| Consumption of supplements and energy drinks is common among athletes; however, there is a lack of research on the efficacy of energy drink consumption before and during short-duration, intense exercise. The purpose of this research was to investigate the acute effects of a low-calorie, caffeine-taurine, energy drink (AdvoCare SparkRTM) on repeated sprint performance and anaerobic power in National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I football players. Twenty well-trained Division I football players (age: 19.7 +/- 1.8 years, height: 184.9 +/- 5.3 cm, weight: 100.3 +/- 21.7 kg) participated in a double-blind, randomized crossover study in which they received the energy drink or an isoenergetic, isovolumetric, noncaffeinated placebo. The two trials were separated by 7 days. The Running Based Anaerobic Sprint Test (RAST), consisting of six 35-m sprints with 10 s of rest between each sprint, was used to assess anaerobic power. Sprint times were recorded with an automatic electronic timer. On average, there was no statistically significant difference between the placebo (15.06 +/- 3.80 W˙s-1) and beverage (15.3 +/- 4.18 W˙s-1) measurements of fatigue index. Neither were there statistically significant main effects of the beverage treatment on power F(1, 18) = 3.84, p = 0.066; or sprint time F(1, 18) = 3.06, p = 0.097. However, there was a significant interaction effect between caffeine use and the beverage for sprint times (F = 4.62, p = 0.045), as well as for anaerobic power (F = 5.40, p = 0.032), indicating a confounding effect. In conclusion, a caffeine-taurine energy drink did not improve the sprint performance or the anaerobic power of collegiate football players, but the level of caffeine use by the athletes likely influenced the effect of the drink. |
