How can I change my energy level for the better, and lose the caffeine addiction?

Question

I don't want to rely on coffee as much as I do, though I know that coffee isn't really bad for you.It just stains the teeth and leeches calcium, but it also helps to prevent liver cancer and aids digestion in moderation.

Answer 1

My energy level increased after I went on a diet and ate healthier. I know it sounds unappealing if you're used to eating whatever you want, but it really does help. I used to eat crap like a donut and coffee for breakfast, but then I'd be tired and irritable and moody later in the day and sometimes get the shakes if I skipped lunch. I thought I was developing hypoglycemia or diabetes, but after I changed my diet, it all went away.

Now I exercise 3 times a week, I eat at least 4 servings of fresh fruit or vegetables every day. (I get it all at the Farmer's Market because the grocery stores never have truly good produce) I drink lots of water, eat lean meats, and I occasionally have a cup of coffee for the taste, but mostly just good quality de-caf like from Peet's Coffee.

The difference in my energy level is amazing. I'm not running around like Richard Simmons or anything, but I don't get sleepy at work, I've taken up gardening every day, everything about my day is just better. It's practically a religious experience. :-)

Answer 2

I eat the Subway Daily Special 6" $2.49 (except on Tuesdays, meatball sub day) and ask for all the vegetables.

Like Ratchetgrrrl said below choose the Wheat bread for the carbs (and niacin).

After that I have a Rip-It energy drink (sometimes a sugar-free one sometimes not). It isn't coffee so you won't get bad breath, but it's got caffeine, B vitamins, and a neat ingredient called Taurine which seems to help you use up all the food you ate for energy. The energy drink gets rid of some of the onion taste and smell from the sub, too.

I eat nothing else all day and I'm unstoppable and always in a cheery mood when I'm working. After a hard day of work I return home and still have positive energy.

Give this a try but don't overdo it on the caffeine. Only one serving at a time and you're good to go. Too many energy drinks and disgusting soda will give you irregular heart beats.

If you are ever thirsty during the rest of the day drink some water to lubricate the cells in your body.

Answer 3

I read your question holding my morning cup of coffee. Increasing energy without the caffiene--that's the whole reason I use the stuff.

One thing to consider first, is make sure that you don't replace the caffeine kick with a sugar high--the sugar low will be swift to follow and that high is really short-lived in most folks.

Eating something with protein can give a boost. I keep some peanut butter and crackers to keep me going when the afternoon blues bog me down (that and I'm not allergic to peanuts). Cheese is also good, really tasty too, but if you've got a tad bit of headache cheese could make it worse.

I hadn't heard that coffee was a calcium leach. I had heard that coffee and tea do minimize the oral bacteria that want to dig holes in my teeth. Soda pop feeds those little buggers but coffee and tea and cheese put the brakes on and yell, "Whoa there!"

Something else to consider, I bought some green tea gum (Wal-Mart and Walgrens has it) that I use to perk me up, especially when I'm going to be driving a while. In this latter case, if it is a long way between clean restrooms I don't want to be tanking up on coffee and coke to keep me going when the miles and miles of miles and miles would make me drowsy. Then again, having a full bladder and intently searching the horizen for the next likely restroom stop or even a really large tree near the road will sometimes keep me wide awake.

Green tea gum probably won't stain your teeth like the drink, definitely will give the caffeine kick, and has the other good stuff that the tea is famous for. Good luck.

Answer 4

-First of all, lose the caffine. In order to get the body back into it's natural state you have to lose the alien substance, no matter how used to it the body is.
-Then, begin to get 8-8 1/2 hours of sleep a night.
-Eat a large breakfast everyday. That's where you get most of the nutrients that last you the rest of the day.
-Take vitamins. One-a-Day is a personal favorite.
-Eat five to seven small meals a day. This way your body will burn energy quicker and more willingly (the reason you feel tired through halfway through the workday is simply becuase your body doesn't want to use the energy that it has because you depend on caffine). The meals can consist of an energy bar and a smoothie. Just try to keep it between 350 and 500 calories.
-Work out at least three days a week. Not only is this a nice way to lose weight and get trim, but it also give you more energy during the day. Think about it. When you work out you have to force your body to do so much work, so you're body is ready to put out that all that energy when it's required. But when it's still all the time it barely has to do anything, so it has less energy out put because it knows that it doesn't have to work so hard.
-Make smart food choices. If you had to choose between a whopper and a subway sanwich you would obviously know which one is healthier. Just use common sense.

These are just some pointers. It all really depends on your body and life habits. Talk to your physician. They should really be able to help. Hope I could help.

-Rodolfo

Answer 5

Make sure you're getting enough sleep. Take time each day to exercise a little (even a short walk). These things will contribute to your energy level without caffeine.
In studies, the symptoms of completely withdrawing off caffeine can be dramatic. Half of all people going through withdrawal will suffer headache. As many as 13 percent of individuals are so impaired by the headache or other symptoms they cannot go to work. The symptoms can last between two to even nine days long, but it usually peaks early on.
"A simple stepwise approach can often eliminate the need for a fix without suffering the most severe withdrawal symptoms. In other words, cut back a little each week, perhaps by a half cup a week.
The experts advise to gradually reduce caffeine consumption over time by substituting decaffeinated or non-caffeinated products. In other words, mix in some decaf into the caffeinated coffee.

Answer 6

Get off caffeine first. It will take a while depending on how much you currently drink. I've never been a coffee fan, but I have quite soft drinks. The most I ever drank per day was about 3 32oz fountain drinks. I first started to get a smaller drink, like a 20 oz instead of the 32 oz. Then I went to a 12 oz twice a day. Then a 20 oz bottle once a day, then before I knew it, it would take me two or three days to drink a 20 oz. As I decreased my soda intake, I tried to increase my water intake. It took about 6 - 8 weeks for me. Once I was off sodas for a month or so I noticed my energy level was up.
Also, when I was weening myself off, I was really tired in the mornings. Try to get more sleep when you're going off caffeine, and find a replacement drink. If you drink coffee, try a hot drink, maybe a decaf coffee? Then go for some other non-coffee, non-caffeine drink, then maybe to water.
I've since gone back to drinking sodas, but I plan on quiting again soon. I feel so much better when I drink water or diluted juice instead of caffeinated beverages.

Answer 7

All the suggestions are great. What they are leaving out is telling you that once we start using caffeine, stimulants, sugar etc etc.... you take away from your body's "Natural energy" You don't have to cut your coffee out at all in fact you are correct about its effect on the digestion and also liver cancer not to mention that coffee is a natural bowel stimulant. To keep the coffee simply switch to decaf, use splenda INSTEAD of sugar (costs a little more than sugar but WAY better for you) On top of fresh fruits, veggies and excercise.Just changing your eating habits to 3 sensible meals, a couple fruit and/or veggie snacks with a brisk walk in the am and pm and your energy level should start to improve in no time.

Answer 8

In moderation a little coffee is fine. Why not just cut back a little on it and have only a small cup or two a day?

Your energy level is far more likely linked to the rest of your diet, how you sleep (lots of caffiene can ruin sleep, and overall health. Read up on the "glycemic index" theory about food. If you're not careful what you eat, your food will actually rob energy from you making you feel tired. Also when you do have your coffee, don't add sugar! That sugar makes your bloodsugar go straight up, then straight down... and the sudden down in bloodsugar can really make you feel wiped out.

Answer 9

Cut back on the caffeine so you're only drinking a cup a day. Be sure to eat breakfast, and also be sure that there's protein in your breakfast. Exercise and drink lots of water. These are a few ways you can start increasing your energy!

Answer 10

Something else to consider, I bought some green tea gum (Wal-Mart and Walgrens has it) that I use to perk me up, especially when I'm going to be driving a while. In this latter case, if it is a long way between clean restrooms I don't want to be tanking up on coffee and coke to keep me going when the miles and miles of miles and miles would make me drowsy. Then again, having a full bladder and intently searching the horizen for the next likely restroom stop or even a really large tree near the road will sometimes keep me wide awake.

Answer 11

1. Drink 64oz water per day. No exception. Water is the fuel for your body. No water is like a car without gas. Your cells must have water to burn chemicals and produce energy. No water = no burning, = no energy. DRIN KWATER. I don't know how much to stress this.

2. Workout. The stronger, leaner, more firmer your muscles are the easier it is for them to work. It's like a well-lubed machine. If they're unused they're cords and strings just hanging all in the inside of your body, a mess, hard to move, hard to get things right. Costs more energy. A lean body moves faster, and uses less energy... leaving more energy!

3. Find out YOUR sleeping habbit. Don't take what you've read. People don't know. Some people do excellent on 6 hours. Some people do greater with 10. Talk to your significant other and don't try to match their sleep. Go to sleep early for one week and write down how you felt when you woke up the next morning. Go to sleep an hour later each progressive week and keep writting it down. Look back on it after a few months, and find out when you told yourself you felt wide awake in the morning. Start sleeping at that ratio. Keep a journal of htis, it's very important!

4. Eat and drink protein and carbs.... be careful not to gain weight though... so don't make it protein/carbs only diet.... or to try to add extra sandwhiches of peanut butter or something. Protein gives you strength and inner energy, carbs gives you quickness and agility energy. That's the easiest way to describe it.

5. Try something that reduces stress. Stress, although we don't notice it because it builds so slowly, greately reduces productivity, energy, wants, needs, and everything in the world. When "stress" gets relieved people feel awake, like a child again, they are surprised how they look around and they notice how they haven't looked up or to the left and right for months. They feel bouncy and awake. They feel free again.... but it's so easy to fall back into stress slowly building up until the point you're dragged and just look straight ahead and the ground... don't worry about anything and just kind of go about your day.

Find a way to relieve stress, and you'll have your energy back.

Good luck