Does any one know how long it takes to lower/reset caffeine tolerance? Cant seem to find any concrete answers. I don’t want to loose the power of the black magic. I usually only have one cup in the morning, don’t think I have a physical addition. I just went through a rest week without it cold turkey no headaches or anything. Had a cup this AM did not feel much different.
Of those who actually “taper” caffiene before a race etc, I’ve heard 2 weeks recommended.
I have heard 3 days minimum but that a week should be sufficient. That was based on some study I heard in a podcast by David Warden.
Of those who actually “taper” caffiene before a race etc, I’ve heard 2 weeks recommended.
Whoa. People taper caffiene before a race? I thought you load up on it. Why taper?
So it has better effect during the race perhaps?
no citation, no time for it, but for what its worth … approximately 1000 mg per day x 18 days leads to “complete” tolerence to the subjective effects of caffeine. Tapering off caffeine 2-3 weeks out will allow adenosine and other associated caffeine responsive receptors to regulate (read about up/down regulation) and hopefully minimize withdrawels (by tapering). Then race time receptors are fairly normalized and more responsive to caffeine…
I believe the reason you will hear a variety of responses is because it often depends upon the degree of exposure and degree of sensitivity you are looking to gain. One cup of coffee has ~100mg caffeine/cup. The physiological effect of 100mg/day varies from person to person. It doesn’t seem to affect you much due to tolerance, natural physiology and/or prior exposure (e.g. being used to the symptoms even if you have decreased your tolerance). The research I have read regarding the levels of caffeine needed for a physiologic “boost” in endurance events comes out to 200-400 mg for a 75 kg athlete. So if you want to keep your habit going during a rest week, you probably won’t have a problem (i.e. no real effect on performance) as you are primarily maintaining baseline exposure. Making yourself more sensitive during a rest week probably won’t help much as your 100 mg in the morning probably won’t give you much of a physiologic boost anyway (though it may give you a bit of a mental boost–enough to get you out the door or onto the trainer). As your baseline intake is not that high, I suspect you would have near maximum sensitivity after just a few days of withdrawal. If you took 400 mg/day just to feel “normal” you may need a full 2 weeks (and may feel pretty crappy for the first several days).
As this is the early season for northern hemisphere folks, I suggest a bit of self experimentation. Skip the morning coffee for a week (as you do during rest weeks) to maximize sensitivity. Prior to your next challenging workout (either hard or long), take the equivalent of 300 mg caffeine (100 mg coffee + 1 caffeine tablet). See how it affects your workout. I don’t drink anything with much caffeine normally but one caffeine tab ~20’ prior to the workout really gets me ready to go. If I am really lacking motivation and/or it is a long & challenging workout (e.g. 2 hr marathon-pace run), then I will take an additional tab right before the start of the run (so it kicks in after I am a few miles into the run). If I took this much every day then the effect it would have would likely diminish. At some point, you can’t keep upping the dose or you will have a lot more of the negative effects (some can be quite serious involving your heart’s ability to function properly!). Find your minimum effective dose both when you are at maximum sensitivity and when you have a normal baseline (e.g. 100 mg coffee/day). Naturally, minimum effective dose is a highly subjective measure so you need to pay attention to your paces/perceived exertion/etc. Take this dose only for key workouts and make sure you are at maximum sensitivity prior to your priority races.
Remember, everyone is different so you have to do a lot of trials to figure out the right approach for you.
So it has better effect during the race perhaps?
What kind of caffeine delivery system do you guys use for race day - espresso gels?
How many milligrams do you take in during a 70.3?
I sometimes do a caffeine taper. Usually a week before a big marathon. On race day, Starbucks is a good delivery system. Then one or two caffeine gels during the race, especially around mile 16. You have to make sure you can tolerate it. Test it during long runs. Caffeine has a way of messing with your stomach.
Personally I find coffee is more likely to give gastro issues (acid forming and potentially lactose issues if white) than energy drinks - so don’t necessarily think it’s always to do with the caffeine itself.
I don’t like coffee so I will take vivarin tabs for a loading dose right before swim start then maintain the level with the caffeine that is part of my infinit concentrate. If I feel the need, I may take one more tab at the end of the bike as I don’t drink infinit on the run of a 70.3. The espresso gels are not very palatable to me when running hard.
I am off caffeine 100% except as training aid now. I find that it has a big influence on me now. I will usually take a 200mg pill an hour before a race. If it is a HIM or longer, I will further supplement during race (like 200mg more metered over bike ride and then coke on the run).
I weigh 140 on race days.
no citation, no time for it, but for what its worth … approximately 1000 mg per day x 18 days leads to “complete” tolerence to the subjective effects of caffeine. Tapering off caffeine 2-3 weeks out will allow adenosine and other associated caffeine responsive receptors to regulate (read about up/down regulation) and hopefully minimize withdrawels (by tapering). Then race time receptors are fairly normalized and more responsive to caffeine…All of the studies I’ve seen which show a performance improvement from caffeine have the control groups withdraw from caffeine at most a day. I’m curious if there have been any studies where the control group abstained from caffeine ingestion for more than a day prior to the test.
It’s likely that the control groups in these studies are having negative withdrawal effects, so it’s not clear that a non coffee drinker would actually have a performance improvement from taking caffeine on race day.
I miss the days of Efredra.
For an “A” race I stop caffeine for four days before the race. My daily dosage is pretty high as in over 1000mg a day. I can not explain it but I don’t have any withdrawal symptoms when stopping all caffeine.
Gut feeling is it works for me but I don’t have any hard numbers to back it up.
Walking around with the DT’s anytime is not a good thing :0)
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Of those who actually “taper” caffiene before a race etc, I’ve heard 2 weeks recommended.
Whoa. People taper caffiene before a race? I thought you load up on it. Why taper?
You build up a tolerance to caffiene. If you use it multiple times daily, there is little ergogenic effect on race day.
I never use ANY caffiene - no coffee, no soda - so I have almost no tolerance. I take caffiene tablets on race days - 200 to 300 mg.
Because I have no tolerance, I’m buzzin’ big-time!