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I don't drink coffee at all, and I don't have the tools nor the time to make it. Not to mention it's hard to drink so many cups of coffee in a day to get it's benefits. So I was thinking about getting the supplement instead.

My question is:

  1. Is it worth it to buy and take the caffeine pills (supplement) that are out there to increase overall performance ? ( increased metabolism, brain alertness, fat loss and muscle growth factors)
  2. Is it safe to take it on a daily basis, without getting any side effects? like 1 pill in the morning and 1 in the afternoon/evening before workout
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  • "Worth"? That depends entirely on you, your budget and your goals.
    – Alec
    Commented Jul 22, 2018 at 0:46
  • @Alec when I used "worth" i wasn't referring to the price/value. What I meant was if I would get any benefits at all, without getting into trouble with it's side effects. And my goal is to optimize body performance in terms of exercise, losing fat, muscle growth.
    – Hassan
    Commented Jul 22, 2018 at 13:01
  • There are people who take methamphetamines, like Adderall and Concerta, every day for most of their life. And these drugs are much stronger stimulants than having two cups of coffee per day. As to whether coffee will help you, some endurance athletes, e.g. Marty Liquori, have spoken favorably of caffeine for long endurance training sessions. Other probably are against it. If it works for you, then consider doing it.
    – Tim Biegeleisen
    Commented Jul 22, 2018 at 14:08
  • Caffeine is almost always added to preworkout supplements. In fact, it’s rare to find preworkout without caffeine.
    – JustSnilloc
    Commented Jul 23, 2018 at 2:25

2 Answers 2

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Potential Pros: Bodybuilders often combine it with ephedrine and or aspirin to help cut weight (called the EC or ECA stack). It's definitely cheaper than coffee when you need that pick me up. For short term goals like weight loss and combined with proper nutrition/training/supervision it could work well.

Cons: you do end up building a tolerance and need to take bigger doses for it to have an effect. Miss a day or two and you start getting withdrawal effects ranging from headaches to lethargy. Also note, when you take the pill, you're getting that entire 200mg in one go instead of the usual 80mg per cup coffee. I stopped taking them for that reason because I felt like I was getting dependent on them.

Obviously, exercise caution and consult your doctor for health concerns. You can try half a pill or an entire pill and see how it effects you. Don't just jump into 150mg+ in a day. I would advocate coffee but that's just me.

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You are always going to have side effects. As for caffeine delivery method I would actually consider

100 Ct SToK Caffeinated Black Unsweetened Cold Brew Coffee Shots with By The Cup Sugar Packets https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XD6CJDJ/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_bbZvBbA8JH7PN The shots could solve your problem if you want to try coffee.

This is anecdotal but I've tried all types of different caffeine supps. And I always go back to cup of coffee. It might be the method of intake, or psychological but caffeine from coffee makes me feel less of caffeine side effects.

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