What is Caffeine doing to me?

My jaw dropped when I saw this fact a while ago.

Did you know that there is a drug that 85% of us use every single day?

If you’re one of them, I have a little assignment for you. :) No, I am not going to ask you to quit.

It’s caffeine … and we use it to get going in the morning, power through workouts or work, and keep us going through the mid-afternoon slump.

The upside of caffeine?

It gives you energy
It boosts your alertness and ability to concentrate
It can come in beverages filled with antioxidants that have health benefits (ex: tea!)

That’s all well and good ...

But there are a few downsides.

It can take up to 10 hours to clear your system – which means it can also get in the way of relaxing – and falling and staying asleep.
You can build up a tolerance after your body gets used to it, which means you might need to drink more of it to get the same effects.
It can raise your blood pressure.
It can make you “wired-tired”: jittery, overstimulated, and tired at the same time.
It’s linked with migraines.
It doesn’t mix well with some medications and health issues.
Suddenly quitting caffeine can give you headaches and leave you feeling tired, achy, and even nauseous.

This leads me to that little assignment I mentioned earlier.

Today, take some time to ask yourself:

Are you using caffeine – or is it using you?

If you are feeling jittery and stressed, having a hard time sleeping, getting headaches, or finding that your tolerance for caffeine is increasing …

Or maybe you feel like you NEED it to keep going through the day – it might be time to reevaluate your caffeine use.

Just something to think about!

Coach Tom CFL-3, USAW-2, Sports Nutritionist