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☕ My girlfriend and I are nearing the finish line of a 30-day caffeine-free challenge. It was surprising to me how strong the withdrawal was even though I usually only drink one coffee per day. The first 2 days I had headaches and the first 5 days I was incredibly tired all day. It felt like an elongated jet lag.
Since I passed the withdrawals, I've noticed some intriguing benefits though. It's much easier to fall asleep and my sleep feels deeper, at least I wake up feeling well-rested. Beyond this, my sleep schedule adjusts much quicker (It's much easier to get back to my normal nighttime schedule if I stay up late on the weekends). I noticed this especially if I drank and stayed up late on a weekend night, I wasn't tired for multiple days, recovery was rapid. The only negative has been that I've been missing the morning boost caffeine gives me. Normally, I feel most productive during my morning coffee and I enjoy the state of alertness and focus it offers.
A co-worker (& fellow coffee drinker) asked me today what the experience has been like and I summed up the experience with "At night I'm happy I'm not consuming caffeine, in the morning I wish I was".
Despite the nice boost a morning cup of joe brings, I don't think I'll be rushing back to a daily habit of it. I'll start with one on a Saturday morning and try to hold off until the next weekend. I'll report back if this produces a happy middle ground. The message here is not only about coffee! It's to remind you to ask questions like "What would my life be like without coffee?"
Sometimes we get so caught up in our routine and think it's the only way to go but in reality, we just don't like change. If we give a proper opportunity to a new way of living, we might get surprised. That's why I love 30-day challenges—small commitments to see what benefits might be on the other side. A 30-day challenge is fantastic for eliminating habits:
- No caffeine
- No TV
- No social media
Or adding them:
- Read 10 pages per day
- Eat 1,500 calories daily
- Do 100 pushups every day
Our instincts will convince us to avoid change and never test potentially better ways of living but we can outsmart them by committing to big changes for small windows of time. Reply to this email if you'd like to give yourself a 30-day challenge and I'll hold you to it!
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