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Your body learns to need caffeine. It's time to unlearn.

Recently, Lorena and I were talking about nutrition, foods, bad habits, and the like. It’s a topic we often discuss as it’s a passion of hers, and together we have made some healthy adjustments in our daily lives.

To date, I’ve made a number of changes in my nutrition, but there has always been one area that I never even considered changing: my coffee intake.

For nearly my entire adult life, I’ve had three cups of coffee each day — sometimes four if I’m dragging. I really enjoy coffee and look forward to that first cup every morning, and I’m fortunate that at this point in my life I don’t have any major sensitivities to it.

Caffeine hits Lorena a little bit differently, and while she enjoyed the flavor and energy kick occasionally, it wasn’t a value add in her life, so she gave it up.

So, back to this conversation. Lorena asked me, point-blank:

Would you ever consider giving up coffee?

I dismissed the idea, at first. I told her that it’s not that bad, and that it’s only three cups. I went on to explain how much I enjoy coffee, and the reasons I needed it to start the day right.

She let it go, but the topic remained in my mind.

I Have Become Coffee Dependent

Without my three cups, I just don’t feel right. I may get a headache, or be lethargic. It can impact my mood as well. When we go out of town, I always need to find a place with “decent enough” coffee, so I’m fueled for the day.

For years, I considered coffee to just be something I enjoyed. The reality, however, is that I was addicted. It eerily reminds me of the issue I had with alcohol. The negative impacts weren’t as obvious, but they were there.

But I also love having something warm, and the flavor of coffee in the morning. After doing a little research, I learned the following:

• A standard cup of coffee (8oz) has ~100mg of caffeine, give or take. I was having 300mg each day.
• The American Heart Association recommends no more than 400mg per day.

I was within the appropriate caffeine range, but that doesn’t mean loading up my system with caffeine every day (leading to a physical addiction), is a good thing. At the same time, cutting everything cold turkey didn’t sound very appealing. I still wanted to drink coffee, and I wasn't quite ready for the decaf life.

Landing on Half-Caff

I figured that I had two options:

1. Drink 2 cups instead of 3 cups
2. Drink something else

While the first option seems like the easiest, it is something that I’ve tried in the past and just never could stick to. Maybe it's a lack of willpower, but I just really enjoy three cups. After two, I start to get anxious for that third and begin to justify why it’s okay to have it. Some days I would have it, some days I wouldn’t — there was no consistency.

Which brings up the second point: maybe I just drink something else?

Thing is, I like the way coffee tastes, so teas would never work. Nor would those mushroom drinks that have become popular. I don’t care for the flavor.

That left decaf and half-caff coffee as my remaining options. I chose to go with half-caff.

Making the switch has been… interesting.

Funnily enough, the decaf industry is quite expansive. Coffee shops of all sizes try their best to make a good tasting decaf coffee, and they are quite good at it. That said, I wasn’t ready to give up caffeine entirely. Not yet, anyway.

So, I decided to search for some good half-caff beans. This came with the advantage of being able to still drink three cups in the morning, still get a little caffeine, but also decrease my body’s dependency on caffeine.

Instead of 300mg of caffeine, I’d be having 150mg. I’d still be getting a little bit of energy benefit, but less than my body has been used to for 15 years or so.

The hardest part in this process has been finding a good tasting, organic whole bean to grind. I finally found some good options by Fresh Roasted Coffee LLC, but I’m always keeping an eye out to see if there are other options.

Switching to Decaf... One Day

I’ve been at it for a couple of weeks and my withdrawal symptoms have subsided, but they are still there. Most notably, I am a little more tired in the morning, even after my three cups. I hope that this becomes less impactful as my body makes the full adjustment to the new caffeine levels, and learns how to “maximize” them.

I don’t rule out the possibility of getting completely off caffeine. I mean, it’s probably a net positive in the end. For now, I’m just trying to adjust to the new half-caff routine.

I’ll end by saying this: Take opportunities to assess, and challenge your assumptions — especially regarding what you put into your body. Just because you have been doing it one way your entire life doesn’t mean a change won’t benefit your health and happiness.

For me right now, it’s coffee. But this could be said for any routine we have in our lives.

#happiness

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