Coffee is often considered a harmful product, although it contains significant amounts of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and purine alkaloids. They improve metabolism and promote weight loss. But this statement remains controversial, because the drink also contains substances that cause obesity. In this article we will look in detail at whether coffee makes you fat and how you can lose weight with it.
Why does coffee make you lose weight and get fat?
Caffeine helps burn fat in the body. The increased hormone adrenaline compresses fat cells and releases them into the blood. This has a beneficial effect on lipolysis (fat burning). But it is impossible to lose weight only by drinking coffee.
To completely burn fat, you need physical activity. If you do exercises after a cup of strong espresso, fats will begin to break down faster.
The properties of caffeine promote weight loss, but you can also gain weight from it. This happens in several cases:
- Uncontrolled consumption of caffeinated drinks.
- Adding high-calorie foods (milk, sugar, syrups).
- Eating high-calorie and fatty foods as a snack.
Read more about the composition in the article “What you need to know about the calorie content of coffee.” We will deal with cases where coffee makes people lose weight or gain weight.
Sports assistant
Yes, coffee helps you lose weight, but fats are burned only when you exercise intensely and force your muscles to work. One cup of Americano, drunk 1 hour before training, will help the body be more resilient and use fats to produce energy during physical activity. The productivity of each workout after coffee is significantly enhanced, the results become better, and weight decreases.
Does coffee make you fat after a workout? It has been proven that coffee in combination with fast carbohydrates, drunk after sports, helps the body recover faster. It turns out that this does not make you gain weight, but also does not make you lose weight, but rather that lost calories are replaced. This is important for those who are not gaining weight and play sports only to tone and maintain good physical shape.
You shouldn’t drink coffee later than 3 hours before bedtime: insomnia, the desire to eat something that arises later - all diets are disrupted, and the question of whether coffee makes you fat no longer seems ridiculous. By the way, scientists have proven that it is also possible to gain weight from lack of sleep.
Uncontrolled coffee consumption
Accumulated fat is consumed
Depending on the content of substances that affect the body, when drinking espresso in large quantities, people gain weight or lose weight.
For example, chlorogenic acid accumulates in the body. This substance is often added to dietary supplements and weight loss medications, but everything is strictly calculated.
Chlorogenic acid interferes with the extraction of energy from carbohydrates, which causes the body to use up fat reserves and leads to weight loss.
Action of stress hormone
When there is excess acid, the speed of the intestines slows down and metabolism deteriorates. This leads to the accumulation of fats in the liver and throughout the body. Therefore, with frequent consumption of espresso, you can gain weight and even develop dangerous intestinal diseases, including colon cancer.
A person's consumption of more than 5 cups of coffee per day leads to an excess of stress hormone.
Chlorogenic acid in caffeinated drinks can cause excess cortisol hormone. This is a stress hormone. It is responsible for metabolism and metabolism. When it is in excess, the body experiences stress and appetite increases. Therefore, a person gains weight from coffee, but does not lose weight.
The effect of coffee on the body
Caffeine is the main element of coffee beans and contains virtually no proteins, fats or carbohydrates. At the same time, it promotes weight loss by activating processes in the body, including metabolic ones, and affects the acceleration of metabolism. Therefore, coffee can be used to reduce cellulite and is included in most diets.
Coffee is included in most diets
Coffee has been proven to help reduce hunger, and some people lose their appetite after drinking it. This effect on the digestive system is caused by caffeine, which can break down glycogens from liver reserves. These are accumulations of glucose, the energy component of the body.
Caffeine dissolves glycogen and releases glucose into the blood system. A signal comes to the brain that the body is saturated with energy and appetite disappears.
The drink is widely used to combat extra pounds.
When dieting, the help of coffee can be very noticeable:
- reduces daily caloric intake;
- helps not to go beyond the boundaries of the established diet;
- charges the body with energy, especially necessary for those who are on a diet due to limited food intake;
- increases muscle endurance before training;
- can have a diuretic effect.
But, despite its benefits, caffeine can promote the production of the stress hormone cortisol, when it increases, the body begins to actively absorb glucose, which makes you want to eat something, especially sweets.
During stressful situations, when drinking a significant amount of coffee, you may gain weight due to the fact that you start consuming sweets or fast food (which also contains a considerable amount of sweeteners).
Does coffee with additives make you fat?
Milk and cream
Now let's look in more detail at whether it is possible to gain weight from coffee. Nutritionists say that a pure drink will not change anything in the body. But if you add additional products to expresso, you can gain extra pounds.
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This undesirable effect occurs from coffee with milk or when cream is added to espresso. At the same time, calorie content increases sharply, which contributes to weight gain.
Effect of sugar
When drinking coffee with sugar, the body does not break down fats in the stomach, but receives fast carbohydrates from the sweet drink. This leads to obesity by increasing blood glucose levels. A person who drinks three cups of espresso with sugar a day risks developing hyperglycemia.
When losing weight, you should not add syrups, liquor, chocolate, or ice cream to your drink.
Adding spices
Coffee with cinnamon, star anise, cardamom and other spices has a positive effect on the body as a whole and helps to lose weight. Supplements improve metabolism and the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract, strengthen blood vessels, and suppress appetite.
For example, cinnamon balances blood glucose and speeds up metabolism. Its smell suppresses cravings for sweets.
What you need to give up
The more extensive and varied the list of additives, the more harmful the drink will be. Therefore, if you read on the menu that coffee contains syrup, liqueur, chocolate, ice cream, cream and the like, then definitely move it to the side. It is better to give preference to a drink without additives.
Does coffee with milk make you fat? This depends on the fat content of the latter, as well as on the amount of drink consumed. If it's one cup at breakfast and the milk is skim, then there's nothing to worry about. Popular coffee varieties (cappuccino and mocha) can contain up to 500 ml. For a person losing weight, this is one real meal. As reviews say, after such a tasty treat, your appetite only works, while dark coffee dulls it.
Types of coffee that can make you fat
Glyase
This recipe is prepared on the basis of espresso with the addition of ice cream. Sometimes syrup, whipped cream, milk, liqueur are poured into it, or just sugar is added. The glaze itself is quite nutritious, but when you add similar ingredients, its calorie content increases several times. Frequent consumption leads to coffee making you fat.
Latte macchiato
There is a high content of milk with high fat content (more than 3.2%), as well as the presence of milk foam or whipped cream. The ingredients of this drink are high in calories. If consumed frequently, they cause kidney disease and the development of glaucoma.
Moccaccino or chocolate latte
Moccaccino consists of espresso, hot chocolate and whipped cream. Each of the ingredients contains nutrients that promote weight gain.
Three in one
Instant drink in 3-in-1 sachets contains coffee, cream and sugar. It is in demand due to its ease of brewing. But it can cause obesity and develop diabetes, kidney and heart disease, as well as cancer. This is because there are no natural ingredients in the composition.
Real cream has a short shelf life, so manufacturers use chemicals that are poorly excreted from the body. As a result, metabolism is disrupted, which leads to obesity and cancer.
Coffee beans are an expensive product. To save money, manufacturers use low-quality robusta grains or add ground acorns, chicory, and chestnuts. This harms the digestive system.
Soluble
This coffee contains 60% carbohydrates - sucrose and cellulose. They will not allow you to lose weight and can cause obesity, especially if you drink this drink frequently.
Overeating on pastries and sandwiches
Many people like to wash down high-calorie foods with hot, strong coffee, thinking that this will not affect their figure. The drink has a positive effect on metabolism, but if consumed with fatty foods, it will not help a person lose weight.
Does coffee make you fat or thin?
First, let's clarify whether it is possible to gain weight from coffee in principle. The answer is clear: you can’t, if you drink this drink “naked”, without any additives. The fact is that the calorie content of black coffee is only 2 kcal per 100 grams, so even five cups a day will not make a difference. Another question is that drinking so much black coffee is very unhealthy.
So, you definitely won’t get fat from coffee if you follow a few simple rules:
- Drink this drink in its pure form, without sugar or milk. It is advisable to take bean coffee, expensive, and of high quality. When losing weight, you can also drink instant coffee; it won’t add extra pounds to you, although it won’t bring any particular benefit - after all, it’s a surrogate.
- Drink coffee in moderation - a couple of cups a day is enough.
- Do not drink it with food (this applies to any liquids): ideal use is half an hour before meals.
- If you don’t drink coffee at night, you run the risk of insomnia, which means you’ll end up going on a late night tour. Simply put, you can drink coffee in the evening while losing weight if you are sure that it will not affect your sleep pattern.
We've sorted out weight maintenance, but is it possible to lose weight with coffee? Oddly enough, yes: coffee is a great assistant for sports.
Is it possible to lose weight from coffee if you follow a diet based on this drink? Yes, but it’s worth considering that the coffee diet is almost the most cruel of all. And it certainly goes against the principles of proper nutrition. But it can be used as an “ambulance” when you need to quickly lose weight in a couple of days. While on a diet, you can drink coffee – grain coffee, without sugar and other additives, 5-9 cups per day, and also eat dark chocolate – no more than 150 grams per day. You can also afford mineral water. The last cup of an invigorating drink is no later than six o’clock in the evening.
In total, you can follow this diet for a maximum of three days. Then we advise you to switch to a more gentle diet, which does not involve any strict restrictions in terms of drinks. For example, on a buckwheat diet you can drink coffee, on a Maggi diet (both in the egg version and in the curd version) and so on.
If you are wondering whether you can have coffee on the Dukan diet, the answer is again positive. This drink is initially included in the list of permitted products, and at all phases. Especially a lot of coffee is allowed on the Dukan diet during the “Attack” - as well as tea, water and other liquids. True, if you suffer from hormonal disorders or kidney failure, the diet and fluid intake on the Dukan diet must be adjusted, but it is better to read more about this on specialized forums.
Causes of obesity from coffee
Even if you enjoy espresso without high-calorie foods or additives, don't go overboard. It is not recommended to drink more than 3 cups of strong coffee per day . Only then will the drink not harm a person and improve metabolism, due to which the process of losing weight will begin.
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It is not recommended to drink espresso instead of food or on an empty stomach. This drink can satisfy your hunger, but only for a couple of hours. Then the appetite will increase significantly, which entails uncontrolled eating of food. You should also avoid drinking caffeinated drinks before bed.
Caffeine causes insomnia, which leads to diabetes and hormonal imbalances. The consequence of these diseases is obesity.
How to drink the drink so as not to gain weight
Tips on the number and time of day
Let's talk about whether coffee makes you fat if you don't control the number of cups you drink. To avoid gaining weight, we do not recommend drinking more than 3 cups a day (300-400 ml).
Drink the drink in the morning. Drinking coffee in the evening excites the body at the wrong time, because it’s time to get ready for bed. And most importantly, a cup of espresso a couple of hours after taking it will increase your appetite, which is extremely undesirable after 18 hours if you want to maintain your figure.
strictly forbidden to drink strong coffee on an empty stomach . Substances contained in the drink irritate the mucous membranes of the digestive organs. As a result, gastritis of the stomach develops and heartburn appears.
Physical activity and water balance
But you can safely drink espresso before training or exercise. This will not only give you strength, but also help burn fat and improve blood flow. But this must be done no later than 30 minutes before physical exercise.
To drink coffee after training, you need to wait a couple of hours, since the body is already in an excited state. Otherwise, caffeine will cause nervousness and a desire to calm down by eating.
In order not to gain weight from a coffee drink, you should maintain water balance in the body. Coffee is a diuretic, so when drinking it, you should drink as much water as possible to maintain balance.
How does coffee affect weight?
Is it possible to gain weight from coffee if you do not drink it with sugar and cream? No, on the contrary. Coffee dulls appetite and stimulates urination. Both of these points do not give impetus to getting better. If you drink a drink before meals, your lunch portion will be much smaller than usual, and the urge to urinate will help you get rid of excess fluid, which is important for a person’s overall weight.
The calorie content of 100 g of green grains is 0, roasted - about 2 kcal
The most valuable component of coffee beans is chlorogenic acid. It is this that improves carbohydrate metabolism and stimulates the body to break down fats stored in reserve. Additionally, the acid normalizes blood sugar levels, promotes the removal of toxins, and improves the functioning of the cardiovascular system. For these reasons, pure coffee drink is included in the list of desirable dishes in many weight loss diets and its consumption is not only possible, but recommended. It's hard to get fat, but easy to lose weight.
Are there people who get fat from coffee? There are, and these include all those who are terrified of gaining even a few grams of weight, and therefore are wary of any product, even such a low-calorie one as coffee. In this case, you gain weight for psychological reasons, not physiological ones.
To the question whether coffee makes you fat or thin, you can give a negative answer; it is difficult for a normal person to gain weight from it. Anyone who loves it and for whom it is not contraindicated can drink it in moderation and not abuse tasty additives.
Coffee diets help you lose weight
Attention to contraindications
The dietary properties of coffee are based on its ability to burn fat, as we described above. Nutritionists note increased production of gastric juice. And this is one of the reasons why a drink made from coffee beans should not be drunk on an empty stomach.
When preparing diets, the diuretic properties of coffee and the effect on metabolism are taken into account. Individual physical activity also influences whether a person loses weight on a coffee diet or not.
If you have heart disease, ulcers or hypertension, you should drink the drink with caution. And for people with an unbalanced psyche, completely abandon coffee-based diets in order to avoid nervous disorders.
Everything written below is for informational purposes and before using any remedies or diets, you should consult your doctor.
Three day diet
This strict, effective diet involves drinking coffee and dark chocolate for three days. It is prohibited to add sugar, sweeteners and any other sweeteners to the drink, as well as milk, cream, syrups, high-calorie and sugar-containing products.
The chocolate consumed must contain a high percentage of cocoa (at least 50%). Every day you should drink up to 4 cups of espresso (100 ml each) and up to 150 g of dark chocolate. It is recommended to drink at least 2 liters of still water per day.
Seven-day diet with dark chocolate
Designed for 7 days, this diet is less strict and allows you to consume low-fat and low-calorie foods in small quantities.
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Every day you need to drink no more than 4 hundred gram cups of strong coffee without additives and eat 150-160 g of dark chocolate.
Two week diet
It is recommended to consume dark chocolate (150 g) and 3 cups (100 ml) of espresso every day for two weeks. The diet includes 300 g of lean meat, one fruit (preferably an apple or orange) and dietary crispbread instead of bread (8-10 pieces).
Is it possible to lose weight on coffee without sugar and why?
Sugar is a high-calorie product, due to which the nutritional value of the drink increases significantly. Glucose increases appetite, as a result of which a person will want to eat after sweet espresso.
If you follow a proper diet, which includes a cup of coffee without sugar, you can lose weight.
Is it possible to lose weight on coffee with milk, and in what cases?
Espresso with full-fat milk or cream will not help anyone lose weight, but just the opposite.
But if you add skim milk to it, this is possible. With lactose-free milk, you can not only give the drink a pleasant taste, but also improve its beneficial properties.
Diet on coffee with milk
This diet lasts about a week. During it, you should drink up to 3 cups of espresso with skim milk a day, eat lean meat without salt and spices, as well as fresh fruits and vegetables.
Here are approximate proportions per day:
- Breakfast – chicken fillet without salt (up to 300 g), a cup (100 ml) of unsweetened espresso with milk.
- Lunch – vegetable salad without salt and oil (200 g), or green apple, boiled egg, espresso.
- Afternoon snack – apple, espresso.
- Dinner – carrot and herb salad (200 g).
Green Coffee Diet
This is a gentle diet, if followed correctly, a person will lose weight slowly. The diet includes green coffee. You can read more about its properties in the article “What is green coffee”.
The diet lasts a month. A person can eat fruits, vegetables, lean meats, and low-calorie foods.
Menu for the day:
- Breakfast – 2 boiled eggs, a cup of green coffee (100-150 ml).
- Snack – apple.
- Lunch – chicken broth, vegetable salad, boiled chicken fillet (up to 150 g), a cup of green coffee.
- Afternoon snack – fruits, vegetables, a cup of drink.
- Dinner – boiled fish fillet (up to 200 g), vegetable salad.
Such a diet not only helps to lose weight, but also cleanses the body of toxins and harmful substances, improves the condition of the stomach and skin.
