kasaba Posted March 17, 2006 Report Share Posted March 17, 2006 since I've started dancing I've reformed a lot of my eating/drinking/vitamin-taking habits, but can't seem to give up caffeine entirely. is this the end of the world? Quote Link to comment
Tiffany Posted March 17, 2006 Report Share Posted March 17, 2006 I think Babsaroo would be the person to ask this question to, in the nutrition forum. Quote Link to comment
thedancingj Posted March 17, 2006 Report Share Posted March 17, 2006 Nutrition forum is a good idea, but my totally unqualified opinion from personal experience is that a caffiene habit is DEFINITELY not the end of the world as a dancer. The MAJORITY of professional dancers I know are fueled largely by caffiene... if coffee were eliminated from the world, the 9am company class would be the biggest mess of cranky uncoordinated people you have ever seen. It's probably not ideal, but it is part of our life!!! Quote Link to comment
jimpickles Posted March 17, 2006 Report Share Posted March 17, 2006 OK its not the health and nutrition forum, so I can butt (but?) in. Why should caffeine be so awful? My understanding is: Most people can handle 4 - 5 cups a day without problems. 6 or more is pushing it. Some people have an exaggerated response (I think because they cant metabolise it - i.e. get rid of it - as well) and should take only 1 or 2 or maybe no cups a day. Some others metabolise caffeine really quickly and they can handle a lot more (but I would not push it). If you are jittery, dithery, iritable and/or cant sleep and/or have rapid heartbeats, and/or urinate too much, I suggest you cut down on caffeine. If you still cant sleep or get these symptoms, confine caffeine consumption to earlier in the day. If you still have problems, cut it out completely. Otherwise remember - caffeine makes the world go round! (especially if you are dizzy) Jim. Quote Link to comment
Miriam Posted March 17, 2006 Report Share Posted March 17, 2006 Just remember that caffeine dehydrates, so you'd have to drink a bit more water.. Quote Link to comment
ami1436 Posted March 17, 2006 Report Share Posted March 17, 2006 *and* it can be bad for your stomach. Quote Link to comment
Dance_Scholar_London Posted March 17, 2006 Report Share Posted March 17, 2006 Just remember that caffeine dehydrates, so you'd have to drink a bit more water.. I have read that for each cup of coffee one should drink the equal amount of water. Woah, that's a lot of liquid! Quote Link to comment
lampwick Posted March 17, 2006 Report Share Posted March 17, 2006 It's a mad rush to Dunkin Doughnuts after company class and prior to rehearsals in the company I'm with (for a good number of the dancers). And when I was in New York, people were drinking coffee during most morning classes. You can dance fine and take caffeine. I don't think it's the end of the world, so long as you stay hydrated. Quote Link to comment
WendyMichelle Posted March 19, 2006 Report Share Posted March 19, 2006 OY!!! I used to live on caffeine....soda, Starbucks, chocolate, etc. However, I have a heart condition which is aggrevated by caffeine so I had to detox myself off of it. It was a very hard two weeks! I did really well with NO caffeine whatsoever and NO artifical sweetners for a year and a half.........until I started ballet again. Now I have ONE cup of coffee in the morning and that is it. Other than that I drink no other caffeinated beverages and still check my food labels carefully for artifical sweeteners. If I didn't have my "morning wake-up" cup I think my head would be slamming off the keyboard at work around 9am! =) Quote Link to comment
Hilarion Posted March 19, 2006 Report Share Posted March 19, 2006 I recently found the hard way that coffee is not compatible with an evening ballet class, at least for me. I'd had trouble sleeping the night before, and my workday was particularly grueling and long, so I arrived in town sleep-deprived and low in energy. I'd had the same problem the previous class. That class proved to be no fun whatsoever. My short-term memory was shot and I could not comprehend the instructor's demonstrations, let alone retain the movements long enough to actually repeat them without him. So the next class, I stopped first at a coffee shop around the corner from the school. This was around 6 pm, a time at which I would never ordinarily drink coffee on a weeknight because of its insomnia-inducing capability. But, I was willing to take the risk because I did not want another class like the previous one (see second paragraph.) I gulped down a small coffee and went off to class. In the interval before the instructor arrived I had some time in the studio to do some stretching, but felt unusually tense and unwell. The room felt ever so much hotter than usual. Class began in earnest and I broke into a heavy sweat. In the mirror, I could see that my face was flushed. The energy I expected never materialized - just the opposite, in fact, as I felt what energy I'd had drain away quite suddenly. My class was, in short, miserable; even worse than would have been the case had I not been "medicated." That night I could not sleep at all, and the next day in the office was tough. Before my most recent class, I ate an orange. When the class started I was typically tired and listless (indeed, I was thinking that maybe resuming ballet class was a mistake, this was all a bad idea, etc.). I had little hope that a mere orange could make any difference. But it did! At the same time in the previous class that coffee had sapped my energy, I woke up. Everything came into focus. I became more alert, and I could follow the instructor and retain (most) of what he said and did. I thoroughly enjoyed the class and completely abandoned the idea of finding other things to do on Monday and Wednesday evenings (like watching TV ). Quote Link to comment
olddude Posted March 20, 2006 Report Share Posted March 20, 2006 OY!!! I used to live on caffeine....soda, Starbucks, chocolate, etc. However, I have a heart condition which is aggrevated by caffeine so I had to detox myself off of it. It was a very hard two weeks!... WendyM, that's pretty close to my experience. The doctor cut me off some years ago and I did fine (after a really excruciating couple weeks! ) for several years. Then my wife and I took a month off in Greece - now you cannot spend any time in Greece without drinking coffee, and I've since settled on a double espresso in the morning, no more. Seems to work fine - I've reformed my diet and get more exercise now, so maybe that is enough. Anyhow, the heart rythms are fine now... Hilarion, I also had that experience. A cup of wake-up before class when short on sleep is a big mistake; better to do without. I'll give the fruit snack a try next time though - thanks! Quote Link to comment
kasaba Posted March 20, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 20, 2006 (edited) Thanks for the great feedback! I'm going to start by tweaking H2O consumption and stopping caffeine after noon -- well, OK, after 2:45 when school lets out. But let's keep this going, it's interesting to hear what everyone has to say! BTW, I am NOT addicted . . . I only drink coffee to be social and to relax, it doesn't affect me, I can quit anytime I want! Edited March 20, 2006 by kasaba Quote Link to comment
lampwick Posted March 20, 2006 Report Share Posted March 20, 2006 BTW, I am NOT addicted . . . I only drink coffee to be social and to relax, it doesn't affect me, I can quit anytime I want! deep breath... my name is "kasaba", and I am a caffeine addict Funny. Quote Link to comment
WendyMichelle Posted March 21, 2006 Report Share Posted March 21, 2006 Oh Kasaba........we're all here to help you! Just remember........admitting the problem is the first step. I hereby found CAA - Caffeine Addicts Anonymous. =) Quote Link to comment
Guest fairy_4eva Posted March 21, 2006 Report Share Posted March 21, 2006 hi, drink more water and try and limit your caffeine intakes! if this doesnt work then go to the nutrition forum for further help! from sian x x x Quote Link to comment
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