Training Update: GVT, Madcow 5x5, and Pre-Workout vs. Coffee

1. So, a few weeks back I officially wrapped up my 1st foray into German Volume Training. According to my handy-dandy GVT spreadsheet, I did 14 5-day cycles that spanned 10 weeks. My overall assessment: I enjoyed it (especially in the beginning), but I'm not sure I reaped the full benefits of it. This is not me blaming the program or saying the program doesn't work. It's possible that I didn't follow it as closely as I thought I was in the moment (tempo, form, etc.). The 1st few weeks are killer, and I loved it. It felt like my chest and arms were going to explode out of my shirt, and my legs would shake and cramp up. As it went along though, either my body adjusted to the routines, or I subconsciously just wasn't focusing up as hard on the tempo (or maybe I wasn't going heavy enough). I would love to give it another shot in a few months (maybe revising my personal routine though a little). The other problem is that it is a hypertrophy program, and I admittedly did a s@$% job of tracking my progress. Strength programs are easy to track. Weight go up = good! But I didn't take any before/after pictures, didn't take any body measurements (arms, chest, quads, etc.). It looks like I gained 2 lb. from start to finish, but weight alone is not usually a good statistical measurement for such things. So, either I gained 2 lb. of muscle, or my diet and cardio haven't been as great over the last 10 weeks.
2.  The end of GVT led into my next challenge: Madcow 5x5. Madcow is basically a progression of StrongLifts 5x5. It's a progressive strength program like StrongLifts with some differences: it's more bench/row focused than deadlift/press, the weights only go up weekly instead of per workout, and your weights jump up from set-to-set instead of doing the same weight every set for a particular workout (among a couple of other differences). 2 weeks in, I really like the program...although you are scheduled to hit your previous max weights pretty early on, which scares me. Just like Joel Embid would say though, trust the process.
3. Lastly, I'm contemplating dropping pre-workout for just straight-up coffee. I was thinking about it a few months ago, and then I read an article that many pro basketball players have adopted coffee is a pre-game beverage (over energy drinks and other supps). And then I was talking to my warrior-machine brother-in-law, who independently made the switch to coffee not that long ago (he somehow is always like telepathically 1 step ahead of me). I don't know. Just hate having to buy it, feel like I could get a lot of the same benefit from good ol' coffee, and I already drink it anyway. Plus, I wonder sometimes if the pre-workout is effing up my stomach on some days...more on that later.