Kicking Coffee Cold Turkey: 3 Alternative Drinks To Wake You Up In The Morning And Help You

A little bit of coffee in the morning isn’t a bad thing. It even has some merit when it comes to improving your health.

There are studies that suggest that coffee can be beneficial in preventing mental decline. However, it is also something that can become unhealthy and some people prefer not to over indulge or even to cut out coffee all together.

You might be someone who finds themselves a bit jittery after drinking too much coffee. And it’s a wise idea for you to take a break, at least for a while, and try and reset.

Maybe you want to limit yourself to a single cup of coffee at work. Perhaps you want that mid-day pick me up and you really can’t skip the coffee.

So, what I’ve decided to do here is outline a few alternatives to that morning cup of coffee.

There are some things that are great for people who want a pick me up! And there are also ideas for people who want something light and refreshing.

All of them are going to be devoid of caffeine, so it can help you push through the morning without the artificial stimulation that comes from caffeine.

 

Green Juice with Lemons: Kale, Spinach, or Leafy Greens

You know my first suggestion was going to be a juice made with kale or spinach. Right? Well, obviously.

But besides my personal preference for talking about leafy greens, there are a lot of reasons why you would want to juice leafy greens and have them in the morning.

First, spinach and kale are full of vitamins and antioxidants. So, it’s better than taking a supplement with a glass of water. You’re getting nutrients from whole foods without eating a big bowl of salad. Which, face it, doesn’t look to enticing in the morning.

What I’d suggest is to juice your favorite leafy greens, such as spinach or kale, and then add some water or coconut water to it to make it a bit lighter. I am not a big fan of switching over from coffee to raw green juices without a bit of a transition.

Your body needs some time to adjust. And make sure you don’t go the cooked juice route. When you buy a juice in a bottle from the supermarket you are buying cooked juice. It’s cooked to prevent it from spoiling or having bacteria. Nevertheless, you’re dealing with cooked juice that has virtually no nutrients.

You can even take your juice on the go.

The upside to making a green drink  in the am is that it’s going to provide you with natural energy without the caffeine. Plus, when you juice your own juice instead of buying it, you save mucho denerio.

 

Filtered Water: Flavored with Lemon or Ginger

OK, so maybe a green juice first thing in the morning isn’t what you are looking for. Perhaps you are more of the type who would like a simpler, more refreshing drink but you find water boring.

And there are plenty of people out there who do find water boring. I happen to like water, but I respect that not everyone does. So, with that in mind I suggest that you try and make that water taste a bit better.

There are a few different ways you can do this. Two of my favorites are to use lemon or ginger.

Lemon can be used by juicing it or simply adding sliced lemon to the juicer.

Simply slicing a lemon and adding it to the water is obviously the fastest way to get the lemon flavor into the water. If you’re going to go this route…then you can get a single lemon and keep it in the refrigerator for several days.

However, what I prefer is to actually juice the lemon. And you do not have to peel a lemon to juice it. In fact, the flavor will be all the more intense if you do not peel the lemon. I have a whole article in fact on whether or not you can juice a lemon without peeling it.

A Morning Protein Shake-Kick Coffee Cold Turkey!

Finally, for the folks who really want to switch it up, there is a morning protein shake. There are a few different ways you can approach this.

I’ve covered this extensively before, so I don’t want to go into too much depth about this, but suffice to say, a protein shake is great at providing energy long term. You will not get that mid-afternoon crash that so many people suffer through.

I like to make a simple protein shake with protein powder and water. I don’t mess around with mixing fruits or vegetable juice too often.

So, something simple like a Whey protein or a Vegetable protein if you are vegan and some water.

 

Helpful Hint

When mixing protein powder and water, use room temperature water. The protein mixes faster in room temp water. You can then chill it in the fridge before drinking.

 

If you are looking to make a more substantial morning protein shake, and you’d like to actually make a smoothie…then I’d recommend that you get a blender. It is worth the investment even if you only make a protein smoothie once a week.

The cost of buying a smoothie from some juice shop can be outrageous! There have been more than a few articles written in recent years detailing the expense and cost associated with younger peoples food budgets.

That one time blender purchase can recoup the investment rather quickly. If you don’t happen to have a blender, here’s a good overview of the best blender for protein shakes.