My jaw dropped when I saw this fact a while ago.  Did you know that there is a drug that 85% of us use every single day?  If you’re one of them, I have a little assignment for you. 🙂 No, I am not going to ask you to quit.

It’s caffeine … and we use it to get going in the morning, power through workouts or work, and keep us going through the mid-afternoon slump.

The upside of caffeine?

• It gives you energy
• It boosts your alertness and ability to concentrate
• It can come in beverages filled with antioxidants that have health benefits (ex: tea!) 

That’s all well and good …But there are a few downsides.

• It can take up to 10 hours to clear your system – which means it can also get in the way of relaxing – and falling and staying asleep.
• You can build up a tolerance after your body gets used to it, which means you might need to drink more of it to get the same effects.
• It can raise your blood pressure.
• It can make you “wired-tired”: jittery, overstimulated, and tired at the same time.
• It’s linked with migraines.
• It doesn’t mix well with some medications and health issues. 
• Suddenly quitting caffeine can give you headaches and leave you feeling tired, achy, and even nauseous.

This leads me to that little assignment I mentioned earlier.  Today, take some time to ask yourself: 

Are you using caffeine – or is it using you? 

If you are feeling jittery and stressed, having a hard time sleeping, getting headaches, or finding that your tolerance for caffeine is increasing …Or maybe you feel like you NEED it to keep going through the day – it might be time to reevaluate your caffeine use.

Just something to think about! 

REFERENCE:

• https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/15496-caffeine-how-to-hack-it-and-how-to-quit-it

Rob is the owner and founder of Fitness Lifestyle Personal Training.

He has been training for over thirty-three years; seventeen of those years as a personal trainer helping others reach their goals.