Coffee on race day...? (Page 2)

I am also a "later in the day" trainer... I do not function well in the morning and I normally do not function AT ALL in the morning without coffee.

With that said, I don't race well after coffee. I seriously have to pee about 5 minutes if I'm racing after my usual coffee. I'm distracted thinking about peeing, I waste time peeing, etc.

I'm still trying to find the right solution for me. One one hand, I am SO much more awake on race day with all of the excitement and anticipation. So, I have gone without and it worked out ok. Plus, a quick dip into a chilly lake does a lot to wake me up. But I would have been a lot happier with some coffee.

I had to wake up much earlier than ever before for a sprint a few weeks ago. I did have a small coffee on the drive there. And just peed every 5 minutes for two hours before the race. And it worked out fine.

Could you experiement with it for a couple morning training sessions? Unfortunately, I think it's mostly about how your own body handles caffeine (or handles a lack of it).

I drink coffee in the monring too.  I usually have a big cup on my drive to the race about 2-3 hours before the start.  I stay away from caffeine closer to the race other than if I am taking nutrition then I will typically use GU with either 1x or 2x caffeine. 

In football, we called it the "pregame."  Very important aspect of all sports.

I stopped drinking coffee on a daily basis for a variety of reasons, but drink it on race mornings.
If you drink it every day, it won't be a "performance enhancer," on race day. 

 

I always have coffee before morning training and certainly for races. I have just one small cup on race day to minimize the pee factor though. Even when I had to wake up at 2:30 for my last HIM, I had a coffee. If you're used to it, there is no harm, but as others have said, don't do anything new on race day or you'll be intimately familiar with all the pit stops along the route

But, if you drink it everyday and then don't drink it on race day, it might hinder your performance! I get horrible headaches if I skip my coffee...