Yes they will. PED’s that are banned for athletes can allow higher performance and enhanced recovery during training and are not just used in competition. That work completed in training will stay with the athlete and can be built on. Caffeine will presumably be the same albeit on a level that is several orders of magnitude lower!
By slight extension of there may well be workouts which fall on the line of just doable or just not doable and getting the work done is what makes you a better cyclist.
I drink a lot of coffee everyday. I still try to have coffee before a tough intensity workout. In my opinion coffee becomes negative only at the point it disrupts sleep quality or hydration. I suspect Coach Chad would say, like a fan to cool you off, if it helps you do the actual physical work it is considered good. If it helps your muscles and supporting systems produce more and grow stronger you should do it.
Yeah. I’m 100% down for a ban on opioids in the peloton. In aggregate opioids do way more harm than good. In this context…I mean, come on, stoned riders sprinting for the win? Seems pretty hard to make the ‘for’ argument there.
Opioids don’t change you physiology in a way that enhances performance therefore aren’t really a performance enhancing drug. Caffeine is similar. Your body can’t do more work on caffeine or tramadol the way it can on amphetamine or epo or anabolic steroids. I think that’s the distinction. Sure you may mentally be more able to cope with the work load but it’s not actually physiologically changing your abilities.
As I said it’s clearly on a different order of magnitude than some other forms of PED use but there’s plenty of evidence to suggest that your body can do more work with caffeine than without, and that can change your physiological abilities moving forwards in your racing and training.
I used the GU Roccataine (spelling?) as ‘finishing bottles’ in the Hawkesbury classic in Aus. 11 hrs of paddling through the night and they were awesome.
If I’d used them early on it would’ve killed me.
I didn’t sleep for several hours after the race and I had been up for 12hrs prior to the start.
One of my mates often chugs Redbull before our trail rides and it’s definately noticable. Although, it fades and has rapidly diminishing returns in my opinion. It also messes with hydration.
I have Tramadol prescribed to me and the one workout I did while on it I thought it felt much harder . Maybe I needed to abuse it to notice a positive affect.
. Maybe I needed to abuse it to notice a positive affect.