Impact of Caffeine Intake on Female Basketball Players’ Performance

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first_pagesettingsOrder Article Reprints Open AccessArticle Impact of Caffeine Intake on Female Basketball Players’ Performance by Raúl Nieto-Acevedo 1,*ORCID,Carlos García-Sánchez 2ORCID,Alfredo Bravo-Sánchez 3,4ORCID,Javier Abián-Vicén 4ORCID,Pablo Abián 5,Javier Portillo 4ORCID,Carlos Martínez-Rubio 6ORCID,Jorge Lorenzo Calvo 2,*ORCID andJavier Diaz-Lara 4ORCID 1 Faculty of Sports Sciences, Universidad Alfonso X el Sabio, 28691 Villanueva de la Cañada, Spain 2 Deporte y Entrenamiento Research Group, Facultad de Ciencias de la Actividad Física y del Deporte, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain 3 Faculty of Health Sciences, Universidad Francisco de Vitoria, Ctra. Pozuelo-Majadahonda km 1800, 28223 Pozuelo de Alarcon, Spain 4 Performance and Sport Rehabilitation Laboratory, University of Castilla La Mancha, 45071 Toledo, Spain 5 Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Comillas Pontifical University, 28015 Madrid, Spain 6 Department of Education, Faculty of Education Sciences, University of Almería, 04120 Almería, Spain * Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed. Nutrients 2025, 17(2), 235; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu17020235 Submission received: 12 December 2024 / Revised: 6 January 2025 / Accepted: 9 January 2025 / Published: 10 January 2025 (This article belongs to the Special Issue Dietary Strategies and Nutritional Supplements to Optimize Athletic Performance) Downloadkeyboard_arrow_down Browse Figure Versions Notes

Abstract Background: This study aimed to analyze the effect of caffeine ingestion on basketball performance in semi-professional female players. Methods: A double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized experimental design was conducted, in two different periods separated by a week. Twelve female basketball players ingested 3 mg of caffeine/kg of body mass or a placebo. After 60 min, participants completed two repetitions of the specified sequence: Abalakov jump, countermovement jump (CMJ), 5-0-5 (505) test, and 20 m sprint. Later, external loads and game statistics were recorded during a 30-min simulated basketball game. Results: Significant improvements were observed in CMJ height and 505 test with caffeine ingestion compared to the placebo. Significant moderate differences were evident between conditions in external load variables, specifically, an increased number of high-intensity changes of direction during simulated games with caffeine ingestion. Two-point shot efficiency significantly improved after pre-caffeine ingestion compared with placebo. Conclusions: Three mg of caffeine per kg of body mass may serve as an effective ergogenic aid to increase physical performance and some variables of performance index in highly trained basketball players.