Low Caffeine Pre Workout & Caffeine Free Pre Workout Advice
As a strength and conditioning coach, I get TONS of questions about the best low caffeine pre workout supplements and the (possible) benefits of a low stim pre workout routine. Other people have general questions about how much caffeine is ideal for their nutrition and exercise regimen. And other athletes know they have a caffeine sensitivity and come to me looking for the best caffeine free pre workout.
Today I’m going to give you the best of what I know about low caffeine pre workout and caffeine free pre workout advice — including exactly how I use caffeine in my personal training. If you are a coach or trainer who needs nutrition, mental performance, or strength and conditioning consultation for your team/clients: reach out to me for a quick meeting. I provide a variety of services in-person and online.
Caffeine and Exercise: Some Basic Things to Know
I have been a strength and conditioning coach for over 12 years and have worked with a wide variety of athletes. Everyone from high school volleyball, soccer, and football athletes, to clients in their 60s and 70s who are training to recovery from major heart surgeries or injuries. Even though I’m a highly credentialed strength and conditioning coach who knows a LOT about nutrition, how the body metabolizes energy, and related topics, I’m not a doctor. Read my full disclaimer here, and review the best things to do before you make any changes with caffeine and your workout routines with your trusted healthcare provider.
Before we get into the best low caffeine pre workout supplements or details about how to structure your low stim pre workout routine, let’s make sure we’re on the same page about caffeine because there is a lot of misinformation and myth out there.
Is all caffeine natural?
No, not all caffeine is natural, though the naturally occurring version is found in more than 60 different species of plants all over the world. The synthetic variety of caffeine, which may be the substance that shows up in your caffeine energy drink, has a nearly indistinguishable effect on the body, so far as we can tell. Here’s a good article if you want to learn more about natural vs synthetic caffeine.
What Are the Effects of Caffeine?
You might be surprised to know that not everyone experiences the effects of caffeine the same. In fact, many people claim it has no effect on them at all. Most of us, however, are very familiar with the jolt or spike in energy that comes right after a double (or quad!) espresso, caffeinated tea, etc.
While there absolutely can be negative, even dangerous, effects of caffeine, there are also widely documented, trustworthy studies that illustrate the benefits of caffeine. Most athletes, in particular, can see a predictable and controllable benefit in their training and sports performance with the right dosage. It’s vital, however, to consider caffeine intake as a part of your overall commitment to healthy nutrition, sleep, and recovery.
Besides the energy boost we’re all familiar with, there are a lot of other ways that our bodies respond to this stimulant.
Image Source: “The Safety of Ingested Caffeine: A Comprehensive Review”
Is Caffeine Legal for Athletes?
The short answer is “yes,” caffeine is legal for athletes, but it’s still something you want to be careful with from an anti-doping perspective. To quote the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) directly, “ … caffeine is permitted in sports governed by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). It is currently on WADA’s monitoring list which means it is not prohibited but WADA is monitoring it in case it becomes an anti-doping issue in the future. However, there are limits to the amount of caffeine athletes can use in NCAA sanctioned events.”
We’ll get to the optimum level of caffeine for athletes later in this post, but for now let’s just remember that you need to keep your intake well inside reasonable dosages. And, what’s healthy for one person isn’t necessarily good for everyone else. We all metabolize things differently. This is just another reason to work closely with your doctor, nutritionist, and trainer to monitor and understand how YOU are affected by caffeine.
How Does Caffeine Work?
Caffeine is a stimulant that athletes can use to produce certain effects in the brain and in the muscle. Low doses of caffeine in coffee, gum, pills, or energy drinks can help improve cognitive and/or physical performance.
Cognitively, caffeine helps inhibit that tired feeling we get, and it often helps us to focus with more clarity. The way I often describe what is happening chemically is to say that when you ingest caffeine, it produces a neurostimulator effect by playing defense against you being tired.
How does that work? At a basic level, we need to understand what makes us feel tired in the first place. In our brain and nervous systems, there are tiny parts of our cells called receptors. They communicate information to cells by sort of reading what’s happening in your blood stream. Essentially, our cells’ receptors are constantly scanning the blood for certain chemicals or compounds called neurotransmitters.
One of those neurotransmitters is adenosine. According to the Sleep Foundation, “Adenosine promotes the sleep drive, or a person’s need for sleep.” As our bodies wake up and burn energy (calories), the brain produces and releases adenosine as a way of helping cells in the nervous system know we’re getting tired and need to rest or sleep for recovery. Adenosine actually plays significant roles in other parts of the body, too, but let’s stay focused on the effects in the brain.
Caffeine works by essentially blocking those receptors programmed to detect and receive the adenosine neurotransmitters. This sort of tricks our brains into believing we aren’t tired, or burning as much energy as we actually have, or that we have been awake as long as we really have been. Cognitively, this helps athletes focus, sharpen their response time, and feel more alert.
Benefits of Caffeine for Athletes
Caffeine can have muscular benefits for athletes in addition to the cognitive benefits we’ve already talked about. Let’s look at how caffeine could affect runners.
Long-distance runners are probably more likely to see stronger cognitive benefits of caffeine. Some of my cyclist friends will drink a coke or use some gum with caffeine in it to help reduce their feelings of fatigue on a long ride, and the same could be true for long-distance runners.
But what about sprinters? For sprinters, we’re likely to see a stronger muscular response. Caffeine can help with the recruitment of muscle fibers — getting them in action. If you want to run fast, you need a quick response as far as the muscles go. This 2021 study not only confirmed the positive effects of caffeine on athletic performance, but found that “ … caffeine can directly affect the muscle fibers by significantly increasing their force, power, and reaction rate.”
Caffeine Before Workout? How Much Do You Need?
As I’ve already said, how much caffeine (or whether you should ingest caffeine at all) is different for every single athlete. In general, though, somewhere between 200-400 milligrams of caffeine per day is a safe, healthy range for most of the athletes I work with.
According to the Mayo Clinic, daily doses up to 400 milligrams are generally safe, but “If you’re bothered by headaches, restlessness or anxiety, you may want to reevaluate your caffeine intake. Also women who are pregnant, trying to become pregnant or breastfeeding are advised to limit their use of caffeine.”
That said, I don’t recommend maxing out your daily caffeine intake as a part of your pre workout routine! I generally advise athletes to experiment with ingesting 100-200 milligrams of caffeine at the beginning of your pre workout routine.
I personally favor a quad espresso before my workout. That gives me a very dependable energy hit from just over 250 milligrams of all-natural caffeine (that tastes great, because I use excellent coffee). I’ve also been drinking caffeine a long time and carefully monitoring my body’s tolerance levels! In the next section, we’ll cover how much caffeine is in different pre workout beverages.
Depending on how fast your body metabolizes caffeine, you could start to feel the effects almost immediately. Your body will continue to process the caffeine you take in for something like 6-8 hours, but most people are most likely to feel the strongest effects 15-45 minutes after ingestion.
If you are an athlete and know you are sensitive to caffeine, you're more likely to experience jitteriness. If that’s the case for you — or if you’re going to participate in an athletic test that requires dexterity, it might be better to shy away from caffeine altogether.
Alternatively, you could try it in practice and see how it goes. Play around with the timing. It’s very possible that somewhere around 15 minutes after consumption you get jittery, but then you feel it level out and you’re better off. Perhaps 30-45 minutes after ingestion you find you have more energy without the jitters.
What are Good Sources of Pre Workout Caffeine?
(Just a heads up: I’ve included a mix of links to products I personally use and/or recommend to my strength and conditioning clients with other popular options you might prefer. Some of these are affiliate links, and I may earn a small commission — at no additional cost to you — when you click on those links. I’m also really happy to make personal recommendations, just send me a note.)
Coach DJ’s Low Caffeine Pre Workout Recommendations
I love to keep my routines simple, so I opt for all-natural caffeine from one of these two low caffeine pre workout options.
The High Achiever ™ Ground Coffee from Bulletproof
(Use discount code BOA15 and get 15% off your order.)
This is hands down my favorite coffee! A double espresso shot 15-20 minutes before my workout helps activate my muscles, clear my head, and focus on doing my best work in the weight room.
(Use discount code BOA15 and get 15% off your order.)
This ready-to-drink option is great on the go. You’ll get a 200 milligram shot of caffeine with essential B vitamins, including B12 which is great for energy. B12 is especially good for helping with cell metabolization, blood flow, and nerve function.
Coach DJ’s No Caffeine Pre Workout Recommendations
If you have a caffeine sensitivity and want a no caffeine pre workout option — or just want to further support that pre workout boost, try adding some high-quality creatine and beta alanine.
Creatine helps you work out more efficiently by growing your cross-sectional muscle fibers. You should see and feel better rest and recovery between sets.
Beta Alanine is great for the buffering capacity, which translates into less muscle soreness without impeding recovery. Essentially, you'll be able to do more work within sets if you're buffering capacity is higher.
Don’t forget that your low caffeine or low stim pre workout routine is only part of the equation for your overall health, athletic/training performance, and recovery. Genetics play a huge role. So does nutrition and hydration. And so does sleep!
I’ve used Bulletproof’s melatonin for years and have seen a real increase in the quality of my recovery. I take it at night before a workout and my mitochondria always thank me for it. Don’t forget to use the discount code BOA15 to get an extra 15% off your order at Bulletproof.
Optimum Nutrition also has some amino energy products I’ve used and recommended to my strength and conditioning clients.
Their Amino Energy + Electrolytes powder has 100 mg of caffeine per serving so you can really dial-in the amount of caffeine in your pre workout routine.
The ready-to-drink version also has 100 mg of all-natural caffeine and comes in a bunch of flavors.
If you want a ready to drink low caffeine pre workout option with a little more kick, Alani’s energy drinks have been really popular and have 200 mg of caffeine.
And, if we keep moving up the ladder for higher and higher caffeine dosages, you find lots of energy drink options like Reign, which can have 300 mg of caffeine in one can.
One general disclaimer I often make with my clients is that you should be careful with energy drinks. Aside from some very high levels of caffeine, some of them can contain substances that will make an athlete blow a drug test. Read your labels, talk to your doctor and trainer, and listen to your body!
Popular Pre Workout Caffeine Dosages
The typical double espresso I have for my low caffeine pre workout boost has just over 250 milligrams of caffeine in it. Wondering how much your drink of choice has? Here’s a solid list of how much caffeine is in different generic beverages like coffee, tea, sodas, and energy drinks.
Wondering about a specific energy drink or supplement on the market? Here are the listed amounts of caffeine for some of the most popular options you’re likely to find.
Psychotic Pre Workout Caffeine 400 mg
Ghost Pre Workout Caffeine 250 mg
Woke AF Pre Workout Caffeine 333 mg
Bucked Up Pre Workout Caffeine 200 mg
Gorilla Mode Pre Workout Caffeine 175 mg
Lit Pre Workout Caffeine 250 mg
Mr Hyde Pre Workout Caffeine 250 mg
Should You Use Caffeine Post Workout?
Some trainers caution athletes to avoid caffeine after a workout because of it could be detrimental to your muscle recovery. Mostly, they are saying that because there is cortisol present. But, in my opinion, that's just a stress response. I think what’s more important is the amount of cortisol and how long it remains in the body.
We know that short-term spikes in cortisol are beneficial, but that long-term stress or high levels of cortisol is bad for the body. What’s right for you? This is another thing to ask your doctor as you consider what’s healthy and best for your body and how it responds to caffeine and the natural stress responses of a decent workout.
Closing Thoughts on Pre Workout Caffeine
Caffeine is definitely something that most athletes and others can safely use in moderation to help increase focus, muscle recruitment, and more. But be cognizant of how much caffeine you use and how often. When it comes down to it, try not to rely on caffeine alone for your energy. You’re better off instead to focus on the three big pillars: nutrition, hydration, and sleep. That will help you physically and cognitively, especially in the longer term.
Let's Talk Caffeine
Are you a coach or trainer with questions about pre workout caffeine? Send me a note or let’s set up a free call to talk about strength and conditioning consultation services I provide in-person and online. Don’t forget to sign up for my newsletter and I’ll keep posts like this one arriving directly in your inbox.