Do you have a certain weight loss goal, and do you like to drink coffee in the morning and evening every day? Do you think this habit of yours will help you to achieve your goals? Coffee for weight loss: How does it help? Is it good for you?
Well, beyond its ability to kickstart the morning, coffee has granted attention for its potential role in weight loss. How?
Let’s explore this article and find the science that lies behind this beloved beverage and whether it can truly be a secret weapon that can be your weight management tool or not.
What Is The Connection Between Coffee And Weight Loss?
Coffee and weight loss have a complicated and fascinating relationship, which has piqued many people’s interest.
Exploring this link unveils an intriguing synergy between coffee consumption and its potential impact on shedding those extra pounds.
1. This Beverage Can Suppress Your Hunger/ Appetite
Coffees are rich in chlorogenic acids, and they are said to suppress your hunger or appetite if you drink them in the morning or evening.
Consumption of coffee can make you want to eat less, and that results in a relatively lower intake of calories every day.
Different food items contain various amounts of calories, and when you eat them, you consume those calories.
However, coffee reduces your urge to eat anything, and thus, you are stopped from any more calorie intake, which is good if you are looking for ways to manage your weight or calorie intake.
2. Low-Calorie Intake And High-Calorie Burn
You can cut off the combination of coffee, milk, and sugar if you want to lower your calorie intake. Instead of milk, you can add coffee to hot water and drink black coffee.
This way, you will be able to save around 60 calories per cup. Some coffee brands have some exciting flavors infused in them, so you will not need to add any extra ingredients, and you will consume only 4 calories per cup.
So, it is a win-win situation for you because you will get enough calories while caffeine will burn the excess ones while satisfying your taste buds.
3. Increases Your Metabolic Rate
Consumption of caffeine can help you increase your metabolic rate, which measures up to around 3-11%. When your metabolism rate is higher, you can easily digest the food and burn extra calories and thus manage your weight efficiently.
A higher metabolism rate stimulates your central nervous system and thus helps you burn the calories that are not needed by the body.
Hence, it is great for you to drink coffee if you want to lose weight while enhancing your metabolism.
4. It Helps To Break Down The Fats In The Body
When you drink a cup of coffee, it directly sends signals to your fat cells and tells them to break down the stored fats.
There are three types of fats in your body- white, brown, and beige so caffeine breaks down the white fats and utilizes them to provide energy to do the work.
After the fats are used by the body, the excess fats that are left behind are expelled from the body through physical excretion.
Since caffeine helps to break down fat in the body, it is one of the main ingredients included in the composition of several dietary supplements and pills that are made especially for weight loss purposes.
5. Can Satisfy The Sweet Tooth
The original taste of roasted and ground coffee beans is quite bitter, and thus, people add sweetening agents like sugar to their drinks.
But sugar has a high amount of calories and can hinder your weight loss plan, so what to do in such cases? Well, some coffees have natural sweetness, so you do not need to worry about the taste of your beverage at all.
These coffee powders have chocolate extract that does not have any extra added sugar in them. So this makes the coffee flavourful while maintaining its low-calorie count, and thus, this does not affect your body weight in any way.
6. Enhances Your Overall Performance
If you have a habit of drinking coffee in the morning or in between your work breaks, then you must have noticed that after having the sip, your work performance gets enhanced.
This is because caffeine boosts your energy and burns more fat from your body that is stored in the muscles. You should drink a cup of coffee 30 minutes before going for an exercise routine as it will enhance your performance, and you will not get tired quickly.
This way, you will be able to work out a little longer than usual, and this will burn more calories to achieve your weight goal.
You can also add coffee powder to your pre-workout protein shakes as it makes them more delicious and low-calorie drinks.
7. Has Antioxidant Properties
Coffee is the powerhouse of antioxidants, and that helps in your weight loss journey. Consuming coffee daily can protect your body from harmful molecules that are also known as ‘free radicals’, which can damage your body and health.
According to a survey, about 79% of antioxidants can be consumed by humans from beverages alone rather than food items.
Among the different antioxidant foods and drinks, coffee is the top source, providing around 64% of the antioxidants to individuals.
This is the reason why you’d see that several Western countries have higher consumption of coffee in their daily life.
Conclusion
So, the conclusive answer to the question- Is coffee good for weight loss- yes, it is a good source that can help you to lose weight.
However, you must have a holistic approach while including coffee in your daily life, as too much caffeine is not good for your health.
Although there are potential benefits of coffee for weight loss, such as improving metabolism, promoting fat breakdown, providing antioxidants, and helping burn calories, you must always be mindful of the consumption.
So, by pairing your coffee rituals with a balanced diet and regular physical activity, you can savor both the flavor and the potential perks that coffee brings to your weight loss journey.
References:
- Addicott, M. A. (2014). Caffeine use disorder: A review of the evidence and future implications.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4115451/ - Tabrizi, R., et al. (2019). The effects of caffeine intake on weight loss: A systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials [Abstract].
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30335479/
