As a trainer, I see the same pattern every morning.

Someone rolls into the gym half-awake, clutching a cup of coffee, hoping it magically turns into a good workout. Sometimes it works. A lot of times, it doesn’t. Jitters, bathroom breaks, energy crashes halfway through the session—you name it.

Coffee isn’t bad. It’s just not built for training.

If your goal is to move better, lift heavier, last longer, and recover faster, what you drink before a workout actually matters. Let’s break down the most common options I see: coffee, energy drinks, and a newer category—botanical performance drinks like Goodroot.

Coffee: The Old Standby

Coffee is popular because it’s simple and familiar. Caffeine wakes you up, no argument there.

But from a performance standpoint, coffee is a blunt tool:

• It gives you a spike, not sustained output

• It doesn’t hydrate you

• It doesn’t support blood flow, recovery, or focus

For some people, it works just enough. For others, it leads to shaky hands and a crash right when the workout gets hard.

Energy Drinks: Loud, Fast, and Messy

Energy drinks promise performance, but most rely on synthetic stimulants and sweeteners.

In practice, I see:

• Big energy upfront

• Bigger crashes later

• Poor hydration

• Zero recovery support

They’re designed to keep you awake, not help you train.

Botanical Performance Drinks: Built for Training

This is where things get interesting.

A botanical performance drink is designed around how the body actually performs under stress, not just how alert you feel. Ingredients like beet root, cordyceps, turmeric, moringa, and sage do things caffeine alone simply can’t.

Instead of yelling at your nervous system, these ingredients:

• Support blood flow and oxygen delivery

• Help manage inflammation

• Improve focus without anxiety

• Support hydration and endurance

It’s the difference between being awake and being ready.