Should You Drink Coffee Before a Workout?

Drinking Coffee Before a Workout 

Some of us just aren’t morning people—or afternoon—or evening, for that matter. We work long hours, play hard when we’re able, have a gazillion home projects to get done, chase our demanding children around and frankly can’t wait to fall into bed at night. So when it comes to squeezing in a workout, sometimes—or always—we need an extra boost of energy before we get started.  

Surprise! That all-natural way to get you pumped up for the gym has been brewing in your coffee pot all along. 

Coffee Pre-Workout

One of the most popular pre-workout drinks is coffee. Coffee is a natural source of caffeine that contains antioxidants and nutrients, which creates the perfect beverage to enhance your exercise performance. This is especially true if your workout window is 5:30 a.m. and you need to drag your tired (and unmotivated) a** out of bed to hit the gym or jump on that treadmill.

5 Reasons to Drink Coffee Before Working Out

1. It increases performance.

Drinking coffee before a workout improves an athlete’s ability to train and/or train longer. For this reason, it’s a go-to supplement for many athletes. A single dose can significantly improve exercise performance (endurance, strength training and cardio). It’s also important to note that even if you’re a part-time gym-goer, coffee can still work for you. You don’t have to be training for the Olympics to benefit! 

2. It accelerates fat loss.

Coffee has a ton of fat-burning properties—if you leave the extra additives out. When it's consumed before exercise, coffee can cause fat cells to be used as an energy source as opposed to glycogen (that means you’re releasing stored fat). It'll also increase your metabolism, which helps you burn more calories throughout the day. FYI—coffee has fat-burning properties at the end of a workout too! 

3. It improves focus.

Black coffee helps you improve your mental focus, keeping you productive and effective during your workouts! That’s because it activates areas of your brain and nervous system that improve focus and energy—while reducing tiredness. 

4. It helps decrease muscle pain.

The University of Georgia found that a moderate dose of caffeine (around two cups of coffee) reduced post-workout pain by up to 48 percent, which makes sense because caffeine is a main ingredient in a lot of pain relievers. It's still important to stretch after you work out and to take care of your body, but it's just further proof that coffee is magic.   

5. It keeps you healthy.

Coffee has tons of antioxidants and can help you prevent a variety of serious health conditions: certain forms of cancer, Alzheimer's disease and liver disease, just to name a few. Coffee also encourages the production of endorphins, which give you that exercise “high” after your workout is done. So in addition to improving exercise, it's also benefiting your overall physical health.  

Whether you're an athlete looking to ramp up your training, or someone like me who is just trying to stay healthy, try drinking coffee as part of your pre-workout. Coffee can give you a little push to get that workout motivation. It's delicious and cost effective and will help you reach those goals you have to get in shape.

Pro Tips:

For best results, drink coffee 45 to 60 minutes before working out.

Death before decaf—sip on some Death Wish Coffee—with no cream or sugar—before working out. It may be the very elixir you need to get you to the gym. Any type of brewed coffee likely will benefit your workout. Instant or regular coffee is used most, but a French press brewing method or pods will offer the same benefits too.

It’s obviously best to drink only black coffee, which contains no carbs. Stay away from the specialty coffees that are high in sugar and calories and harder to digest too.

Death Wish Coffee is sustainable and organic, meaning it's free of all the bullsh*t—and with Fair Trade Certification, means your purchase supports fair wages for farmers, safe and sustainable farming practices and community development funds in coffee-growing regions.