according to Thomas. Your response, he says, will probably vary from these outcomes. For a lot of people, this [process of figuring out what works] is a matter of trial and error, he says.
However, there are a few ingredients that are commonly found in workout supplements that are well studied, Thomas says, such as caffeine, creatine, and BCAAsor branched chain amino acids. Thomas notes, though, that these ingredients might not work for everyonefor some people they do nothing, and for some people they may actually hinder performance. Heres what to know.
According to the NIH, caffeine can help you exercise at the same intensity level for longer and reduce feelings of fatigue. NIH suggests taking 2 to 6 milligrams (mg) per kilogram of body weight 15 to 60 minutes before you exercise. (For a 154-pound person, that would be 210 to 420 mg of caffeine. For reference, a cup of coffee contains about 95 mg of caffeine.) It also notes that adults shouldnt consume more than 500 mg per day, and that consuming 10,000 mg or more at one timewhich is one tablespoon (tbsp) of pure caffeine powdercan be deadly.
Creatine can boost your power, strength, and your muscles ability to work at their max effort, according to the NIH. And while its been found to be safe for healthy adults to use on a regular basis, it probably benefits sprinters and those who regularly strength train the most. NIH notes that studies have shown that people have seen muscle-building results from taking 20 grams of creatine per day for five to seven days, and then lowering their dose to 3 to 5 grams per day going forward.
The amino acids leucine, isoleucine, and valine are known as branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs), which are components of a protein. According to the NIH, your muscles use BCAAs for energy during exercise. If you get enough protein in your diet, that should provide you with about 10 to 20 grams of BCAAs per day. Taking up to 20 grams more from BCAA supplements appears to be safe as well.
For all of the above-mentioned ingredients, researchers dont know the effects of taking them beyond their recommended daily doses, Thomas says. Still, its best to do your research about specific ingredients before you buy and consume any products aimed to boost your workouts and muscle recovery.
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Workout Supplements | How to Read the Labels - Runner's World
