Does it improve your workout? Do you notice a difference?

I've been off caffeine since I was pregnant, and now while BFing. But I do occassionally have a full cup of caffeinated coffee. I did this morning...

I've *been* doing 30 mins on the treadmill, where I run 2-3 mins then walk for like 30 seconds - 1 min until I can run again. The longests I've run has been 6 mins then I needed a walk break.

I worked out about an hour or so after my real coffee (not my usual decaf) and after my usual 3 min warm up, I ran easily for 20 minutes! It felt great. I havent run like that since before my pregnancy.

Could it have been the caffeine? Would it lose its effect if I went back to drinking it daily? I planned on not getting hooked on caffeine again this time, and only drinking it once in a while.

Yeah - I think this is pretty well established scientifically, actually: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23899750 (for example - there are dozens out there)

I can't speak from personal experience from whether the effect wears off if you develop a caffeine tolerance. I was just googling this morning though on the euphoric feeling caffeine can create (it amazes me just how HAPPY a really good, strong latte makes me feel) -- and while I saw some suggestions that over time, tolerance requires more and more caffeine to achieve that feeling, I haven't found that to be the case for me - it's stayed consistent.

Maybe you could try saving the caffeine for your longer run days?

Thank you! I read the link then googled some more info. It never occured to me that this would be something that has already been studied and provedn...I had another cup of reg coffe this morning and my run was awesome (for me anyway) lol...after 3 minute warm up ran straight throu till cool down..no walking!

Ahhhh yes the magic of caffeine ... sadly it doesn't last as your tolerence increases.

This is what I was worried about...I was thinking of only using it 2-3 times a week...and just sucking it up on the noncaffeine days...

I have a nasty caffeine addiction. I ingest between 300-600 mg on a daily basis.

I am just about to reorder this. My last order was March 4th, 2010.

I love caffeine and always have. It sometimes helps take away the food cravings but is very fickle as it helps in the short run but doesn't last. Also gives me major stomach problems but I still love it.

grabec, are you getting your stomach problems from both cola drinks and coffee/tea, or both? The reason why I'm asking is that I used to have bad problems with stomach acid from drinking lots of Diet Coke. Then I switched to Diet Mountain Dew: voila! I can get my caffeine high without my stomach hurting. I also found that putting a little milk or cream in my coffee & tea reduces my stomach acid. Milk/cream also significantly reduces how much teeth staining I get from coffee & tea.

I had so many stomach problems and didn't attribute it to the 20oz super super strong home brewed coffee that I drank daily for 15 years. Even when I was going to ultrasounds, getting gastro tests, etc, not one medical professional asked about it.

Then, my boyfriend asked if I've ever tried to stop coffee to see if it helps. The first week was tough, but after that week I realized that I no longer was taking antacids every day. It has now been about 4 months and I'm drinking tea instead. I get my caffeine (and much less than I was taking in before!) and no stomach discomfort! I will say that I also cut gluten at the same time, so I'm not entirely sure which helped

My stomach can't handle the acidity of brewed coffee either, but cold brewed coffee and/or espresso are fine. (This is a great page with more info on acidity. Even if you stick to regular brewing, different brands can be much gentler.)

I've been wary of my caffeine addiction over the years - I used to bi-annually quit coffee for a few weeks - but I've finally just embraced it. The pros way outweigh the cons for me, as long as I keep it moderate and stick to caffeine delivery methods that don't aggravate other issues. I've experimented a lot - even tried the pill route like JohnP (people sometimes think this is a little too much... I blame Saved by the Bell. ) The pill form makes me jittery, sadly. Most coffee is too irritating to my stomach. But out of all the meds and stuff I take or do for health issues, I think my morning latte is one of the most helpful.

Haha! Love the Saved by the Bell reference. That was hard hitting script writing, right there

I also love caffeine and all the acidic drinks that go with it. Fortunately I have a stomach of iron and don't drink so much that I cause problems. I do drink it iced with cream and that mitigates the fact that I'm drinking Kenyans, primarily, which are known for their acidity. I also have a fair bit of diet coke throughout the week (a serving every day or two) and tea (a daily serving as well). You do definitely become immune to the effects of the caffeine somewhat, but not usually in their entirety.

I drink coffee and diet sodas with caffeine in.

But I separate caffeine (as with beer) from my weighloss/fitness effort.

It helps wake me up. That's about it.

6 miles on the treadmill/track really wakes me up though. The coffee just helps me get to the track/treadmill.

So there's a little light dusting. And then there's blowing out the cobwebs.

That's a good distinction, Ian. I'd say I use coffee to get rolling each day and in the afternoon when I'm flagging after cooking/cleaning/schooling with the kids, but I can't say I've ever used it for productivity enhancement or as an output booster. So it doesn't matter if I get a bit acclimated to it, it generally still gets the job done!

i have one cup of espresso per day and only before hitting the busiest part of my day, which is 1-6 p.m.....so in the mornings i'm fine getting up early, working, errands, meetings, gym etc...and after all of that i get a tall nonfat mocha with a sugar free flavor and then i go to work til 6 p.m. and then home for family stuff, making dinner etc....that's all the caffeine that i regularly consume...sometimes by chance i'll have a diet soda with caffeine but not regularly

Yes - it heps me.

I don't drink coffee or any other beverage on a regular basis so I am super sensitive to caffiene. I've been using sports gels with caffiene before (and during depending on how far I am going) runs to help me run better.

I have not developed a tolerence to it because I don't have it on a daily basis.

If I have a latte or a Coke, I can't sleep for a night or two and I've noticed if I run later in the day and use a gel with caffiene, I can't sleep well that night.

This is kind of funny - so I had bought a Mio with caffiene in it and did not notice that I put a ton in my water bottle. I did not sleep for a week. But was not tired. lol. I crashed on the weekend and slept for like 12+ hours.