Coffee gets a lot of attention in wellness talks, and caffeine specifically is often one of the first things a nutritionist might advise against when energy and vitality are imbalanced.
In Chapter 5: FUEL, we explore how habits influence energy just as much as food itself. Coffee habits can offer ritual, comfort, productivity, connection, or simply be delicious. Instead of asking whether coffee is good or bad, this article explores 5 tips to make your relationship with coffee more intentional.
1. Mindset: Coffee as Ritual, Not Guilt
Whereabouts on the below spectrum do you lie regarding coffee…
Are you hooked and need that coffee to wake up, like it’s the lifeline that makes you a reasonable human? i.e., Coffee has its claws embedded deep in you. OR are you a perfectly reasonable human who LOVES coffee and literally looks forward to going to bed just so you can wake up and enjoy the F out of your coffee? i.e., coffee makes life better.
Two people who drink the same amount can think of their caffeine hit in different ways, and it, therefore, has a different effect on their body’s health. If your mind can make you sweat and make you smile, why wouldn’t your thoughts about your coffee habit also impact your physiology? So if coffee isn’t hurting you or anyone in your life, then set the intention to pour love and gratitude into this habit, and it will love you back.
On the other hand, if you’re addicted and hate the fact that you’re addicted, if coffee/caffeine gives you anxiety or worsens anxious feelings, if your consumption drains your bank account and impacts your sleep quality, then read on for shifts to become more intentional about your coffee consumption so you don’t have a little devil on your shoulder with each cup.
2. Timing: Create Boundaries Around Your Coffee
Timing is everything, as they say! Many people have an acceptable window of time for coffee, such as morning until noon, or only before 5 pm or else it ruins their sleep. Keep this up if you do! And if you don’t, try adding a time cut-off for your coffee consumption.
Even if it doesn’t seem to affect your sleep, try cutting yourself off at 2 instead of 10 pm for other health reasons.
- Prevent waking to pee as much at night.
- Gentler on your kidneys and adrenal glands (and thus anxiety levels).
- Opportunity to switch to healing herbal teas instead… expanding your taste horizons!
If you’re currently in the habit of drinking coffee all day and into the night, this switch makes your enjoyment more intentional. By cutting yourself off at a certain hour, you get MORE hours of anticipation for the next day’s cup, which therefore makes it taste better! The longer you look forward to it, the smoother the taste.
The mindset here is:
‘I GET TO have coffee tomorrow,’
rather than
‘I DON’T GET TO have coffee this afternoon.’
3. Hydration: Water Before Coffee
When having your morning coffee, ensure you time it intentionally AFTER a full glass of water. I find the easiest way to implement this habit is to leave a 500 ml glass full of fresh filtered water on my bedside table. This way, I can sip overnight if I get a dry throat, and as soon as I sit up in the morning, I drink most of it, then carry it to the kitchen and finish it while I make coffee. By the time coffee is ready, I already have my second glass of water poured.
Dehydration can make you feel sluggish, and often we reach for coffee to perk up, but water sometimes does the trick! The intent is to alternate coffee with water throughout the day. Be mindful of this habit, and you’ll naturally reduce your caffeine intake (and save it for that nice little morning me time).
If all that water consumption makes you annoyed because you’ll have to pee a lot, caffeine is the reason you pee a lot… Not water. If you trade out coffee and have water instead, you’ll feel thirsty and excrete urine at a regular, healthy amount. Interestingly, caffeine does not make you dehydrated… it just increases urination frequency. A bit of a riddle if you ask me, but that’s what the science says.
4. Quantity: Reduce Without Restriction
If you’re likely never giving up coffee, join the club. The goal doesn’t need to be perfection.
The goal might simply be moving from:
“Dang… I’m addicted,” to “Damn, this brings me joy!”
Start by asking:
- How much coffee do I currently drink?
- How much would I like to drink?
- What’s one tiny change I could test?
Some ideas:
- Make a smaller pot
- Hide the equipment after your first cup
- Use a thermos so one serving lasts longer
- Reduce volume before reducing frequency
Small changes count.
Make It Extra
Not extra quantity… Extra experience.
Try:
- Blending in coconut oil or butter for texture
- Adding cacao, maca, or mushroom powders
- Using higher-quality beans
Spend Quality Coffee Time
Have you ever finished your first cup while multitasking and immediately poured the second?
Try spending 10–20 minutes simply enjoying your coffee.
This could be different for everyone and day by day. Add what feels sacred… Music. Reading. Fresh air. A nice mug.
Your first cup often becomes more satisfying when you fully experience it.
Alternate With Other Enjoyable Drinks
One cup of coffee… one cup of water. One cup of coffee… one cup of herbal tea. One cup of coffee… one sparkling water. One cup of coffee… you get the idea.
Ensure you alternate with non-caffeinated beverages (maybe even sprinkle in a decaf coffee here and there). Also, try to avoid pop and juice. The goal is to look forward to water and herbal tea as much as you do coffee, not to replace it with sugary (unhealthy) alternatives.
If you’re a herbal tea newbie, try rooibos. It brews nice and dark like a cup of coffee, but is naturally caffeine-free.
5. Blood Sugar: Balance Coffee with Protein Food
Caffeine and other stimulants cause a spike in blood sugar (imagine a kid who eats cotton candy and is bouncing off the walls). ENERGY SPIKE — followed by an energy crash. Adults usually direct this energy spike towards work or chores rather than running around screaming… but it paints a picture nonetheless.
Did you know the crash that follows the spike is often what causes you to crave another cup later on? Your energy is gone, and you’re in a mental or physical slump, so you want something to bring you back up.
If it’s not caffeine, other cravings and habits that bring back that momentary spike include nicotine, sugar such as donuts/pastries, and alcoholic beverages. A lot of people are addicted to the blood sugar high just as much as the substance that brings them there. Bring awareness to this fact, and WHEN you consume items that SPIKE your blood sugar, simply pair them with items that BALANCE your blood sugar, which are protein and fibre foods (and breathwork too, by the way).
Therefore, intentional coffee consumption looks like… Coffee and eggs on toast. Coffee and a protein shake. Coffee and nuts and apples. Coffee and oatmeal with peanut butter.
Coffee AND a BALANCED BREAKFAST. Or coffee AND a balanced snack.
Sugary breakfast cereal and milk, pastries or white toast, and other simple items with little or no protein are not the best for balancing blood sugar. These foods break down quickly in digestion to become sugar rapidly, which thus spikes blood sugar as well.
Even apples and bananas are low in protein, but because of the natural fibres, they will help balance blood sugar more than coffee alone.
Test this in your own experience and use your intuition once you’ve compared the feelings you get.
Day 1: Try having just coffee.
Day 2: Have a piece of fruit and coffee within the same hour.
Day 3: Have coffee and a protein-containing breakfast such as eggs.
Then ask yourself:
Which version actually supports my energy longer?
Your body is data.
And next time you crave an afternoon pick-me-up, consider whether your blood sugar might be going through a yo-yo. Can you make a warm cup of soothing tea, have a protein snack, go out for a little fresh air, or even take a cat nap?
Self-Observation Prompts
Reflect on:
- When do I reach for coffee?
- What am I hoping it provides?
- Do I crave coffee or the ritual?
- How does my energy feel 2–4 hours later?
- Does coffee support me, or compensate for depletion?
In Conclusion
Don’t worry about your coffee habit… just find balance within your mind and in your actions so you can joyfully go through life with intentional coffee consumption. Create a healthy time boundary for your enjoyment, make sure you stay hydrated, moderate your amount, and balance your blood sugar to curb cravings. And enjoy the F out of your coffee!
If this sparked reflection, Chapter 5: FUEL explores energy, habits, nourishment, and learning to understand your body’s feedback without rigid rules.
