Coffee & Exercise Performance

Caffeine is part of the naturally occurring group of stimulants found in leaves, nuts and seeds of a number of plants. Common dietary sources include coffee, tea, chocolate and a variety of soft drinks and sports drinks. The caffeine content of various foodstuffs is given below.

Table 1. Caffeine content of various foodstuffs

Foodstuff	Serving size	Caffeine content (mg)
Coffee*	150 ml	50-120
Tea*	150 ml	15-50
Chocolate Drink**	250 ml	10
Milk Chocolate**	50g	40
Caffeinated Soft Drinks	330 ml	40-100

(from Maughan 1999)
* Values for coffee and tea vary widely depending on the source and
method of preparation.
** In addition to caffeine, chocolate contains theobromine, which has an insignificant effect compared to caffeine.

So what is the effect of caffeine on different types of exercise?

Although the mechanism whereby caffeine may aid performance is not fully understood, there is substantial research that concludes that caffeine does improve physical performance. Its effect also appears to be widespread across a diverse variety of sports and exercises. Studies have also been wide ranging and have included well-trained athletes and relatively sedentary individuals of both sexes and different age groups.

One of the most comprehensive and recent reviews (Doherty and Smith 2004) looked at 39 published studies. Of these, 21 involved endurance exercise, 12 used short duration and high-intensity exercise and the remaining 6 used a graded exercise test. Including all these data, caffeine improved performance by 12.4%, relative to the placebo trials and this was shown to greatest effect in those who undertook exercise for a longer duration at any one time.

There are also a number of studies that show the beneficial effects of drinking coffee and/or caffeine ingestion on high intensity exercise. These include improved performance on a 1500 m run (Wiles 1992) and Anselme (1992) showed that anaerobic power in a cycling test was improved by the ingestion of the equivalent of two cups (250mg) of caffeinated coffee. Cycling was also the sport studied more recently by Bell (2001) when caffeine (5mg/kg) was shown to improve performance in a high intensity cycling test.

The beneficial effect has also been demonstrated in swimming trials. Collomp (1992) showed that in a swimming test (2x100m) there was improved performance after ingestion of 250 mg of caffeine.

What is the effective amount of caffeine?

Recent studies used small amounts of caffeine (1-2mg/kg). In many studies, coffee was used whilst others have used caffeine. However, they all show that small amounts of caffeine are effective in improving exercise performance significantly and these smaller amounts, as little as 90mg caffeine, are not associated with any unwanted side effects.

Caffeine and fluid requirements

The diuretic effect of caffeine is often over stressed, particularly in situations where dehydration is a major issue. This affects particularly competitions held in hot, humid climates where the risk of dehydration is high and is more important for endurance athletes where dehydration has a greater effect on performance.

Athletes competing in these conditions are often advised to increase their intake of fluid but also advised to avoid tea and coffee because of their mild diuretic effect. Current research, however, shows that, not only is this mild diuretic effect insignificant during exercise (Armstrong, 2002), but the negative effects caused by cutting such drinks from the diet may be more damaging (Maughan and Griffin, 2003). Conclusions from published studies show that intakes of less than 300mg caffeine a day will not affect levels of body's fluids.

Conclusion

In many of these studies, where performance was improved by the ingestion of caffeine or drinking coffee, there was the also the additional benefit of an associated reduction in the sensation of fatigue.

Given the various initiatives aimed at promoting physical activity to improve health, anything that encourages participation by reducing the discomfort and fatigue most people feel when exercising, has enormous potential implications for improving public health. Caffeine, in the form of coffee or as a pure ingredient, has that ability.

Source: positively coffee

WD-40 as lubricant

Never use WD-40 to lubricate your drivetrain.

WD-40 is meant for rust-prevention. It's a 'squeak-stopper'. It is also a degreaser as well as water repellent. It's a wonderful household item. It may be used as cleaner or 'light' lubricant for door hinges, locks, toys but not bicycle drivetrain especially the chain.

The fast-moving bicycle chain will strip away lubricant and leave the chain dry. This is bad!

Instead, use suitable lubricant that is specially made for bicycle like the one from Finish Line, White Lightning, Park Tools, etc, to lubricate your drivetrain. They are heavy duty, also water-proof and great for your chain.

For degrease purpose, I personally use citrus degreaser because they did a great job & safe to use. If I am to use the WD-40 as degreaser, I will wipe it off clean before applying the lubricant. This is to prevent it from striping away the lube after applying it.

Calories Burned Bike Riding per hour

Calories Burned Bike Riding per hour

	140lbs	195lbs
Bicycling, 10-11.9 mph, light effort Bicycling, 12-13.9 mph, moderate effort Bicycling, 14-15.9 mph, vigorous effort Bicycling, 16-19 mph, very fast, racing Bicycling, >20 mph, racing Bicycling, Mountain or BMX Bicycling, stationary, general Bicycling, stationary, very light effort Bicycling, stationary, light effort Bicycling, stationary, moderate effort Bicycling, stationary, vigorous effort Bicycling, stationary, very vigorous effort	381 508 636 763 1017 540 318 191 330 445 667 795	531 708 885 1062 1416 753 443 266 487 620 930 1107

Source : NutriStrategy

Royal Mail's one-man competitor

As biblical levels of rain pour down on Plymouth's streets, Ken Holder still manages to have a smile on his soaked face as he cycles though the deluge with a heavy rucksack of post on his back.

He's been working since 7.30 in the morning, and won't stop until 7.30 at night, riding up and down the Devon city's notoriously steep roads collecting and delivering mail.

And while Royal Mail workers are beginning a two-day nationwide strike, Mr Holder, 39, will definitely still be working.

This is because Mr Holder is one of Royal Mail's 29 competitors, and with just one member of staff - himself - he is its smallest rival.

There is only one problem for firms or individuals thinking of switching from the Royal Mail to his services - his company, City Centre Curriers, currently only collects and delivers across three Plymouth postcodes.

In business as a courier since September of last year, Mr Holder has been in competition with the Royal Mail since March, when he was awarded a licence by postal service regulator Postcomm.

The way this works is that anyone can set themselves up as a courier firm to deliver parcels, but if you wish to deliver standard letters - those weighing 350 grams or less - you need a postal licence from Postcomm.

Armed with his licence, Mr Holder now collects, sorts and delivers 200 letters per day on average, compared with the Royal Mail's 95 million items.

But while Mr Holder is currently not likely to be giving Royal Mail bosses sleepless nights, he does have plans to grow the business.

'Word of mouth'

"Applying for a license was surprisingly easy," he says. "The application fee was only £50, and it didn't take much longer than a month.

"The license is UK-wide, but as the business is essentially just me and my bike, I don't have the legs - or the time - to deliver outside of Plymouth."

Mr Holder now collects and delivers the local mail for 12 companies in Plymouth, ranging from solicitors to estate and travel agents, and a roofing firm.

For standard-sized letters he charges 32 pence for guaranteed next day delivery, which compares with 39p for a first class stamp with the Royal Mail.

"Business is growing slowly through word of mouth," he says. "And enquiries have certainly grown in recent weeks as more and more companies are concerned about the Royal Mail strike action."

Environmentally friendly

Back in Plymouth, Mr Holder admits he does get tired.

"It's a great job for me, as I have always been an avid cyclist, but I am shattered at the end of the week - I'm cycling 250 miles each five days, and burning 15,000 calories more than a normal person," he says.

"The bonus is that I can eat pretty much what I want."

To help ease the workload, Mr Holder now employs a student one afternoon a week to help with the collections, and his longer term plan is to consider franchising the business in other cities.

"Some people have told me I should buy a van, but I think a large part of the attraction for customers is that it is just me and my bike - it's as environmentally friendly as possible.

"I'm currently earning between £60 and £70 per day, which isn't a lot, but it is still early days.

"There is the odd day I question my sanity, but I really believe the business has a lot of potential, especially as more firms explore alternatives to the Royal Mail."

Source: BBC News by Will Smale/ Plymouth

Yes...it's that time again!!

The OCBC Cycle Singapore 2010 will be held on 6 & 7 March 2010 started from the F1 Pit Building near the Singapore Flyers, and ride around the City of Singapore.

This year I will participate in the 40km Individual! Yes...I am racing this time riding my slow 'touring-spec' folding bike against the super high tech pinarellos, colnagos, orbeas, trekkies, against the lance & contador wannabes, against the ironmen, and hundreds of cycling enthusiast like me, etc.. Ahh..I wouldn't miss it for the world!!

Last year I rode the 20km community ride, but was so 'kiasu' racing at the front of the pack with bunch of other kiasus. It was kinda fun to ride on empty roads when you are at the front but it was too quick (47 mins to be exact) to really enjoy the ride. So, this year, No More Kiasu, I will do the 40km race against the 'real' racers! ha ha ha!!

To those who are interested in this event kindly visit the site.

Like Pro Cyclists, Children Should Wear Helmets

It was easy to pick out Lance Armstrong at the Tour de France this year, especially from an aerial view, as his helmet was unique and stylish. But that is really not why he wears it. Fabio Casatelli’s fatal bicycle crash of the 1995 Tour de France is just an example of how helmets can save lives.

The UCI now mandates the professional rider wear helmets from the start to the finish of a race, yet there is no federal law-requiring cyclist to wear helmets. Many states require the use of bike helmets for children younger than 18 years old. Regrettably, this is rarely enforced. Although I make my kids wear bike helmets, I’m guilty of passing neighborhood children that are bicycling on the road without a helmet, and say nothing.

Swine flu is a major health concern as it has caused 76 child related deaths in the US since April of this year. However, is just one quarter of the yearly child related deaths to bicycle injuries of which most are due to head trauma. Yet look at the publicity the swine flu gets.

Apparently we cannot leave it up to the government or the parents to strictly enforce children wearing bike helmets. So I would like to commend the Professional Cycling agencies for leading this effort. Mostly, I would like to congratulate the Professional Cyclist for wearing their helmets with a flourish. Hopefully this will encourage the young riders to grab a helmet and “buckle up”. Thanks Guys!

Source: Team Radioshack Cycling News- by Rebecca Jackson, MD- staff writer

Extreme Mountain Biking

AHh..great stuff!

source: fandome