6 Reasons To Quit Drinking Coffee

Since plowing into week 2 of losing weight with Medifast, I have decided to eliminate diet sodas. Although I can’t find any clear scientific proof that diet sodas inhibit weight loss – I do have some suspicions (based on using myself as a weight loss guinea pig). There are some posts on the Medifast forums as well with some personal experience from people on Medifast experiencing slowed down weight loss when they introduce diet soda.

So diet soda is out… but what about coffee. I’ve already given up alcohol, soda and delicious deep fried food. Do I have to give up coffee as well. (Medifast doesn’t take a strong stance on this, but they do recommend cutting way back on coffee intake because your body will be much more sensitive during the Medifast weight loss process.)

It turns out there is a lot of conflicting information about coffee out there as well. In fact, there is enough for 2 articles. Let’s start with the negative effects of coffee on weight loss.

1. Coffee may stimulate unexpected cravings

Most coffee drinkers are accustomed to consuming their coffee with breakfast foods – like donuts or pastries or a McDonalds Egg McMuffin. Or if you’re meeting a friend for coffee in the afternoon, you may be used to having a snack. There are triggers all around us, so if coffee might set them of, stay away from it. This one isn’t enough to keep me away.

2. Coffee may contain hidden calories

I drink my coffee black and bitter. During the summer I like it on ice. But I never add milk or cream. Sometimes I will add a little Splenda. A cup of black coffee only has a handful of calories. However, if you like “gourmet” coffee, you could be consuming calorie amounts that are more in keeping with a dessert. For example, a café mocha can set you back over 300 calories and over 20 grams of fat. Once again we are getting into the psychological side of things here. If you can’t handle black coffee – you must stay away from it completely. (And don’t get me started on the Medifast Cappuccino. That does not qualify as anything close to real coffee.)

3. Coffee jacks you up

That’s why I drink it. Not only do I like the taste, but I love the electric keyed up feeling of my caffeinated brain. Coffee has this energizing effect because it messes up the flow of adenosine in your brain. The adenosine is responsible for calming you down. When you are jacked-up and over-stimulated, the chances of you going “off-plan” are greater. I have experienced this personally. [Source: .doc file]

4. Coffee inhibits your sleep

Sleep is crucial to weight loss. According to the Journal of the American Medical Association: “lack of sleep may enhance hunger and effect the body’s metabolism, making it much more difficult to lose weight.” When you sleep, your body does a lot of metabolizing because sleep triggers the release of of cortisol which is an appetite control hormone. I like to think of sleep like rebooting a computer. The operating system is turned off and everything has a chance to reset. Ideally. To lose weight, you need to get a good nights sleep. [Source]

5. The diuretic effect may be depleting your body of nutrients

Coffee is a diuretic. Just another one of the reasons I love it. The diuretic nature of coffee may be throwing off your results on the scales and it could be flushing out some of the essential nutrients your body needs. You could be losing Vitamin B1, magnesium, and potassium.

6. Coffee may be keeping you out of ketosis.

I don’t pretend to be a doctor or scientist, nor to I understand the fragile and mysterious nature of ketosis. Ketosis is the accelerated fat-burning stage that your body enters a few days after starting Medifast. With the reduced amount of carbohydrates, your body becomes very efficient at burning fat. The Canadian Diabetics Association had this to say: Drinking caffeine in large amounts as coffee over a short period of time has been shown to raise blood sugar. Caffeine does this by enhancing the effect of two hormones (adrenaline and glucagon). If coffee affects your blood sugar, it is going to affect your bodies ability to stay in ketosis. This is the reason that coffee is banned on both the Atkins and Zone diets.

In summary…

There are some very valid reasons you need to be careful with coffee when you are on a weight loss program. With Medifast, you are going through a very severe calorie reduction. While you are getting your essential nutrients, etc. it’s important to be very conscious of everything you are putting into your body. Your body will be much more sensitive to caffeine that it was before you started losing weight with Medifast.

Am I going to stop drinking coffee during my Medifast weight loss? I’m not sure. I’ll make a decision after my next article: 10 Reasons to drink more Coffee!