NUTRITION

4 min read

I Quit Coffee For 2 Weeks and Here’s What Happened

April 25, 2018

Better latte than never, right?   Since I was 15 years old, every day without fail, I wake up and head straight to the coffee maker for a warm cup of joe. The second I sip on a freshly brewed coffee, I immediately feel at ease and can officially start my day. At this point, it’s actually difficult for me to understand how people function in the morning without coffee - and I didn’t bat an eye calculating how much coffee I've had in my lifetime, considering my 1-2 cups daily dose of this beverage for the past 10 years. If that doesn’t qualify me as a coffee addict, I don’t know what does! But I’ve finally been forced to confront my coffee addiction head on after joining a gym that recommends a two-week coffee detox in order to aid in weight loss and achieve an overall healthy lifestyle. I am a complete advocate of drinking coffee, it certainly has proven health benefits, but it also has some downsides too. Coffee excites your adrenal glands, the glands that regulate stress, which are already overused and overstimulated from the pressures of everyday life. Coffee also contains a variety of bitter compounds, such as chlorogenic acids, aliphatic acids and tannins, making it super acidic - which isn’t amazing for your body's natural pH state. With all this evidence in mind, and my burning curiosity to see what life without coffee was like, it finally happened. I gave up coffee for 14 whole days. And you, lucky reader, get a full breakdown of the insights that I gathered during this oh-so fun journey to coffee freedom! So buckle up, read below and enjoy the ride...you may even want to try it out for yourself.

 

Day 1: It’s Monday morning, the day I need coffee the most and I am sleepy to say the very least. Armed with a slew of green tea, I get to work and hope the effects of tea will be similar to coffee. (Boy, was I wrong.)  

 

Day 2: Still very sleepy, still trying to make green tea happen. I voluntarily go to bed at 9 PM, ‘Is this my new non-coffee bedtime?’, I wonder. Hate to admit it, but I slept better than I have in months.

 

Day 3: Slowly getting used to drinking green tea but also secretly wondering if my incessant yawning is annoying my coworkers. Am I too tired to function today? Yes, the answer is yes.

 

Day 4: Someone told me you start to feel less tired by Day 4, but they were wrong. I miss coffee so much. I have little motivation to get anything done and the smallest things are irritating me. Deeply regretting my decision to give up coffee, but hoping it will get better soon!

 

Day 5: I am finally starting to feel more awake in the morning, but I still miss my morning brew. I must have been a full-blown coffee addict. I’ve also noticed I am extremely hungry all the time, which doesn’t help with the irritability that I am also feeling. On a more positive note, I started whitening my teeth with whitening strips and they are working wonderfully!

 

Day 6: Doing anything I can to find a coffee substitute. Tried a Green Tea Latte at Starbucks and it tasted like plastic, although I did get an intense burst of energy from it.  In an effort to find something else to sip on, I spent two hours of my afternoon trying to buy matcha tea online, unsuccessfully. I will try any coffee substitute I can get my hands on at this point.  

 

Day 7:  Waking up today is a breeze, I feel alert and awake and ready to conquer the day without the help of coffee. Who knew?! Today, I can feel my body cleansing itself, and it feels great. I order a matcha latte at brunch and it was so delicious that I almost forgot coffee existed for a brief moment.

 

Day 8: As I got more sleep than usual over the weekend, I didn’t think about coffee too much this morning.  Now that it’s Monday, I am counting down the days until I can drink coffee again. I’ve realized I genuinely enjoy the taste and aroma of coffee more than the energy it gives me.

 

Day 9:  Getting used to my morning green tea. It’s refreshing and warm and I don’t hate it. Also, since my body has been in detox mode, my skin looks refreshed and brighter than ever. Who knew giving up coffee could have so many perks?

 

Day 10: What’s coffee? Not only do I not think about it, I don’t miss it as much. That’s not to say I’m not going to chug it when this is over - but it isn’t affecting my everyday life anymore.

 

Day 11:  Still on the green tea morning grind. Also, highly recommend whitening your teeth when you are coincidentally giving up coffee, the results are wonderful! (My ISSA 2 toothbrush has also played a role in my teeth whitening as well - thanks FOREO! )

 

Day 12: I seriously have more energy than I ever had before. My energy even lasts into the afternoon and I find myself not needing any caffeine stimulation at all.

 

Day 13: My body can definitely feel the difference since swapping coffee for green tea. I feel lighter and have a pep in my step.

 

Day 14: Counting down the hours until I can drink coffee again! I am so proud of myself for completing this two week detox. My skin, teeth and body feels amazing and cleansed!

 

Now that these two weeks are over, I find myself needing my daily coffee less and less. Also, no more headaches in the morning if I don’t have coffee right away. For all you coffee lovers out there, I know this sounds like a literal nightmare, but if I can do it, anyone can!

 

Comments

16 comments

MYSA user avatar
Anthony 07/05/2020
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Ive started it tthree days ago
Feels like Ive been beat up by a bunch of thugs
Headaches, body aches, sweats and dizziness .

Hope it subsides soon

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carly 19/05/2020
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Hi Anthony we feel your pain and hope you feel better for it soon

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Manoj 21/06/2021
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Reading this while I am on the 9th day without a cup of coffee.

Have been a regular coffee drinker since 22 years. Used to have headache by noon, on those days when I forgot to have coffee. I was feeling, it is almost impossible to give it up completely.

But here I am on 9th day itself, absolutely fine, no headache. First 2-3 days were kind of foggy, I was not usual active, but things improved over next 7 days.

And this is the first article which does not end with the writer deciding to drink coffee again. Have gone through some other stories where finally the writer would decide to re-start coffee addiction having decided to never give up again. lol.

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carly 24/06/2021
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Dear Manoj, thank you for having read the article and leaving this review. We are glad you decided to fight your addiction to coffee and noticed an improvement in such a short period. Please keep up and hold on to what you decided for yourself. We wish you a healthy and wonderful rest of the week! Best regards. :)

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Jesus 18/08/2021
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Great article!

I am on my third day of my break from coffee and focusing at work has been a challenge. Definitely foggy. This article gave me some hope. I think I’ve definitely been close to the limit of daily caffeine for the pay few months and I think it’s been doing me more harm than good. Hopefully after this 2 weeks journey I’ll lower my coffee doses or give up coffee for good. I miss it terribly

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carly 19/08/2021
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Hi there, we can completely understand what you are going through. Quitting our daily habits has never been easy, but you know how everybody always say "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger" and we are sure you'll be proud of yourself after this journey. Just keep going you're doing amazing!

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Mich 01/10/2021
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I’m a extremely coffee lover. I’m at Starbucks twice a day! I love the aroma of coffee, and most importantly drinking it. So satisfying especially in the morning after I workout. Amazing feeling. I have been two weeks without coffee. The first 3 days were a nightmare. My headaches were extremely unbearable , I felt fatigue , body aches. After the 3 rd day, I no longer felt that heavy craving. It will come and pass and I replaced coffee with nettle tea and chicory root. I am still off it but can’t wait to sip on my first cuppaccino with the froth and choc powder on top.

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Trish 10/07/2023
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Did she not no caffeine is in Green tea just lower amounts then what’s in coffee .

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Leonor 15/08/2022
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Hello,

You have posted a nice and informative article, I learn a lot from your post. Go ahead, keep up the good work.

Regards

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erika 17/08/2022
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Dear Leonor, we completely agree! Thank you for sharing!

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