Coffee lovers are constantly tinged with guilt. You can’t do without it, but each time you gulp a cup of creamy steaming coffee, the fact that you are consuming something unhealthy keeps plaguing your mind. But it’s actually not that bad. Coffee when had the right way can actually help you on your way to good health. Here are 10 ways to make the most out of that coffee habit of yours.
1. Don’t drink coffee before 10 a.m. Research shows that people feel pretty alert for the first hour or two after waking up because of high cortisone levels in your body. You really need coffee when you reach office, by which time your cortisone levels drop.
2. Space out your coffee consumption. Researchers have found that small, frequent doses of caffeine are generally way more effective than a huge jolt first thing in the morning.
3. Don’t drink coffee with your meals. Have it an hour after lunch when you feel sleepy and avoid coffee after dinner. It may seem like a comforting thing to do, but it will spoil your sleep.
4. On the other hand, having a coffee before a power nap may be the best thing you do. Research shows that coffee before a power nap results in better productivity after waking up.
5. Top up every caffeinated drink you have each day with a glass of water. Coffee has diuretic properties. That basically means you pee more often and lose more water from the body. You need to replenish that.
6. Know how much caffeine you are consuming. About 400 mg of caffeine a day is thought to be safe for adults. More than this can lead to irritability, upset stomach and insomnia.
7. Drinking a small cup of coffee after a learning event really boosts memory. So if you’ve just attended a meeting and been put in charge of a difficult project, first have some coffee before you start making a to-do list of the things you need to do.
8. Your dietitian may disagree. But coffee before a workout may actually work to your benefit, says research. Not only does coffee make you more motivated to exercise, caffeine also improves your endurance by using fat as fuel.
9. But the real benefit of a coffee is how you drink it. Adding milk and sugar to is not the best way to go about it. Instead drink black coffee or coffee with plant-based milk additives like almond milk, soy milk or coconut milk. Switch from sugar to raw honey.
10. Avoid milk substitutes and artificial sweeteners like the plague.
