Caffeine: Friend of Foe?

I have heard forever that caffeine dehydrates you. They say, dont have it before a run, cut caffeine before a marathon, etc. And the more I try to "cut" caffeine, the more I actually seem to consume. I used to have a few lattes a week ... now I have one every day of the week.

But lucky for me, the recent research suggests that caffeine may not be so bad after all! While caffeine does have a diuretic effect, this effect is not severe. And, more importantly, the study suggests that people who regulary consume caffeine build up a tolerance to the diuretic effect!!! So that means that the fact that I now have a latte-a-day is good :) Some research also suggests that caffeine taken about 60 minutes before exercise can increase endurance - and that combining caffeine & excercise can help prevent skin cancer! Not only is this all good news for me, but its good news for some running clubs that actually center their activities around running like the Joe Coffee Running Team.

Training Log
Time:  30:00 time  Distance:2.87 miles   Pace:  10:27 min/mi
I did a 30 minute run and increased my pace for each mile. Average was about 10:27, but I started out at a 10:40 or so and picked it up when I hit another mile. Supposedly that stuff helps build endurance, but mostly I think it just makes me tired.