Acute Effects of Red Bull Energy Drink on Counter Movement Jump and Repeated Sprint Performances in Healthy Young Men

Abstract

Objectives: The aim of the current study was to investigate the acute effects of Red Bull energy drink consumption on repeated sprint (RS) and counter movement jump (CMJ) performances. Methods: Nine healthy male students of faculty of sports science (mean age: 22.66±1.58 years, mean height: 173.52±5.48 cm, mean weight: 69.05±6.54 kg) volunteered to participate in this study. One of the treatment drinks (Red Bull or placebo) was applied with one week break in a randomized, placebo-controlled, crossover design. The Red Bull treatment drink (RB) consisted of 250 ml of commercially available product in Turkey. The placebo drink (PLA) was a mixture of 220 ml of caffeine and taurine free soda ginger ale (Beyoglu Soda Drink Company), and 30 ml of free sugar lemonade (Uludag Drink Company). Firstly, participants performed three maximal voluntary vertical jumps, and then they performed accelerations and decelerations over 20 meter for 2 minutes. The RS test involved seven repeated straight-line 30-m sprints, separated by 30 sec of active recovery. Results: No significant differences were observed between experimental trials in terms of CMJ height (cm), total sprint time (sec), mean sprint time (sec), best sprint time (sec), and decrement of sprint performance (%) (p > 0.05). Conclusion: One box of Red Bull, produced in Turkey, was not enough to enhance RS and CMJ performances. Young Turkish athletes may consider the consumption of Red Bull to improve their performances; however, because of the amount of caffeine and taurine are much lower than ones in abroad, Red Bull might not be an effective ergogenic support.   Keywords: Ergogenic, Exercise, Performance, Taurine, Caffeine, Beverages