Coffee, there has never been a more ubiquitous, loved, hated
and myth provoking natural beverage in the history of mankind. We have all
heard the stories, in one ear they are telling you all the wonderful things
about coffee; it’s an antioxidant, it will help you lose weight, and boost your
exercise performance. Into the next ear they are whispering of caffeine
addiction, high blood pressure and cancer!
With all this conflicting information small wonder a lot of
people steer clear of coffee because they just don’t know what to believe. A
lot of people I know talk about addiction to coffee, (technically it’s the
caffeine and not the coffee that gets you addicted). However coffee is much
misunderstood and today what I want to do is identify the key myths around it
and clarify them once and for all. These explanations on the properties,
benefits and health risks of coffee consumption are based on actual scientific
work and not what your Bro at the gym said. So please, sit back get yourself a
cup of coffee (that’s right!) and get educated on the good and bad of this
natural beverage so you can educate yourself, family, and friends.
Thank you and do have a wonderful day!
1. SCIENTISTS DON’T ACTUALLY KNOW IF COFFEE IS
GOOD OR BAD FOR YOU
TRUE!
:
This is unfortunately true and I just had
to get it out of the way first. Studies have been conducted that find that
coffee drinking is associated with lower levels of non alcoholic liver disease
, type 2 diabetes and developing Parkinson’s disease. At the same time you will find studies that
link coffee consumption with increased risk of heart disease and
gastrointestinal problems! Some studies have found out that if some people
consume as little as 2 cups of coffee a day, they become jittery and
disoriented while other studies have found that some people function at their
best with about 6 cups of coffee in their system! Confusing isn't it? Well it turns out some people absorb coffee
slowly and some absorb it fast and it seems to benefit fast absorbers more than
slow absorbers. Another problem is that most coffee tests are conducted on
caffeine and not coffee itself. Caffeine is highly concentrated and the body
will not react to it the same way as it does with coffee, so tests are not
entirely accurate. The bottom line is that science cannot declare coffee an
angel or devil just yet, we do know for sure that it is a wonderful
antioxidant, even better than dark chocolate. So my advice is this; if coffee
makes you feel good and gives you an energy boost go on drinking. If it makes
you shaky, cut back and enjoy your occasional mug. It will do you a world of
good.
2. COFFEE HELPS WITH FAT LOSS:
TRUE!
:
Yes! Finally some good news! Coffee
drinkers please feel free to rejoice, you were right after all. When coffee
enters your system, it’s bad news for fat. Coffee belongs to the group of fat
burners known as fat releasers (read my previous blog post)and they act on fat
by speeding up the process of making it available for the body to burn off
during exercise etc. this fat is then used as fuel and this aids fat loss.
Please beware more is not always better, too much coffee can have the opposite
effect of increasing a stress hormone known as cortisol and this will actual
increase not reduce your fat storage capability. Also to really gain the fat
burning benefits of coffee, take it black. All that sugar and milk you are
dumping into it, you are just adding more calories to you system.
3. COFFEE DEHYDRATES YOU DURING EXERCISE
FALSE!
:
Every gym junkie and exercise enthusiast
including me would swear that this is true, but you can’t beat hard science.
Everybody knows that coffee equals a heavier, sweatier workout, however
scientists could not find any proof that coffee consumption caused exercise
related dehydration as opposed to just consuming water. The more intense your
workout, the more water you lose as sweat and as long as you are drinking
enough water you will be ok. Coffee only gives you the ability to workout hard,
the rest is up to you. If you feel dehydrated it’s probably because you didn’t
have enough water in your system to start with. So please drink up guys.
4. COFFEE HELPS BOOST ATHLETIC PERFORMANCE
TRUE!
:
Okay, the secret is out and science now backs what people
have known for a long time, coffee
intake can help boost performance in and out of the gym. Coffee does
this by stimulating your central nervous system and causing your body to
produce adrenaline. This in turns increases your ability to endure pain and
stress i.e. a hard run or an intense workout. Most regular coffee drinkers may
notice this feel good effect after 2 cups while a non drinker may feel it after
just one. It must be said however, the benefits of coffee are seen more in
endurance sport; running football etc. than in weight training. So to get the
coffee high, start running.
FINALLY:
You can reap plenty of health benefits from coffee,
personally I love it and never workout without taking a cup. However, it is not
a solution to all health issues and it might not be suitable for everybody. It
has its positives and negatives and these can manifest in different forms to
different individuals. So my take is this, drink coffee if it makes you feel
good and improves your health and ability to exercise. If it gives you the
jittery shakes reduce your intake but still enjoy it.
I would love to hear your views so
please leave your comments, you can also follow me on twitter:
@yemiilugbuhi
. Thanks you and have a wonderful day.
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