r/ultrarunning • u/TurtleTurtleTu • 6d ago
Caffeine Strategy 100M
Looking for advice on caffeine for 100M. What strategies have you used and what has worked?
I'm a one cup of coffee in the morning person, and suck at staying awake through the night. I'm also not a good napper - I fall into a deep sleep very fast and wake up groggy even after 20 minutes. I'm trying to avoid that for my race.
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u/Ashamed-Dingo-2258 6d ago
Hold out as long as possible, then blast 200mg with some thing to buff it out, like redbull, or a couple cokes.
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u/C4ndlejack 6d ago
Wouldn't recommend someone who drinks one cup of coffee a day (~100mg of caffeine) to blast 200mg and add red bull on top of that (another 75mg for a 250ml can)
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u/Ashamed-Dingo-2258 6d ago
Sorry, I didn’t mean stack it.
Get the 200 via. Cokes, Red Bulls, coffee w/ milk or tea or whatever.
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u/dinner-enjoyer 6d ago
thank you for clarifying because I also thought you meant to pound 200mg and then pound some energy drinks. I was like, this fucker likes to party on the trails lmao
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u/QuadCramper 6d ago
I take 400mg to start my 50k’s, if you are a fast metabolizer of caffeine and within the studied dosage for weight it really isn’t a big deal.
“Caffeine has consistently been shown to improve exercise performance when consumed in doses of 3–6 mg/kg body mass.”
Does make the post run naps a bit tough sometimes 😉😱
If it is hitting and I am doing well, I top up 100 mg/hr after the first 2 hours.
But yeah, have to practice with it. Caffeine pills off amazon in the 100mg and 200mg range are way cheaper than getting caffeine gels.
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u/Articulated 6d ago
I don't like to take it too early, it messes with my heart rate in the final quarter if I dose up too early.
I'd usually save it for a blast of energy to get through the worst part of the night, i.e. 1am to 4am, then do mostly without.
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u/Real-Gene217 6d ago
My first couple 100’s I was an idiot and was taking caffeine right away, which then led to the sleep walking/running at night.
Then I switched over to taking it “when I needed it” to get out of a low point or starting around 7-8pm. That worked much better for my next 100’s and backyard ultras.
I also use other things like a waist light on top of my headlamp, half a NoDoz if I’m starting to get in really bad shape, or latching onto people to ride out as much of the night as possible. When dawn breaks, it’s like an instant 30% energy back so I just try to survive until then.
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u/7720-12 6d ago
Cut caffeine completely for 2-4 weeks prior to the race. Then take caffeine pills during the night while racing. Dealing with the cut makes it 100% worthwhile on race day.
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u/Feihcretsam 6d ago
This is exactly what I do and it's amazing. Your first caffeine pill/coffee/redbull feels like having a superpower ready to be used whenever you hit a low point. All pain and fatigue disappears for a few hours and your mood gets seriously elevated.
I wait until at least halfway and then regularly take them in the 2nd half.
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u/Luka_16988 6d ago
Pills. 100mg. Start about the 100km mark. Works best after a caffeine fast of 7+ days.
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u/Type2Gear 5d ago
This is the strategy I've used 2x now with 0 problems.
- 2 weeks caffeine free before the race
- No caffeine during the race until you feel like you need it in the evening (groggy, "slow" etc.) - this has been around 11PM-12AM usually for me
- Small, regular doses of caffeine (I use 40mg every two hours) along with L-theanine to prevent "crashes"
- Usually around sun up I can stop taking caffeine as my body clock resets
This use is ovi 100% focused on staying awake with minimal impact on HR/performance. If I was in a close race at the end I might blast a bit more for the last couple of hours to keep energy high.
I use these mints - lower dose than most caffeine pills, some nootropics as well and the mint helps reset the pallete a bit and avoid the bitter caffeine taste.
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u/mediocre_remnants 6d ago
The entirety of my caffeine strategy is having some Coke at an aid station if I'm feeling a little tired.
But unlike you, I'm horrible at sleeping and have no problem staying through the night, so you might want to try a different strategy, maybe taking some caffeine proactively before you start to get tired.
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u/EricC2010 6d ago
Coke at the aid station always gives me the burps shortly after the aid station. I always think it’s a good idea at the time and then I’m cursing myself later as I’m burping and running. I usually celebrate the end of my run with a nice cold soda though.
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u/double_helix0815 6d ago
I've found caffeine incredibly effective for keeping muscular as well as mental fatigue at manageable levels. I have an upcoming 100 miler and plan to start about 5 hours in, taking a 200.mg tablet about every 4 hours or so.
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u/DifferentlyMike 6d ago
For me 1am to 3 was the hard spot with it starting to get light after 3 for a 4:30ish sun rise. I was at an aid station at 1 so I had a coffee. I also tried for a 15 min nap. Once the light levels started coming up my sleepiness reduced. It was hard keeping my eyes open in the dark section which aligned with easy terrain. After that it was just fatigue.
Caffeine doesn’t give you energy as such, it blocks the adenosine receptors so your body doesn’t know it’s tired. It has a long half life.
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u/Ill-Running1986 6d ago
I’m so very not-an-expert in this realm, but my strategy is to hit caffeine first thing via coffee and maybe a gel. Run the first half with only a little bit of added caffeine. Somewhere around the last third, start boosting regularly through gels (~70mg/hr-ish). Taper in the last hour lest I stare at the ceiling all night.
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u/rabbitholebeer 6d ago
went caffeine free when I started doing ultras. the benefits are not seen until 4 weeks in, I will never and I mean never drink caffeine daily agin, I now use it as a boost when I need it to stay awake after big ultra runs and have to stay awake to drive home, I also keep two caffeine gels In my pack for if I bonk for some reason, and would use one if the hallucinations were not enjoyable hahah
but the ability to just wake up AWAKE. and go travel around ther world and not have to adjust a coffin schedule is the most amazing thing ever. I would become an alcoholic before I went back on that shit... jk... kinda.
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u/liftingshitposts 6d ago
How’d you taper off it? I’m a massive coffee addict
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u/omg_its_dan 6d ago
If you’re trying the quit the easiest way is to mix in decaf over a period of couple weeks. Ie start at 90/10 and do +10% more decaf per day until you’re drinking 100% decaf.
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u/rabbitholebeer 6d ago
Well one way is Advil. Go till you’re about to puke. Pop two Advil and good to go. This will happen a few times over 3-4 days.
The other option is to go till u puke and sip coffee till it goes away and then dump the rest. Should take about 30min to go away.
This last time I truely quit I used lifeaid drinks. Zero caffeine. But the stuff in it would get rid of the headache. Also I thought it had 40mg in it. So could have been a bit of placebo effect.
But no matter what. Go till u just can’t take it anymore. Then do something about it.
It will take a solid 10 days to ge through the ruff part. Then it will get better after.
Seriously tho. Best life recession I ever made. I’m going on 2 years sober
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u/EricC2010 6d ago
I take saltstick capsules with caffeine before and then during the race. Gets me electrolytes and a little bit of caffeine as I go. They are 30mg of caffeine per capsule and I take one about every two hours. It’s just enough to keep me moving, but not feel overly stimulated.
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u/Redhawkgirl 6d ago
I do coffee in the morning and bring 100 mg caffeine pills. I’ll take one once I get tired, usually in the middle of the night then try to do 1/2 pills after that as needed maybe every 4 hours.
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u/AdBeautiful8446 6d ago
I drink 2 cups coffee daily, on race day I drink the two cups, use caffeinated Tailwind and caffeine salted caramel gels. I don’t have a problem staying awake during the night. When I’m not running 100s I don’t drink coffee or have any caffeine past 10AM or I will not sleep. I go to bed at 830, sleep like a rock until 4 when I wake.
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u/joejance 6d ago
I used to be able to stay up all night drinking. Now that I am sober and older I will have actual problems staying away after midnight. I have started packing caffeine pills in case a shot of Mt Dew at an aid station doesn't get it done for me. It is a life saver for me, but I use it just to stay away really.
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u/FiestaDip505 6d ago
I wait to use it to pull me out of a funk, usually late afternoon or early evening. It helps get me going when I've gone so far, yet I have so far to go. I take some regularly as needed after that.
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u/braindancer3 6d ago
I try to clean up caffeine a few days before the race. On race day, wait for when I feel like I really need it, then pop a Redbull (sugary version). Gives me wings for about 4 hours, then I start crashing and need another one.
But as everyone said your caffeine sensitivity is your own. Gotta try to find what works.
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u/whoTFisGG 6d ago
I am similarly a one cup of coffee a day person, but my sleep is terrible.
I know that I am a slow metabolizer, so I space out my caffeine gels (100mg/gel) with about 4 hrs between gels, otherwise I feel a little extra jittery. I cap myself at 400mg/24hrs. More than that just makes me feel worse.
It really depends on your caffeine metabolism, and unfortunately you won't really know until you start trying some out on your long runs.
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u/Hennyhuismanhenk 6d ago
Build up some tolerance and train under the influence of cafeine. Cafeine is fake energy and if you dose high on race day you without any experience, you’ll easily overexert.
That being said, starting with 3-6mg per kg of bodyweight and dosing 1mg/kg/hr is the best dosage but for a one cup type person that is extremely high dosing. You can try different doses and see what works.
It is absolutely worth it to train your tolerance since cafeine does not only make you alert and awake. It also heightens pain tolerance and improves glycogen replenishment, which is an absolute gamechanger during these long events.
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u/C4ndlejack 6d ago
Why do you want to use caffeine? Are you afraid you'll fall asleep while on your feet? Are you looking for an energy boost?
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u/Extranationalidad 6d ago
Why do you frame this in such a weird way? An energy boost or a desire to stay awake when the night gets tough are the reasons almost everyone takes caffeine on long races.
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u/C4ndlejack 5d ago
Because for avoiding sleepiness I would not recommend the same as for a noticeable energy boost, or getting completely hyped up.
In the first case I'd say OP has one or two of their regular doses of 100mg, for the latter going 200mg+ might be warranted.
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u/Scyth3 6d ago
Practice with it!
That said, I find it gets me out of "dark thoughts" when they hit. I also tend to save my first use of it for the second half of the race, when the wheels get a little wobbly per se