My Top Coffee Alternatives (that are *ALMOST* as good as the real deal!)

I just completed my own version of Dry July - but with coffee! I was still having caffeine in the form of my natural pre-workout most mornings, I just wasn’t following it up with 2-3 extra coffees afterwards (I honestly don’t know how I even got to that amount!). 
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I personally really needed this break and a chance to rest and break some bad habits and my clear addiction to coffee. Don’t get me wrong - I adore coffee. I love the taste, the whole experience, the routine, the pick-me-up. But I didn’t like that I started to feel permanently jittery, on-edge, nauseous and agitated because of how much I was having. It was kind of like a coping mechanism for me - and somehow I’d fallen into the very illogical logic of “let’s combat this stress with something that will cause me more stress”.

I’m not here to turn you off coffee (like I said, I still love it), I just really do think a lot of us could benefit from reigning in our caffeine intakes - and honestly, it’s not that hard when you’ve got so many other alternatives to drink instead! 
Moving forward I’ll still be having a few coffees a week (certainly not each day), and making sure that I do some strict caffeine-free weeks every now and then just to give my adrenals some TLC.

If you think you need to do the same, here’s some benefit I noticed within the first week of dropping coffee and halving my caffeine intake, as well as my favourite Not Coffee drinks that I genuinely enjoyed just as much as my usual coffees.

BENEFITS I NOTICED:
1. My digestion improved - cover your eyes if you can’t handle TMI, but because of my anxiety and nervousness, I am prone to diarrhoea and have just become used to having looser stools. I honestly didn’t expect cutting back on caffeine to have such a big impact on this side of things. Whether it’s the acidity of coffee or it’s impact on my anxiety, I did notice less bloating, less stomach gurgling, and I felt like my bowels were less irritated after meals ( I wasn’t constantly feeling the urge to empty them!) without my daily coffee.

2. More restful sleep - this one is obvious, but I don’t think I realised JUST how much of a difference I was going to notice. I’d become really used to having a light, often restless sleep - but within a week of cutting back of my caffeine intake, I was sleeping more solidly through the night, my time spent in deep sleep almost doubled and I felt so much more rested the next day. Now that I’ve dabbled in a few coffees again - I’m definitely noticing how it disrupts my sleep. My rule moving forward will be no coffee past 11am!

3. Improved body composition - this is something I noticed quite quickly, probably because my body is prone to holding onto water and gets inflamed really easily from stress. This month I managed to drop the most amount of water and I definitely felt less ‘puffy’ or swollen from inflammation.

4. More sustained energy - Not going to lie, the first week I felt flat and irritable, but then I noticed a huge shift in my energy levels as I kept going. I felt like I was waking up WITH energy - not needing it from a coffee - and I was working through the afternoons without a 3pm slump or crash.

MY FAVOURITE COFFEE ALTERNATIVES:
1. Loving Earth Drinking Chocolate -  I love dark chocolate, so of course I’m going to love drinking it.  This is the only good dairy-free hot chocolate powder I’ve found - but if you have any other recommendations, please let me know!  I love that it has all-natural ingredients and no added sugars, sweeteners or sugar alcohols.  I just mix 1-2tsp with a bit of almond milk - using my milk frother to create a creamy hot chocolate I can drink any time of the day. It's also really good in iced drinks!

2. DIY Protein Hot Chocolate - This is another great way to make your own hot chocolate, plus with the added benefits of a boost of protein. I simply mixed 15g chocolate pea or hemp protein powder with 1-2tsp cacao OR cocoa powder and 60ml warm milk and whisked to combine. Then I poured in boiling hot water and stirred again. If your protein has all-natural ingredients, it shouldn’t go too lumpy or curdle - I also suggest avoiding whey protein for this one!

3. Matcha - Matcha tea provides an abundance of beneficial antioxidants, and while it does contain a small amount of caffeine - it’s typically not as much as in a regular coffee. I found I only needed a 1/4 tsp to get a strong flavour. I personally prefer Matcha to Green tea (to me, it tastes creamier and less bitter!), especially when mixed with a scoop of the Before You Speak Vanilla Creamer to make a Matcha Latte.  My favourite brand of Matcha so far is Unmatchable - an amazing small Aussie business.

4. Homemade ‘Golden Milk’ -  This non-caffeinated hot drink is a soothing and satisfying blend of anti-inflammatory spices. I love cinnamon, so it’s not a surprise that I found myself making this a few times a week, especially to warm me up during Winter! Here’s how I make it: in a saucepan, combine 1 cup milk of choice with 1/2 tsp ground turmeric, 1/2 tsp cinnamon and 1/8 ground ginger. If you want it a little sweeter, add 1tsp honey or sticky sweetener of choice (e.g. agave or rice malt). Warm the mixture on low-medium heat, stirring frequently so it doesn’t curdle or boil. Once it’s heated through, pour into a mug and serve.

5. Naked Harvest Supplements Moon Mylk Hot Chocolate - I've raved about this a few times, but seriously - it's a game-changer.  Not only is it rich, creamy & indulgent, but it's packed full of adaptogens to aid with more restful sleep & overall recovery. You can either mix this with boiling water or your milk of choice. I would only recommend this at night though - as the ingredients truly will make you sleepy! My code is STEPHXO 

6. DIY Decaf Variations - Last, but definitely not least!  I seriously drank a variation of a Frothy Decaf every single day. Sometimes multiple times a day (probably defeats the purpose of ‘decaf’ but the intention was pure!). I just buy an instant Decaf from the supermarkets (The Moccona one), and rely on the sweetness and creaminess of the BYS creamers to make it satisfying & enjoyable. 
Decaf itself is honestly not that bad - people totally exaggerate how sad it tastes. You can definitely make it taste like your normal coffee - I promise! I just mixed 1 tsp instant decaf with 1 scoop Creamer (either vanilla or Chocolate), a dash of milk, frothed it up and added boiling water. You can also make Iced versions of both of these!
Note: the team at Before You Speak are releasing their own instant decaf soon!! In the meantime, I really do recommend their dairy-free, vegan & all-natural creamers as a staple to create caffeine-free creations! My code is Steph10. 

I hope that was helpful and gave you some ideas! Of course, you could also try things like Dandelion, Chai and other herbal tea alternatives.
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At the end of the day - coffee is delicious & so, so enjoyable, but it's not worth overdoing it if it's at the expense of your overall wellbeing. So if you do feel like you need a bit of a break - be rest assured that there's so many ways you can still get energy, have a pick-me-up and enjoy the ritual of a flavoursome hot drink.
If I can cut back, so you can you - I promise!
xx