Coffee Alternatives That Will Keep You Energized
If you’re a coffee enthusiast like most people now a days, your day probably look something like this picture. Coffee around the clock. Especially as students and people with jobs and families, we rely on coffee to get us through the day without crashing. If you’re one of those people who can’t get through the morning without a cup of joe, you probably can’t imagine going through your whole day without coffee! You believe that its the only thing that can provide the energy you need. And while coffee does provide most people with the energy they need to get through the day, there are also many other natural energizers that can do the same. Coffee, whether it is good or bad for you, is a big controversial topic. I am no doctor or nutritionist so I am not even going to begin to explain the controversies that people believe about coffee. But I would encourage you to go research it for yourself. And if after you’ve researched it you would like to try to wing off of coffee or just cut down on your intake, here are a few things that can help you get through the day.
If you are someone who’s days are filled with “to do’s” you probably feel the stress that accompanies a busy life. You might be under the impression that coffee helps to relieve some of that stress, but the truth is that coffee does the exact opposite. The caffeine in coffee, surprisingly, increases your stress hormones. These stress hormones draw out cortisol and increases insulin. This then brings about inflammation, which is what makes you feel “lousy.” (Hyman) A great alternative to coffee, if you’re feeling the stress of life but still need a boost, would be warm tea. A lot of teas have caffeine in them but not as much as coffee. By drinking a cup of tea, it will help energize you as well as relaxing your body by the warmth it provides, but wont put you to sleep. There are a few teas that are the best if you’re looking for something with a pick me up, but still allows your body to remain relaxed and not tense throughout the day. Green tea is a great substitute for coffee. It has just a bit less caffeine compared to coffee but is also filled with great health benefits, like antioxidants, disease fighters and more. Here is a great link of all the wonderful benefits of green tea!
https://authoritynutrition.com/top-10-evidence-based-health-benefits-of-green-tea/
Another fantastic tea to help energize you is ginger tea. It is filled with energy to help give you that boost needed but also helps with digestion. Ginger tea will definitely wake you up in the morning if you’re feeling slow and sluggish.
Wheatgrass juice is another great energizer. Its filled with vitamins, minerals and nutrients that will help keep you going all day. This might not be anyone’s first choice when it comes to taste but this natural energy supplement is easily digested, so it wont make you feel gross or heavy like coffee can sometimes do.
Pomegranate juice holds many great attributes. It is filled with antioxidants and energizers and will help get your day going. Along with that, I personally think that it tastes great! But if you’re not a fan of that taste, you can easily mask it by adding it to a smoothie.
Sometimes water can get boring to drink. If you’re trying to stay away from coffee and get your water in, try adding lemon. Lemon water is great for your body to drink in the morning to help with digestion and getting your body going. Stimulate your senses and do something good by detoxify your body with a glass of water and the juice of half a lemon. But make sure to drink it through a straw to help protect your teeth from the acid of the juice.
And finally the last tip that I have to keep you away from coffee but awake for the day would be to eat the proper foods that have nutritional values and exercise. If you’re making sure to give your body the foods it needs, you will be energizing it so that it can work properly. Make sure to eat breakfast so that you’re not hungry throughout the morning. Try to exercise regularly. Getting your body up and moving before you have to head off to work or school will help to wake up your brain and prepare your body for the day. When you take care of your body, you will give it the energy it needs to make it through the day without crashing on you.
But if after all of that you’re still thinking that there is no way you can give up coffee then try mixing your beans half regular and half decaf. This will give you the coffee taste and boost, with half the amount of caffeine and coffee jitters.
Those were just a few different alternatives to coffee and cutting down on caffeine that I suggest when trying to find ways to wake up your body and give it the energy it needs to take on the day. If you didn’t like any of those options or they didn’t work for you, I would encourage you to do your own research. Everybody is different and these things will work for some people but not others. Experiment and find what will give you that boost that you need but without all the jitters that accompany coffee.
Sources:
http://flatulencecures.com/replace-coffee
http://www.shape.com/healthy-eating/healthy-drinks/15-creative-alternatives-coffee
http://www.hungryforchange.tv/article/10-reasons-to-quit-coffee-plus-healthy-alternatives
http://drhyman.com/blog/2012/06/13/ten-reasons-to-quit-your-coffee/
Makayla Crowley
Student Worker
College of Health Science