Caffeine

I feel lousy today.  And its not just because of all the training.  In addition to all the cycling and swimming, I am in the midst of caffeine withdrawals.

Studies have shown that caffeine can enhance performance in endurance events by reducing the perception of effort --by increasing beta-endorphins which reduce the perception of pain and create a sense of well-being, and by delaying fatigue by blocking adenosine receptors.

But to fully realize these benefits, one should refrain from consuming caffeine during the two weeks prior to the event.  Well, easier said than done.  I cannot exaggerate how central coffee has been to my existence for more than two decades. 

Being that I am from Seattle, people naturally assume that I have some passion for caffeine.  In fact, I remember back to the mid-1980s when there was only one Starbucks in existence, along with a handful of other coffee shops in Seattle (Cafe Allegra, Last Exit..), and I was considered rather eccentric by other Seattlites for hunting down lattes and hanging out in coffee shops.

So anyway, as I contemplate a 14-hour athletic event, it is not necessarily the positive impact of a caffeine boost that has been on my mind.  No, it is the fear that during the long swim and ride I will suffer caffeine withdrawals as a result of not consuming a triple espresso and will drown or collapse in a heap along the course.   Late in the afternoon during one of my early long training rides I could feel my head throbbing and my energy fading, and found it necessary to stop at one of Japan's ubiquitous coffee vending machines for a can of dreadful-tasting (but in this case life-saving) canned coffee.

Therefore I have resolved to cut my caffeine intake to less than one cup per day in anticipation of New Zealand Ironman.   [A key issue is how to define a "cup".   Medical research has indicated that drinking moderate amounts of coffee -  two cups of coffee per day is correlated with living longer and healthier.  But the "grande" size in America is really equivalent to like six cups.  For purposes of my coffee recovery program I have been using a Japan short sized mug].  Quitting cold turkey is just too much for me, so while I was in San Francisco last week I bought decaffeinated coffee.  This weekend I drank a  mixture of 50% regular coffee and 50% decaffeinated coffee in the morning and afternoon.  This morning I prepared a mixture of  25% regular and 75% decaffeinated and have sipped my short-sized concoction slowly all day.

This cutback in caffeine intake is taking a toll on me -- I just cannot make progress on a Powerpoint presentation - I think I need to go home and take a nap before the spin session tonight.