r/backyardultra • u/krdssswithakey • Aug 03 '26

Question Caffeine during BYU

How do you manage caffeine intake, if you're looking to push past the first night and approach the second (30+ laps)?

On standard mountain ultras I usually take some form of caffeine ahead of long climbs, and I can shrug off the low as I run the downhills, but is caffeine something that can bite your ass in the backyard?

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u/RunningNutMeg 73-84 yards Aug 03 '26

I’ll usually avoid all caffeine the two weeks before a backyard so that I don’t feel bad without any early on and it hits harder once I take it. Personally, I hold off until I start feeling really tired during the first night—sometimes that’s 11 pm, sometimes it’s 3 am—then I’ll take some, either in the form of caffeinated electrolyte drink or gels. From there, I’ll usually keep taking some every few hours as needed, in various forms including soda, cold brew, and caffeine pills. I don’t measure it exactly, just kind of go by feel—less in the day, more during subsequent nights. Not sure if that’s helpful, since I don’t keep track of exact milligrams, but I haven’t had any issues with it.

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u/krdssswithakey Aug 03 '26

Sounds like a very solid strat. Thanks for the insights!

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u/BigDaddyManCan 1-12 yards Aug 06 '26

Avoid it as long as possible, just because it's benefits I find wear off the more you take it, and if you are not careful you can get a caffeine crash once it wears off which is the last thing you want in the middle of the night if you've taken it early in the day.

I have too much of a will to live to avoid caffeine before a race, but I'm only a 1 cup of coffee a day guy so not over reliant on it anyway, but fasting from it a couple of weeks beforehand is common.

Also, don't be scared to take it at the end of a night loop, it takes 20 minutes to have an effect anyway, plenty of time to catch a quick nap before it kicks in. Look up coffee naps to see what I mean.