Working Out With Coffee In Hand.

Over the past few weeks, I have begun to notice a disturbing phenomenon at the gym... People working out on the gym floor with cups of coffee in their hands.

Seriously.

I first noticed this right after the new year. I was by the free weights one Saturday morning and a person came up to one of the benches next to me. He grabbed some weights, and then leaned back and started doing some presses with them. After he finished his set, he leaned down and picked up what I thought was going to be a water bottle. But it was a Starbucks Grande sized coffee cup instead.

"Who drinks hot coffee while working out?" I thought.

But since then, I have seen other people doing it too. And not just in the free weights section. I saw someone on an elliptical machine chugging away from a hot coffee cup too. And then this morning, there was a chick jump roping near me and my trainer. She has a Dunks coffee cup near her.

"What's the deal?" I wanted to ask her. I mean, how can this be good for someone? It's just going to dehydrate you even more than exercise alone.

I can't see someone as being serious about their working out if they sit there and chug coffee while doing it. And I am starting to wonder if it's just people at my gym that do this, or if other have noticed it at their gyms too...

Comments

Anonymous said…
I have noticed that as well...but more so that the TRAINERS have a cup of coffee or even red bull in their hand in the morning. So, as they are trying to motivate someone to be healthy and get in shape, they are chugging coffee?? Makes no sense to me either...
(Also happened to me when I was working out with a trainer...I was VERY close to asking him to put down his stupid red bull..)
Anonymous said…
I just can't imagine myself drinking hot coffee while working out. How is that thirst-quenching or refreshing? It's not.

I don't go to a gym, but I'm hoping to start. I'm going to pay attention and see if I notice this.
Chris Wight said…
Caffeine has been shown to improve performance during workouts. Men's Health just had a big article about its benefits:

check it out.

I would think, however, that it makes more sense to drink it BEFORE hitting the gym, than to have both scalding hot liquids and free weights in your immediate vicinity.
bonbonagogo said…
Coffee and cellphones? What happened to the good old days of walkmen and sweatbands?
Vanessa said…
I can't imagine people have really thought this through. First, coffee=dehydrating. Second, does no one remember the lady in the McDonalds drive thru? (I hate spelling it that way. It should be "through")
Anonymous said…
"Back in the day" when I was more of a gym rat (and was about 24), it was a popular notion around the gym that caffiene gave you the energy to lift more.

I have no idea if it's true. Also, I've seen articles about driving that say to drink the coffee 30minutes or more before you think you'll need it, as that's the lag time on caffiene.

Personally, the last time I had some before hitting the gym, I had coffee burps that made my workout pretty unpleasant.

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