Does Coffee Make You Gain Weight?
When you’re trying to lose weight, and the scale seems like it’s refusing to budge, it can feel like the universe is conspiring against you. You cut out sweets, you started exercising more, but you still aren’t seeing results. We understand how frustrating this can be, and we also know that sometimes certain foods or drinks can be secretly making it difficult to lose weight by adding more calories than you realize to your diet. Here are a few common foods, drinks and food ingredients that do just that. Their metabolism slow-down effects often fly under the radar and without knowing it, you’re adding more calories to your diet that could make it harder to reach your goals.
does coffee make you gain weight
If you’ve ever been told that you can’t lose weight because you drink coffee, you may have been confused and disappointed. After all, what’s the harm in enjoying a nice cup of coffee? There is a common misconception that coffee makes people gain weight, but in truth, most people who drink coffee actually lose weight. The reason for this is that regular coffee on its own doesn’t contain calories.
Does Black Coffee Affect Weight?
If you drink coffee black, then you don’t need to worry about it making you gain weight. Black coffee itself has almost no calories, so it won’t likely bring your weight up. In fact, some studies even show drinking coffee can help you lose weight because of the caffeine in it. The caffeine in coffee could suppress your appetite, helping you eat less. Caffeine may also boost your metabolism and help you burn more calories all day long, even if you aren’t exercising.
Do Milk and Sugar In Coffee Contribute to Weight Gain?
Coffee drinkers, beware. Depending on your coffee routine, your daily intake may be doing more harm than you think. With standard coffee shop preparation (two 8-ounce cups with 2 ounces of cream and 2 teaspoons of sugar) you could be adding an extra 300 calories to your daily diet. This is equivalent to eating a piece of cake for breakfast. The calories from coffee can add up quickly if you drink it frequently throughout the day and don’t pay attention to how much you are drinking. The sad news is that most people are unaware of the amount of extras they’re adding when brewing a cup of joe.
Including dairy in your daily diet might make you feel like you’re having a healthy meal, with all the calcium and extra protein it provides. But as you might have suspected, even “whole” milk is calorie-laden and makes it hard to lose weight .
How To Make Your Coffee Healthier
A lot of people who want to lose weight like to hide it in coffee or tea. They feel like coffee makes them look more sophisticated at work, and sweet tea helps fill them up so they don’t eat too much at lunch. But if you aren’t a fan of iced coffee with whole milk and enough sugar to feed a beehive all day long, you might be confused about how to improve your diet and still stay within your weight loss goals.
Many people make the mistake of trying to go from creamy, sugary coffee straight to black. The change is so drastic that they don’t know how to cope and they wind up back where they started in a few short days. Quitting cold turkey is the wrong approach.
Some people have to have their coffee really sweet, but others prefer their coffee black, with no cream or sugar. If you’re one of those people who has always avoided adding anything to your coffee, I hope to raise your awareness about why it’s better for your teeth if you make that small change.
If you are a fan of cream in your coffee, you might want to learn about whole milk, 2% milk, 1% milk and non-fat milk. Most people prefer whole milk but there are some risks associated with that. However, replacing cream with lower fat options is not as difficult as you may think. It’s simply a matter of finding substitutes in your daily diet.
Conclusion
Coffee is a hot topic when it comes to weight loss and health. But, water is actually the beverage you should be focusing on for weight loss and overall health. Coffee has essentially zero calories and doesn’t contribute to weight gain. Coffee’s caffeine content actually has the opposite effect and helps people lose weight. However, if you like your coffee with cream and sugar, you could be adding the same number of calories to your diet as eating a piece of cake, depending on how much cream and sugar you take.
