Influence of caffeine on sports performance
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.63750/erm6az66Keywords:
caffeine, ergogenic effects, aerobic endurance, explosive power, recreational sportsAbstract
The aim of this study was to examine the effect of acute caffeine supplementation on performance and physiological variables in recreationally physically active men. Methods: The sample consisted of 34 male subjects, aged 20 to 30 years, who were randomly divided into an experimental group that received caffeine (n = 16) and a placebo control group (n = 18). Initial and final measurements of aerobic endurance (beep test), explosive strength of the lower extremities (CMJ), maximum strength of the upper body (1RM bench press), reaction time, heart rate, blood pressure and perceived exertion (RPE) were performed on the subjects. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to process the data, with the statistical significance level set at p < 0.05. The results showed statistically significant differences in favor of the caffeine group in the variables of aerobic endurance (F = 5.91; p = 0.020) and explosive power (F = 4.44; p = 0.041), while the other variables showed a trend of improvement without reaching statistical significance. Physiological parameters remained within the limits of physiological acceptability. Conclusion: Acute administration of caffeine has a selective ergogenic effect in a recreationally active population, especially in the domains of endurance and explosive power, without negative cardiovascular consequences.
Downloads
References
• Astorino, T. A., & Roberson, D. W. (2010). Efficacy of acute caffeine ingestion for short-term high-intensity exercise performance. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 24(1), 257–265.
• Bridge, C. A., & Jones, M. A. (2006). The effect of caffeine ingestion on 8 km run performance in a field setting. Journal of Sports Sciences, 24(4), 433–439.
• Burke, L. M. (2008). Caffeine and sports performance. Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism, 33(6), 1319–1334.
• Doherty, M., & Smith, P. M. (2005). Effects of caffeine ingestion on exercise testing: A meta-analysis. International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, 15(1), 14–28.
• Goldstein, E. R., Ziegenfuss, T., Kalman, D., Kreider, R., Campbell, B., Wilborn, C., … Antonio, J. (2010). International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: Caffeine and performance. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 7(1), 5.
• Graham, T. E. (2001). Caffeine and exercise: Metabolism, endurance and performance. Sports Medicine, 31(11), 785–807.
• Grgic, J., Mikulic, P., Schoenfeld, B. J., Bishop, D. J., & Pedisic, Z. (2019). The influence of caffeine supplementation on resistance exercise: A review. Sports Medicine, 49(1), 17–30.
• McLellan, T. M., Caldwell, J. A., & Lieberman, H. R. (2016). A review of caffeine's effects on cognitive, physical and occupational performance. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 71, 294–312.
• Navarre, D. A., Jankovich, J., & Caruso, J. F. (2017). Caffeine and resistance exercise performance. Strength and Conditioning Journal, 39(4), 1–7.
• Spriet, L. L. (2014). Exercise and sports performance with low doses of caffeine. Sports Medicine, 44(2), 175–184.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Bojan Bulatovik (Author)

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Copyright & Licensing Policy:
- Open Access Policy: This journal follows a fully Open Access model, which means all published research articles are freely available to readers without any subscription or access fees. Anyone can read, download, copy, distribute, print, and cite the published work without restrictions, as long as they comply with the journal’s licensing terms.
- Copyright & License:
- All articles published in this journal are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0).
- This license allows unrestricted reuse and distribution, provided that proper credit is given to the original author and source.
- Authors retain full copyright ownership of their work while granting the journal the right to publish it for the first time under this license.
- Author Responsibilities:
- Authors must agree to the journal’s licensing terms before publication.
- Submitted manuscripts must be original and not published or under consideration elsewhere during the review process.
- Any reuse of published content by third parties must comply with the CC BY 4.0 license, ensuring no additional restrictions are imposed on reuse.
- Publication Fees (free to publish):
- This journal (free to publish) does not charge any fees for access to published research, supporting the principle of free and open scientific knowledge for all.