One substance that you might already be taking in on a daily basis is caffeine.

Caffeine is talked about quite frequently in the diet industry due to the fact that it’s going to provide some special fat burning properties that can help you achieve a faster level of success.

So what is caffeine all about? What do you need to know about this everyday ingredient that you often use to start your day with?

Let’s go over the basics about caffeine.

How Caffeine Impacts The Body

The very first thing that you need to realize is how caffeine is going to impact your body.  Caffeine is first going to provide benefits by helping to boost your metabolic rate, allowing you to burn more calories all day long.  This means faster overall rates of fat loss and an easier time maintaining your body weight once you aren’t dieting any longer.

In addition to this, it also serves as a stimulant, increasing your heart rate and breathing patterns, which can give you extra energy throughout the day.  Those who supplement with caffeine will often find they have an increased sense of alertness and energy for about five hours after consumption.

Furthermore, caffeine also serves as an antioxidant in the body, so it can help to fend off free radicals, ensuring that you maintain optimal health.

What You Need To Be Aware Of

While you may be thinking that caffeine is nothing but a good thing, there are some things you do need to be aware of.  First, caffeine can cause a bit of withdrawal when you stop using it.  Those who use caffeine quite heavily will find that upon coming off it, they experience headaches, feelings of anxiety, and just a general sense of being unwell.  It is addicting, so you have to watch your intake.

In addition to that, caffeine can cause increased level of anxiety and stress in some individuals, especially those who are prone to experiencing these problems as it is.

Sources of Caffeine

People will always assume coffee to be the only real source of caffeine but did you also know that tea is a great source?

Here are the top teas with high caffeine amounts:

Black Tea: 23 – 110 mg
Oolong Tea: 12 – 55 mg
Green Tea: 8 – 36 mg
White Tea: 6 – 25 mg

Caffeine and Cortisol Levels

Finally, caffeine can also increase the levels of cortisol in your body, which is a hormone that’s excreted when you feel threatened.  This in turn can encourage the body to store body fat in the abdominal region, so as you can imagine, isn’t exactly the best of things for you at this time.

Cortisol can also cause a loss of lean muscle mass, so is really just all around not a good substance for anyone on a fat loss diet.

If you start using caffeine slowly at moderate dosages however and be sure to keep your intake at the lower level, then you can avoid many of these side effects and reap the benefits that caffeine has to offer you.

So next time you feel like you need a pick-me-up or a boost to your energy level, consider caffeine. It really can offer you some great benefits that you’ll feel almost immediately.

Alright, now I want to know what type of coffee everyone drinks. Everyone has their personal little toppings they put in them…do you sprinkle cinnamon? Add protein powder? I want you to share below 🙂

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