Stimulants Let's talk about caffeine.

[Allylbenzene]

I drink about 4 cups of coffee in a typical month. I just never was into coffee. But, all my life, I've been hearing about how the caffeine in coffee is supposed to be great for perking you up. So I'm wondering what members here might have to say about it. Bluelighters tend to be quite savvy about what a given substance does or doesn't do. Plus, those who have used various stimulants can knowledgeably compare them. So I'd like to tap into this store of experience for a bit of feedback. Is the caffeine in coffee really a significant stimulant?

Caffeine can be gotten from other sources, including OTC pills. I guess it's in some "energy" drinks also. Are there any caffeine users out there who can say it actually benefits them in a noticeable way? Exactly what do you get out of it? How much does it take to have an impact? Is there such a thing as too much?

Coffee is primarily a potent metabolic booster which makes it unique compared to other stimulants. As a metabolic booster it comes with it's own precautions.
Caffeine blocks adenosine, serotonin and GABA receptors which contributes to it's energising effects.

This posts explains how to maximise its benefits aka use it in the most sustainable way possible.

Coffee is a potent metabolic stimulator and must be viewed as such. The caffeine in coffee is powerful and can act like thyroid to increase your metabolic rate and the oxidation of sugar, making it a health-protective food.

These characteristics make coffee a useful tool in your health toolbox provided that you’re taking the right steps to maximize effectiveness. This blog describes what to expect when you’re doing coffee the right way and offers a handful of tips to help if you’re “coffee intolerant.” The blog is written in the context of health promotion rather than one centered solely around body composition and fat loss.

Symptoms to expect when you do coffee right are calmness, focus, motivation, warmth, and stable energy.
Coffee done wrong leads to anxiety, shakiness, sweating, feeling wired, inability to focus, and sometimes cold extremities.

Using a metabolic booster improperly will cause a stress response (cortisol, adrenaline etc) = "anxiety, shakiness, sweating, feeling wired, inability to focus, and sometimes cold extremities."

 

[KurtAurelius]

I'm in desperate need of a stimulant. I used to be on Ritalin to help with depression and sluggishness that was worst in the morning. I hesitate to ask my current doctor to order it. Since I'm on Vicodin, he might not want to order another "controlled substance." So I was thinking, " What about good old caffeine?"

I drink about 4 cups of coffee in a typical month. I just never was into coffee. But, all my life, I've been hearing about how the caffeine in coffee is supposed to be great for perking you up. So I'm wondering what members here might have to say about it. Bluelighters tend to be quite savvy about what a given substance does or doesn't do. Plus, those who have used various stimulants can knowledgeably compare them. So I'd like to tap into this store of experience for a bit of feedback. Is the caffeine in coffee really a significant stimulant?

Caffeine can be gotten from other sources, including OTC pills. I guess it's in some "energy" drinks also. Are there any caffeine users out there who can say it actually benefits them in a noticeable way? Exactly what do you get out of it? How much does it take to have an impact? Is there such a thing as too much?

Green Tea is a good moderate approach, balanced Theanine to Caffiene in moderate doses that means you can chain it sensibly across a day, provided you cut if of at a sensible time.

It also has the antioxidants and plenty of cited study to say it’s very good for longevity.

When I used to self medicate caffeine for my ADHD, the tolerance was absurd. I never pushed 450mg a day, but unless I suffered through the breaks, I’d get a very partial effect from it with negatives persisting.

The first 1-2days of Caffeine with no tolerance is a different drug in my experience to when tolerant to it.

 

[KurtAurelius]

I have a bit of a personal conspiracy regarding coffee drinking. I believe that nobody in this world actually enjoys the taste of coffee. I believe there was one guy who said he liked it way back in history and this has led to a global conspiracy of people who swear they love the taste of it.

I feel like Coffee tastes like water with crushed up aspirin and a hint of hickory wood thrown on top. I feel like people feel the need to say they "like the flavor" as then they don't need to admit to everyone around them "yes, it's a drug, caffeine is a drug, I take this drug every day, I'm dependent on it for functionality" when they can just say "man that cup of joe really just makes the morning".

I see so many people who "love coffee" who are in reality drinking milkshakes crammed full of fats and refined sugars. It takes as much sugar as the solution can tolerate, combined with heavy cream and a couple dozen "flavor shots" for their "coffee" to be just how they like it. If coffee were so fucking delicious, people would drink black coffee and the idea of coffee requiring sugar and cream to be palatable wouldn't exist.

Turkey has what I would call a more honest relationship with their coffee. There, they have accepted that coffee tastes like shit and they have contrived to make the drink itself as compact and brief as they possibly can. The result is a shot glass of super potent coffee (which is then immediately followed by a chaser, often something sweet).

I'm not a big believer in the idea that different coffee produces these radically different profiles of effects from one another. It's the same with Alcohol for that matter. Sure, there are going to be some small differences from liquor to liquor, but in the end, you're drinking Ethanol and that Ethanol is responsible for 99% of the drink's effects.

Something interesting, is that I often tell people, like my coworkers that I take Caffeine pills and they often are unaware that Caffeine pills exist. They are often like "oh where do you get those?" and I always say at the pharmacy. I think a lot of people really value the idea of knowing how much Caffeine they are taking and of course not having to make coffee every time they need some.

Only anecdote, but it requires very good coffee and a enjoyment of bitter to like it.

When I buy the Organic Clipper stuff, and do my weird trick of trying to stop the kettle boiling but still hot enough to dissolve the granules- you get a very smooth, still bitter, but lushious pseudo-chocolate taste. (This is taken black)

Anything else subjectively just does not taste great and you could speculate to the moon about over roasted beans, to hot water blah blah..

I think many associate the effect or normalisation for the many addicted, to taste good because they then feel good.

Adding anything doesn’t qualify, of course it makes it taste better but it’s masking the taste.

A organic Italian espresso also is delicious but sipped slowly, and with a bitter palate like mine.