When you wake up, your body is likely craving caffeine. If you don’t have access to a cup of coffee, try making some green tea instead. Green tea contains a type of antioxidant called catechins that research has found can help promote weight loss by increasing the activity of enzymes that burn fat.
One study that looked at over 150,000 participants found that those who drank green tea as part of their diet had a lower BMI than those who didn’t drink green tea. Read on to find out more about how drinking coffee and green tea throughout the day can help you reach your weight loss goals.
Ditch the cream and sugar
Cream and sugar are not your friends when it comes to weight loss. Even if you love the taste of coffee, you’re better off drinking black coffee without cream and sugar.
The cream and sugar you add to your coffee make you crave unnecessary calories, deplete your energy, and increase blood sugar levels. If you want to lose weight, you want to reduce the number of calories you consume, not increase them.
Try decaf or tea
Caffeine is a powerful drug that can help you stay focused and alert, but it’s also a diuretic and can cause dehydration. For example, decaffeinated coffee can cause you to lose 1 to 2 per cent of your body weight in 24 hours if you don’t replace that lost water.
When looking for healthier options for caffeine, choose decaf coffee or green tea. Both of these drinks contain antioxidants that can promote weight loss and keep you energized throughout the day. If you’re a coffee lover who wants to lose weight, try swapping out one cup of coffee each day for one cup of decaf or green tea.
Swap your java for black coffee
For many people, black coffee is the go-to choice when it comes to weight loss. Unfortunately, black coffee also has a very high level of caffeine, which is a diuretic. To get the same amount of caffeine from green tea, you’d have to drink 10 cups of black coffee, which is an unrealistic approach to weight loss.
If you love the taste of black coffee, swap one cup of it for one cup of green tea. You’ll get the same benefits as drinking green tea, including weight loss, but without caffeine.
Drink bone broth or avocado water
If you love the taste of coffee, you may think of cream and sugar as your friends when it comes to weight loss. But those cream and sugar additives don’t just add fat and calories to your coffee. They can also affect the way your body responds to caffeine, which can interfere with your weight loss efforts.
Instead of cream and sugar, try adding almond milk, coconut water, or bone broth when you make your coffee. Bone broth is a great source of potassium, which can help you feel hydrated and reduce your body’s sodium retention when you drink coffee. Coconut water, almond milk, and bone broth are healthy, low-calorie alternatives that can help you reach your weight loss goals.
Don’t forget the fruit
While black coffee is the number one source of caffeine, many fruits also contain this stimulant. For example, blackberries, raspberries, and citrus fruits such as grapefruit and oranges contain caffeine. You may not think of these fruits as sources of caffeine, but they are. If you love the taste of black coffee, try drinking a cup of these fruits instead of a cup of black coffee.
You may find that you enjoy the fruit as much as you enjoyed the coffee. You also have the bonus of getting extra vitamins and minerals from the fruit. You can also try mixing the two drinks to create a caffeine-rich beverage that contains vitamins and minerals from a variety of fruits.
Add exercise to your routine
Caffeine can make you feel alert and energized, which can help you power through exercise sessions. However, if you don’t have access to caffeine during your workouts, you may be left feeling fatigued and less likely to continue to exercise.
Instead of relying on caffeine to power through your workouts, add some natural energy by adding some healthy fats to your diet. Healthy fats are important for energy, focus, and weight loss and can be found in nuts, seeds, avocados, olives, and monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats found in plant-based oils such as olive oil and canola oil.
Get a good night’s sleep
Whether it’s the late-night energy drink or the morning cup of coffee, caffeine can disrupt your sleep. Caffeine disrupts sleep in three ways: It blocks adenosine, a chemical that encourages you to fall asleep; it keeps you awake; and it degrades the quality of your sleep, making it less restful.
If you love the taste of black coffee, try swapping one cup for one cup of herbal tea. Tea is high in antioxidants that can promote weight loss and help you sleep better at night. You can also try making a cup of bone broth, almond milk, or coconut water instead of black coffee to promote better sleep.
Take a weight loss supplement
Some ingredients found in weight loss supplements such as caffeine also promote weight loss by disrupting sleep, increasing metabolism, and increasing energy. Although these ingredients may sound like a good thing, they’re dangerous for weight loss.
If you want to lose weight and don’t want to deal with the side effects associated with the ingredients found in weight loss supplements, consider taking a daily vitamin instead. While there are many healthy and effective ways to lose weight, moderation is key. Use these tips and drinks to help you reach your weight loss goals.
