* hi. most of us have a love affair with caffeine. it’s the coffee that makes us wake up and smell it. it’s the soda (or pop, since i’m canadian) with your burger and fries. it’s the energy drink (s?) that enables partying until it’s light outside. that’s the good. but this post closes in on the bad and the ugly. more specifically, the fat. does caffeine make you fat? short answer – no. but indirectly, yes. for a number of reasons.
in my post blood types and chicken avoidance, i said i would update on how eating/drinking for an a blood type was going. i’m still convinced i’m a type a. as recommended, i’ve cut back on alcohol, but since i like to party and my friends do too, it’s difficult and unrealistic for me to cut it out completely. i’ve decreased sugar intake, but since my current client manufactures sweet treats, it’s also difficult and unrealistic for me to completely ex-nay.
i have, however, completely stopped drinking my daily large tea with 2 milks and 2 sweeteners with an occasional grande skinny vanilla latte in addition. this not only cut out artificial sweeteners (a very happy bonus), but also 95% of my caffeine intake. i’ll still drink energy drinks on a party night – i won’t lie. but for the past 2 weeks, i’ve been drinking camomile tea, which is herbal and caffeine-free. i noticed that i felt better and slept better, which prompted me to look into caffeine’s affects on humans.
there are 2 main reasons caffeine indirectly makes us fat:
1) your mocha whip grande latte whatever has about a bagillion calories. not because of the caffeine. not because of the coffee or tea. but all the sugary fatty additions that compose your beverage. as does the gallon of carbonated syrup enjoyed with that burger and fries. so make it a diet, right? nope. artificial sweeteners make us fat too and cause cancer, but that’s another post.
2) consuming 100 mg of caffeine can increase your metabolism by around 5%, or the equivalent of burning 75 to 110 calories a day, so many diets incorporate it. the good: it makes you feel more awake and alert and has diuretic properties, meaning it helps temporarily get rid of excess water. but bodybuilders and athletes that need to keep their body fat percentage down know better, because caffeine increases cortisol.
too much cortisol makes us fat. and if i really am an a blood type, i have a tendency to be stressed and have too much of it floating around already. cortisol is a steroid hormone and when elevated for a prolonged period of time, the following happens:
a) promotes appetite, contributing to overeating
b) encourages muscle breakdown, reducing our fat-burning muscle mass
c) makes our bodies prefer to store central and visceral fat, meaning the fat around our mid-section (think spare tire, muffin top, love handles, etc.)
that’s the ugly. so how can we end this abusive relationship with our frenemy, caffeine? there is hope.
1) try cutting back – if you usually order a large/vendi, try a medium/grande for a week. the next week, try small/tall. if you’re like me and enjoy a massive mug, than try an herbal caffeine-free drink. i realized that most days, i’m not craving the caffeine, but rather the hot drink. try to replace pop with water or carbonated water, because whether sweetened artificially or with sugar, there’s nothing good about it.
2) increase your intake of vitamin c - it stabilizes cortisol production. fruits, veggies, and supplements are good ways to get enough. although the adult recommended daily intake is 60 mg, some studies show we may need up to 1000 mg.
3) don’t over-train. this may seem counter-intuitive, but excessive cardiovascular exercise or weight training can actually increase cortisol levels so high that lean muscle mass is lost and fat is deposited.
are there any readers out there that don’t do caffeine? i’d love to hear your thoughts.
k *
