60-Day Caffeine-Free Challenge

Caffeine (noun) – a crystalline compound that is found especially in tea and coffee plants and is a stimulant of the central nervous system.  

I’ve been drinking coffee since I was 12-years old.  Typically I would have 1-3 large mugs of coffee a day.  Sometimes I would get the jitters, have trouble falling asleep, or find myself extremely tired during the day, despite how much caffeine I drank.  When I was in college, a venti iced Americano with extra espresso shots from the campus café was my go-to.  

I’ve always heard different things about the benefits of coffee as well as the negative side effects. It’s a stimulant, which can make you more alert and productive. It’s also a diuretic (ew), improves endurance and a metabolic booster for those interested in weight loss, and is used to help with headaches and migraines. Caffeine is also correlated to lower risk of Type 2 Diabetes, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and some cancers. 

However, caffeine is also addictive, causing drowsiness and headaches, among other withdrawal symptoms. And depending on what else is in your caffeinated drinks, it can actually be quite caloric. I also found out that caffeine is a compound to be avoided if you’re trying to protect your eye health (after being diagnosed with macular degeneration at age 23, this is really important to me).  It’s also recommended that pregnant women have no caffeine at all, or drastically reduce their intake.

At the start of this year, I stopped drinking caffeine for 60 days.  I allowed myself decaf beverages, just because I’m in the habit of drinking something warm in the morning and to help with the transition.  My goal was to just see how it affected me after drinking it nearly every day for the past 12+ years and to try to not be so reliant on it after the challenge.   

In today’s blog post, I’m going to discuss my personal experience with this challenge, decaf and caffeine-free alternatives and other tips for the challenge, and my relationship with caffeine going forward.  

My Experience 

For the first 30 days of the challenge, I allowed myself to have one decaf beverage in the morning. There are very small amounts of caffeine in decaf beverages.  I would also have one Starbucks decaf beverage a week out of habit of going to Starbucks once a week as a treat.  There were also a couple times where I had a Baja Blast at Taco Bell (the only soda I ever drink — I hate the taste of other sodas), totally forgetting that there’s a bunch of caffeine in soda! So, needless to say, I didn’t completely go without caffeine for the 60 days, but it was me heavily reducing my intake. During the last 30 days of the challenge, I didn’t have caffeine at all.  

Luckily for me, I didn’t experience any major side effects like headaches or insomnia. This may be because I weaned myself from caffeine for a month prior to the challenge by only drinking one mug a day.  However, out of the entire 60 days, there were only 2-3 days where I felt completely drained during work hours and ended up taking a nap right after work.  I’m not one for naps, so this was definitely out of the ordinary for me, and I linked it to my reduction in caffeine.  I was also working out 4 days a week and doing a 30-day yoga challenge.  So, it could’ve been a combination of my exercise regimen and reduction of caffeine that caused the daytime drowsiness.  

Coffee alternatives and other tips

Before starting the challenge I discovered the beverage brand Blume (not to be confused with the body and skincare brand by the same name). Blume is a Canadian, female-owned, organic and plastic-neutral company that makes decaf and caffeine-free alternatives to espresso beverages and contain amazing superfoods.  The flavors I had during the challenge were Blue Lavender and Rose London Fog. You can check out my personal IG and the Soulstice IG to see how I use them! This post is not sponsored, by the way.  I just love the brand, so much so that I gifted some to my cousin for Christmas! 

Other alternatives I drank were Traditional Medicinals organic herbal teas (no caffeine!). I particularly love their peppermint, ginger & lemon, and raspberry leaf teas.  The latter is particularly good for menstrual cramps and pregnancy!    

I also suggest having a buddy during the challenge, someone who will keep you accountable. My boyfriend joined me in the challenge, which was particularly helpful because we live together! The challenge will definitely go more smoothly if your housemates who drink caffeine go through the challenge with you.  There’s less temptation that way.  If you live alone, hide away your coffee and coffee makers.  

Also, give yourself grace and don’t beat yourself up if you have a little caffeine here and there, but really try to keep it at a minimum.  This challenge isn’t about being perfect, but about listening to your body and changing your habits.     

Going forward

I’m writing this post a day after the challenge, and this morning I had two cups of French press coffee with oat milk creamer and Stevia.  I missed warm coffee in the morning, but gone are the days of 3+ caffeinated beverages in a day.  This afternoon, I actually felt the jitters and wired…after two cups!  

Going forward I will only have one serving a day and periodically take breaks from caffeine altogether.  During my caffeine breaks, I’ll stick to my tried and true decaf and caffeine-free options, or better yet, just drink water instead!  I will listen to my body and not be so reliant on caffeine.  If I feel the jitters, have trouble sleeping or find myself getting drowsy after drinking it, I will take a break.  

Considering coffee is one of the most traded commodities in the world and that the average American drinks at least 1.5 cups a day, chances are, you drink coffee too.  If so, I suggest trying this challenge out for yourself.  Whether you allow yourself decaf or go gung ho and cut out all caffeine (even chocolate — yes, there’s caffeine in chocolate), I think you could learn a lot about your dependence, notice how it affects you and be more mindful of your intake. 

If you participate let me know about your journey in the comments below or on Instagram! 

Caffeine