Yes I was absent Monday. No I’m proud of it. But sometimes life hands you lemons…and vodka sodas and you spend the rest of eternity banished to the couch watching HGTV re-runs.
But I’m back with a vengeance, and am finally ready to talk about food again, just in time for my favorite Wednesday of the week!
Just thought I’d let you know that was a joke, in case you were blissfully unaware of my equal parts wit and sarcasm.
Despite the snow making it’s reappearance and assuring us it is still in fact winter, I decided to keep my current smoothie love going.
1 1/2 scoops pea protein ( I use MyProtein) // 1/2 banana // 1 scoop Nutrigreens // 2 tablespoons peanut butter // cinnamon
Sooo there was this time when I actually gave up caffeine for the entire month of January and didn’t tell you about it. #sorrynotsorry #actuallyiamkindasorry
I built up such a tolerance to easily put back a near entire pot of coffee, while still maintaining my geriatric bedtime of 9:30. Not good.
So I quit cold turkey, with the exception of decaf and green tea.
Buffalo chicken wrap // avocado // romaine // apple
To my surprise, I didn’t actually get the headaches every one warns you about, but rather I felt absolutely exhausted the first few days. I felt like I could have slept for 10 more hours within minutes of waking up.
baby carrots & guac snack attack
But after the first week, I was just peachy. I was used to the routine of warm water and lemon instead of caffeine in the morning, and if I was really struggling, a cup of green tea in the afternoon did wonders.
salmon patty // green beans // baked sweet potato with peanut butter
I absolutely missed the bold taste of a black dark roast, which decaf only had dreams of achieving, but I learned a lot from a simple 30 days of caffeine sobriety.
protein smoothie // 1 scoop pea protein // handful strawberries // 1 scoop glutamine
– I learned how hungry I actually was. I’m actually trying to increase my calorie intake after restricting my calories for far too long. Coffee always suppressed my appetite, so allowing my body to tell me how hungry it actually was, was eye-opening.
– I felt what it was like to actually have energy. Just like so many pills (aka THE pill) cover up and mask what the root of a problem is, coffee did the same for sleep. Without pumping my body up on artificial shut eye, I realized how it felt when my body was actually energized from a good night’s rest and properly fueled.
– A world without coffee isn’t so bad. Don’t get me wrong, I ADORE coffee and all it’s caffeinated glory, but after going 30 days without it, I find that I could easily go without it every morning. In fact, it allows me to savor and enjoy it more when it’s a weekend treat rather than a small part of my every day routine.
Will I give it up again? Maybe. At least we are on a one cup basis for the time being, and gives me the little bit of perk I need to get ish done first thing in the morning. But knowing that we can be friends no matter how far apart we are is comforting.
[Tweet “What happens when you give up coffee for a month. #WIAW”]
linking up with Ms. Peas & Crayons.
Make it a great day!
Have you, or could you give up coffee?
What’s one thing you couldn’t go a day without? Water. As hard as peanut butter may be, I would spontaneously combust without 10 cups of water a day.
Yes! I stopped drinking coffee in August and haven’t had any since except for a few decaf lattes here and there – Does that count? Good job! I also couldn’t give up water or nut butters. Yum.
That’s awesome. go you!! 😀
I’ve given up coffee a few times, for pregnancy and nursing. I actually did get the headaches for 2 or 3 days, so just count your lucky starts there – it’s no joke. I should probably try giving it up when I’m not chasing a toddler or pregnant, since I often miss it quite a bit. THat ish is exhausting
I am SO thankful I didn’t get the headaches! I can’t imagine trying to give coffee up with a toddler. That sounds like it would require some superhuman powers. 🙂
I love that we have warm houses so that we can do smoothie or ice cream in the middle of winter. Thankful for the little things! God is SO good! I don’t really like coffee, so I guess you could say that it wouldn’t be hard for me to give up. Dessert would be a difficult one.
So thankful for that! A dessert-less world would be a sad place for me as well.
Well done! I’m so in and out with coffee. It is absolutely one of my greatest adorations, but I know that sometimes I use it for unhealthy reasons – to suppress appetite like you mentioned, or to just raise my mood when I’m feeling angry or down. I’m now really trying to consciously decide when I actually want and need it, and if I don’t, to not have it. I’ve been having decaf in the afternoons most often than not. Every time I do try and limit my intake, I am reminded that it is often just the idea of the cup of coffee that I love so much – the routine, the taste, the coffee shops etc – and therefore decaf usually totally does the trick. But sometimes I just want the caffeine. And when I do, I will have that cup darn it. One day soon I’m sure I will try an all out absence from it like you. I probably should.
Occasionally I get busy and don’t have coffee in the morning, but I really prefer to have a cup to start my day. Last week I had a second cup at 5 pm (I was in class until 9 pm) but I wouldn’t make that a habit as it was midnight before I could fall asleep.
I gave up caffeine for the first time a couple of summers ago and had a similar experience—the first few days were ROUGH. I was SO tired. But after a few days, I felt like I had a lot more natural energy.
It’s day 3 and I was struggling this morning…
You can do it lady! The worst part is almost over! 🙂
I hope to be able to give up coffee for a period of time at some point! It was definitely not possible when studying for the RD exam, or in grad school…maybe it will be easier in the future? Kudos to you!
I’m not a coffee drinker so I’ve never had to worry about overdoing it there – but I do have a vice for diet soda. I try not to drink it often but it is totally something I crave.
Aside from water, I couldn’t give up chocolate and potatoes. Not together of course. But I love both of those foods so much.