Do you think that using too much caffeine during a ride can cause muscle spasms? It’s happened a couple of times to me and I know it’s not dehydration and it’s not cramps either. It only happens during events and not training, so I am pushing myself hard. Twice it’s happened in the calf muscle when I was doing hard climbing and today it was in the VMO when I was riding hard on the flats with the wind behind me. Just wondering.
It has never happened to me and I drink about 8 cups of coffee a day…I’m a teacher - it’s almost required. Having said that we are all different and I have certainly had cramps - usually in the adductors after (but never during strangely) hard turbo sessions as turbo training is supposed to place a little more stress on these muscles. I think it is more the fatigue levels than any caffeine effect. That said only one way to find out - by some decaf and see if it goes away! 
And how’s it going, jdman?
I know I have a caffeine addiction - although I don’t drink a ton, just 1-2 strong (and I mean it - I drink Death Wish currently) cups in the morning & often an iced tea in the afternoon. Though I’ve never had a problem like this one. I think that it’s just a fatigue. What’s your sleeping schedule like currently?
Yeah, I think it is just fatigue. Just wondering about others experiences. My sleep schedule??? LOL! As a public transport operator that does early shifts starting anywhere between 4:30am - 7:00am, my sleep is all over the place! Biggest problem I face…
couple of things…I don’t normally consume a lot of caffeine but i’ll take down 400mg every 4 hours during a race. I think it lowers RPE for sure & lets me go harder. That taxes my muscles in ways that I don’t normally train them & that can cause cramps.
Second, I can’t stand the taste of caffeine. Caffeine gels are tough for me to get down. More than a few times I’ve cramped up during a race the instant a caffeine gel has touched my tongue. Must be completely a mental thing. But that’s a primary reason I like to take caffeine pills instead of gels.
I did Lamark yesterday and Spencer +2 the day before and noticed my legs (muscles) shaking twards the end of the intervals. I’m a light caffeine user, A little fatigued from last weekend but I wonder also if caffeine has a role in this?
No issues with sleeping - I did 4.5 hours outside today…have been snoozing since on the sofa - only thing keeping me awake at night is the idiots panic buying in the UK and I can’t get any milk for my porridge…madness. Seriously I get about 7 hours/night when working (which will be a bit on off at present as I teach and they have shut schools). Try to get an extra hour at the weekend unless I’m up early riding in which case I go for a short nap mid afternoon.