How does coffee help with weight loss? Coffee is the second-largest commodity that is being traded around the world, next to oil. It’s very popular that over 160 million bags of coffee is consumed every year. Caffeine can boost your energy every morning. It also has several health benefits including helping with weight loss.
Just thinking about this makes me excited, a drink that will help you stay awake, has health benefits and can help you manage your weight. Sounds like a dream!
But how does coffee help us with weight loss? Let’s find out below.
How does coffee help with weight loss?
Black coffee is known to be low in calorie
Calorie deficit is when you consume less calorie than you burn and this is associated with weight loss. To achieve this, just consume less calorie a day than what you usually intake.
And to help you with your weight loss, consuming black coffee instead of having a latte or cappuccino gets your less calorie. A serving of black coffee (8 oz cup) contains less than 5 calories. However, keep in mind that this is only applicable if you drink it without any sugar, milk, creamer or any sweetener.
Drinking it with milk or sugar can make it high in calories.
Caffeine boosts your energy
Caffeine is a natural chemical usually found in coffee, tea, cocoa and other products. It works by stimulating your central nervous system giving you a boost in energy, making you alert and sometimes if consumed in high quantity can make you agitated and nervous.
Drinking coffee delivered caffeine to your body and prompts it to burn more fat instead of burning the carbohydrate in your muscles. It is recommended to drink coffee 30 minutes before you start your daily exercise to improve performance and stamina.
A lot of people adds coffee to their pre-workout shakes, or they just drink it without any sugar or milk.
Coffee increases your metabolic rate
Metabolism is the process in which your body converts the things you eat and drink into energy and during this process, calories from food and drinks are combined with oxygen and becomes the energy you need to function.
Caffeine which is found in coffee, is a substance that is known to increase your basal metabolic rate or the rate when you burn calories while resting.
In a 2018 study, it is found that participants that consumed coffee over two months has greater metabolites which are produced by your metabolism. A faster metabolism allows your body to burn and convert more calories during a physical activity or even when you are resting leading to weight loss.
Caffeine is also said to increase your metabolic rate which makes it easier for your body to burn fat. Keep in mind that we have different body type and while this might work you, it can also do nothing for others.
Coffee and its antioxidant
Keri Glassman, a weight loss expert reveals that eating foods that contain high level of antioxidants can help you on losing weight. Antioxidants protect our body from harmful molecules like free radicals. And conveniently, coffee is one of the largest sources of antioxidants containing 64%.
Coffee and its high antioxidant content provides tons of health benefits including lower the risk for a heart disease, lower blood sugar, and liver disease.
Caffeine can break down fats
According to studies, caffeine has the ability to send signals to your body to break down fat instead of carbohydrates from your muscles. Coffee can also increase the adrenaline present in our blood which helps in breaking down fats. This is why caffeine and coffee is widely used for weight loss supplements and diet pills.
Caffeine can reduce water retention
Our bodies can’t store caffeine, this means that after drinking coffee it can take up to 6 hours for caffeine to be expelled through urine output. This increase in output will help the body alleviate water retention. Water retention can slow your weight loss progress because it can make you feel bloated and that you’re not improving at all.
Coffee can make you feel less hungry
One of the benefits of caffeine is that is suppresses your appetite. Your appetite can be influence by different factors like the food you eat, level of physical activity and hormones. While there is no sufficient evidence that caffeine can reduce your appetite, some studies have shown that caffeine reduces the levels of ghrelin, a type of hormone which makes you feel hungry.
In a small study conducted last 2014, participants that consumed coffee within a month feels more full and had a reduced intake of food.
It is said that the lighter the roast of your coffee beans the higher the chlorogenic acids which can suppress appetite. So if you want to try coffee for weight loss, go for lighter roast and avoid espresso.
Coffee can also be unhealthy and lead to weight gain
Coffee has undeniable health benefits that can lower the risk of deadly diseases and promote weight loss. There are also a lot of drawbacks that may cause some concern.
Here are a few things to keep in mind before you incorporate coffee with your diet.
- If you are drinking coffee for weight loss, avoid adding calories to your drink like sugar and milk. These things can easily add calories and can make your blood sugar level high.
- Too much caffeine can also cause anxiety specially with people that has panic or anxiety disorder.
- Consuming coffee can help you with weight loss. Remember that having a healthy and balance diet is required to achieve your weight goal.
- A high amount of coffee intake means you are also taking a high amount of caffeine. One serving of coffee (8 oz) has 95 mg of caffeine. Drinking a couple of cups a day can make you agitated, nervous and can give you a hard time sleeping. Reduced sleep is linked to increased appetite which can make you eat more than necessary. Just consume coffee moderately.
- A lot of experts also advise brewing your coffee with filter paper. Drinking unfiltered coffee is associated with early death.
- Too much caffeine can cause mild to severe headaches and irregular heartbeats.
Conclusion
Coffee is a beloved drink for a lot of people. In fact, a lot of us, including me depends on a morning cup of coffee to officially start the day. Coffee makes you more focused and can boost your energy level.
Overall, coffee has a lot of that is good for your health. One known benefit of coffee is helping with weight loss. Coffee can indeed help you with your weight loss journey. Keep in mind that this is only possible if you avoid adding sugar and milk to your coffee and keep a healthy and balance diet.
Drinking too much coffee in a day can cause several nasty side effects like headaches, irregular heartbeats, agitation, anxiety, and sleep deprivation (which can increase your appetite). Most people can handle 4 cups a day, but this is not for everyone.
Remember to consult a dietary expert before starting a weight loss journey. This will ensure that you lose weight safely and effectively. Weight loss can be achieved in a lot of healthy ways with or without coffee.
How do you make coffee exciting? Click HERE.
