Hi all,
So, you may have been a bit surprised to see this title but... It's time for a confession: 'My name is Rachel and I was a caffeine-aholic'.
Notice the past tense though? I am now 3 weeks 'clean' haha!
For a lot of people they cannot imagine starting their day without a hot drink of tea or coffee (yes, there is nearly as much caffeine in tea as there is in coffee). But, isn't there something wrong with that? You NEED a certain thing to start your day off well? Should we be relying heavily on something, especially something unnatural, to start off our day and to get us through to the end?
Initially I wanted to cut down the number of cups of tea I had as I love to have a lot of sugar in my tea. When I was drinking a large mug of tea I would put 2 large, heaped tea spoons in. Obviously, not good for you at all but I really enjoyed the warmth and sweetness of it.
So, about a year ago I decided to stop drinking large mugs of tea and switched to much smaller cups, that way I only 'needed' one sugar in my tea to still enjoy it but I had instantly halved my sugar intake. I instantly halved the amount of tea and sugar but I didn't feel like I was missing anything.
Then, I decided that 4-5 cups a day was still too much so I tried to make sure that I was having 2-3 a day instead. This was a bit more difficult but still achievable.
Finally, after a lot of research I decided it was time to change, I wanted to stop full stop. Here were my main motivators:
I weaned myself down to one cup a day for about a week and then one morning just felt ready to stop, I didn't build up to and plan it. I didn't book the date in my diary or decide to do it 'on a monday' like every diet I have ever started (and not stuck to). I just went for it when I was (kind of) ready.
I suffered quite bad headaches for the first 2-3 days, I also felt very tired and fed up. This was quite shocking as I had only been drinking tea regularly (not coffee) and I had reduced right down to one cup a day... proof enough to me that stopping was the right thing to do, obviously my body was too reliant.
So, I needed some coping methods for my new life without my socially acceptable addition. It's funny, the thing I miss the most (still) is just having a nice warm cup to hold and the social side of a good gossip over a cuppa.
Replacements and coping methods:
Things I have struggled with:
Have a think about your own drinking habits... of course tea, coffee and their decaf versions have their own health benefits and maybe you can enjoy them in moderation. I don't feel like I personally can and I am so happy with the changes I have seen in my skin, my energy levels and my general well being.
Thanks so much for reading!
Rach xx
FYI here is a link to the Mama Natural video I mentioned: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZYacDyKsIA
Check out my YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/RachelReviewsAndMuse
Follow me on twitter? Come say 'hi!' to @rachmarshall
Or check out my pictures on Intagram :-) AllNaturalAspirations
So, you may have been a bit surprised to see this title but... It's time for a confession: 'My name is Rachel and I was a caffeine-aholic'.
Notice the past tense though? I am now 3 weeks 'clean' haha!
For a lot of people they cannot imagine starting their day without a hot drink of tea or coffee (yes, there is nearly as much caffeine in tea as there is in coffee). But, isn't there something wrong with that? You NEED a certain thing to start your day off well? Should we be relying heavily on something, especially something unnatural, to start off our day and to get us through to the end?
Initially I wanted to cut down the number of cups of tea I had as I love to have a lot of sugar in my tea. When I was drinking a large mug of tea I would put 2 large, heaped tea spoons in. Obviously, not good for you at all but I really enjoyed the warmth and sweetness of it.
So, about a year ago I decided to stop drinking large mugs of tea and switched to much smaller cups, that way I only 'needed' one sugar in my tea to still enjoy it but I had instantly halved my sugar intake. I instantly halved the amount of tea and sugar but I didn't feel like I was missing anything.
Then, I decided that 4-5 cups a day was still too much so I tried to make sure that I was having 2-3 a day instead. This was a bit more difficult but still achievable.
Finally, after a lot of research I decided it was time to change, I wanted to stop full stop. Here were my main motivators:
- I had started eating more healthily but caffeine/tea/coffee contain polyphenol compounds which stop the body absorbing iron and other good things so my healthy efforts were effectively wasted.
- Caffeine is a drug, I was addicted and didn't want to be
- My energy levels were all over the place, caffeine was not helping.
- I suffer from headaches, I wanted to get to the root of them and try to reduce their frequency or stop them altogether, caffeine and sugar seemed two very obvious culprits.
I weaned myself down to one cup a day for about a week and then one morning just felt ready to stop, I didn't build up to and plan it. I didn't book the date in my diary or decide to do it 'on a monday' like every diet I have ever started (and not stuck to). I just went for it when I was (kind of) ready.
I suffered quite bad headaches for the first 2-3 days, I also felt very tired and fed up. This was quite shocking as I had only been drinking tea regularly (not coffee) and I had reduced right down to one cup a day... proof enough to me that stopping was the right thing to do, obviously my body was too reliant.
So, I needed some coping methods for my new life without my socially acceptable addition. It's funny, the thing I miss the most (still) is just having a nice warm cup to hold and the social side of a good gossip over a cuppa.
Replacements and coping methods:
- Herbal teas and redbush tea - still something warm to hold and sip on. (I'll be honest - it's not the same... but there we go.)
- Dry brushing, it's stimulating and good for your skin too!
- A HOT shower really wakes me up.
- Getting more sleep (I will cover that in a whole other post!)
- Getting out in the fresh air, walking or cycling. (I take my little girl to pre-school 4 mornings a week and I find those are my best mornings)
- Get up and get going, keep busy... try and be British about it, stiff upper lip and all that! I think it's mind over matter. If you mope around and go slow then you will feel slow and lethargic, if you force yourself to pick up the pace then you will soon feel full of energy.
- Drink lots of water to keep your brain hydrated and stop yourself feeling fuzzy headed.
- Blast out some high energy music, this never fails to get me amped up and ready to take on the world!
Things I have struggled with:
- The social aspect. There is nothing nicer than going to a friend's house or meeting up with them and having a gossip over a hot drink. I mourn this loss.
- Saying 'no, I don't drink tea or coffee thanks' - queue the other person looking at you like you are from a different planet... or ill, or crazy... or all of the above!
- The first few days were the hardest. (But it does get easier and soon enough you hardly notice it)
- Knowing what drink to order while out at a restaurant.... I don't drink tea, coffee, cola, or alcohol... what do I order??
Have a think about your own drinking habits... of course tea, coffee and their decaf versions have their own health benefits and maybe you can enjoy them in moderation. I don't feel like I personally can and I am so happy with the changes I have seen in my skin, my energy levels and my general well being.
Thanks so much for reading!
Rach xx
FYI here is a link to the Mama Natural video I mentioned: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZYacDyKsIA
Check out my YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/RachelReviewsAndMuse
Follow me on twitter? Come say 'hi!' to @rachmarshall
Or check out my pictures on Intagram :-) AllNaturalAspirations
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