Tea, Anyone?

The big debate... which is better to drink - coffee or tea? In my opinion, the answer depends on what you put into your coffee!

If you take it black, studies have shown that drinking coffee in moderation has some health benefits. However, if you load it up with cream, sugar, syrup, chocolate, etc., that's a different story!

6 years ago, I found myself with some extra weight on my frame that I wanted to lose which is hard for me to do because my diet, for the most part, is very healthy. I end up having to examine my day to day eating routine closely to see where I can cut calories, starting with breakfast.

I looked at my morning cup (or two!) of "Joe" and realized that if I started drinking green tea, I would automatically cut out the cream and sugar I had been adding to my coffee. It was a relatively small change but definitely one that can make a difference over time. And let me tell you, it did!

Not only did I lose weight, but I found that my energy levels changed! I no longer felt tired in the mid-afternoon. The caffeine in the green tea was enough to perk me up in the morning but didn't offer the same jolt as coffee that later caused what I call my "caffeine collapse"! I had coffee withdrawals for the first day or two and felt quite fatigued but after that, my energy levels stabilized and I actually felt better mentally and physically all day long.

I stuck with green tea exclusively for about 5 years and was very happy. Somehow, after the extreme fatigue that comes along with having a new baby, the coffee seduced me and I started to have it in the morning on occasion. It feels great for about an hour but after that, it always lets me down! Some mornings I need that jolt but in the back of my mind, I know that ultimately, the green tea treats me better.

So, if you are looking to lose some weight and have a nasty little Starbucks latte habit, switching to green tea can definitely make a difference, especially if you indulge in those type of coffee drinks daily.

If you just want to feel a little better all day long and get yourself off of an energetic roller-coaster, green tea can help with that too.

My favorite type of green tea is loose gunpowder green tea leaves steeped in boiling water in a tea ball. I also like black tea and white tea, a rare type of caffeinated tea.

Don't get me wrong - black coffee does have some health benefits. It has some of the antioxidant value that green tea does and has also been proven to help with endurance sport performance. However, if you find your energy level sagging mid-day or would like to fine-tune parts of your diet, switching to green tea might be a good place to start!