drink your energy

Put down the coffee. Put down the Red Bull, the Rockstar, the Monster, the tea. oh...my old friends.

I've decided to w..e..e..a..n..e.. myself off caffeine. 

I started cold turkey. No caffeine, nada for 2 whole days. It has been hard work, hard to function, and these last few days without them have been...well....full of headaches. 

I even took a 20 minute nap in my car at lunch time yesterday. whaaat??


I can honestly say, I've never taken a mid-work nap before, and although it was refreshing, I realized how badly I needed to take care of my body.

The benefits of avoiding caffeine are proven by science, been told to me by my mother, reiterated by my boyfriend....blah blah blah. You know, all the semi-important people and things in my life.

I guess I've just relied on it for so long as my quick fix to energy. My solution to staying up too late, a long day at work, a good workout, a long run.... the list goes on.

I'm admitting it. I'm addicted to caffeine. But realizing you have a problem is half the battle, or at least that's what somebody told me once.

I came across a blog the other day called Word of Wisdom Living. What an incredible read. And...how perfect that one of his most recent posts was regarding your choice of drinks.

Maybe after reading this, you'll join me in my crusade (ok, maybe more like a little tiny picketing march) against caffeine. I know you can do it. It's a matter of choice... Not easy at the beginning, but worth it health wise in the end. 

Love your body. Your temple.

via Skip Hellewell with Word of Wisdom!

 Drinks are important—what you drink, because of the daily volume, can greatly affect your health.  

Healthy Change #1 took away nearly all your sugary drinks (and it was suggested to apply the 1/week limit to diet sodas also).  So what can you drink? 

The short answer is “water”.  The experts say about eight cups a day, depending on size and activity.  I doubted I was drinking that much so I measured water into a pitcher and used it for 24 hours.  I was drinking less than I thought—I keep a glass of water handy now.  I drink it cold as tests show this improves metabolism and weight loss.  Drink two glasses before meals and you’ll improve weight loss by another 30%, according to one study.

Are you often tired?  Do you regularly need an energy boost? (yes) One theory of why we’re all consuming so many sugary drinks and other addicting stimulants is that poor lifestyle habits leave us perpetually tired.  We eat foods high in sugar and that puts us on the sugar roller coaster—needing a sugar fix every couple hours.  Maybe we don’t get enough sleep so start the day tired (me).  Or perhaps we’re living with an overload of stress and never really relax (me again).  

There are other causes of tiredness, including chronic dehydration from insufficient water. 

Do you sometimes tire of water and just crave variety (blah, yes! Water with lemon helps me. Or Crystal Light)?  I do, about once a day. Here are some ideas that will help meet your fruit and vegetable goal:

• Homemade smoothies are great because you can put the whole fruit in along with the healthy ingredients you enjoy.  (I’ll share my recipe in a later post.)  You can even slip in some vegetables.  The green drinks are great for getting your veggies.

• Herbal teas are my wife’s preferred evening drink, especially when it’s cold out.

• Homemade fruit juices are best though easier if you have a juice extractor.  The store-bought juices are invariably processed from concentrates and often shipped 1000s of miles, so vitamin content suffers.

• Orange juice is refreshing, especially if you squeeze the oranges yourself.  Using oranges from Costco I can make a 6 oz. drink for $.58 (two oranges).  Store-bought O.J. costs about 50% more.  Grapefruit juice is good too; I dilute it with lots of ice.

• Lacking both an apple tree and a press, I buy my apple juice.  Everyone likes apple juice; it’s the cheapest fruit juice though the high level of natural sugars can be a problem for the diabetic.

• If you purchase drinks, look for the 100% berry juices rich in antioxidants, like blueberry, pomegranate, or cranberry.  A disadvantage is these drinks must be pasteurized for safety. 

• The 100% fruit juices can be extended by following the European custom of mixing them 50/50 with sparkling water, or use tap water with ice.