On Caffeine

One of the things that I used to ponder in college was how so many of my peers could come to class or rehearsal with giant cups of coffee. They would take swigs all the way through, rather than drinking water and it baffled me beyond words. This is not to say that I was unfamiliar with the fatigue of a serious dance student's life. But I always thought that drinking coffee or soda while dancing would be counter-productive.

I'm not one of those my-body-is-a-temple people (although my body sometimes wishes I was), but soda and coffee are one of those things I've always tried to stay away from. My older sister was a coffee house manager and seeing her seven-shot lattes made me steer clear of an over-indulgence in that particular poison, and soda has never appealed to me. This is probably due to my hippy mother and her insistence that appropriate beverages are pretty much limited to water, tea, and milk. Sometimes juice. Because of this, soda is a rare treat and coffee is a last resort to be turned to in times of dire need, such as a 12 hour day on 3 hours of sleep.

And then I graduate from college (is that my new tag line?). I am now obsessed with caffeine, mostly in soda form, because it is more refreshing and can be obtained from the vending machine in the break room at work. I am convinced that it's effects on me are largely mental. I believe that it is perking me up, and therefore it does. That doesn't change the fact that I have a soda every day at work and a coffee before every rehearsal. This is particularly upsetting on days when I have both work and rehearsal.

I have gone from someone obsessed with drinking at least two litres of water a day, to someone who balks at the thought of working eight hours without a cola. I don't have the option to keep water with me at work, and therefore I only drink a couple of glasses a day. The result is exactly what you would expect: frequent caffeine crashes, nausea from dancing immediately after chugging a venti-whatever-nonfat-something, bad skin, and headaches. And yet I remain convinced that the caffeine will make me feel better.

Since I dance so much less than I did while I was in school, it's important to me that I be at peak condition when I'm in class or rehearsal. So what am I to do? The short term effects of all those yummy beverages are great, but I think they're wearing on me long term. The best way to dance well, I'm sure, is to drink more water and get more sleep. Sleep is out.

One out of two isn't bad...