Giving Up Coffee

I just realized that I need to update my "5 Simple Pleasures." I have, as of two days ago, given up my morning cup of coffee. For no other reason than I wanted to see if it made any difference in how I feel. So far the only thing I have felt is a splitting headache but I don't know if that is from caffeine withdrawl or the radical change in the weather. It is over 20 Celcius today. Too hot for November, no one knows what to wear. Of course my kids never gave up their shorts so now they are insufferable, "Gee Mum, you said we had to wear mitts and hats to school."

But back to my coffee detox. While we were away last week I was having all kinds of stomach pains which usually accompany me on long trips in the car and lots of rich food and drink but when we got to our friends' house in Maine I noticed that Chris was drinking straight out of a bottle of Bragg's Apple Cider, taking a swig before we went out to dinner. I asked why and he said it was all a part of his getting healthy routine. Last spring at age 45, Chris suffered a stroke. It was a real wake up call for a guy who has always been a big man and lived life large in every way. But since then he has recovered and has made a real effort to change his lifestyle. He still enjoys eating out and fine wine but he is taking care of himself so that, as he said, "I am around to watch my children grow up."

So I thought maybe I'd try the apple cider shot and amazingly it seems to be working, I took a swig three times a day for the rest of our trip and my stomach was fine. Now that we are home again I thought that maybe I'd try to make some other changes and cutting out coffee is one of them. Maybe not forever but just to see if after two weeks I notice any difference. I am not one to go whole hog about anything, diet or exercise but I did miss my Pilates classes and tried to do some stretching each day, especially after four or five hours in the car. And now that the time has changed and it is dark at 4:30pm it is harder to get motivated to do anything other than climb into bed and watch TV. So if I can give up coffee will I have more energy? I'll have to survive the headaches first.