Posted on 01/04/2016 8:08:11 PM PST by SamAdams76
"Harry, I'm going to let you in on a little secret: every day, once a day, give yourself a present. Don't plan it; don't wait for it; just let it happen. It could be a new shirt in a men's store, a catnap in your office chair, or two cups of good, hot, black, coffee."
Never thought I'd say this but after decades of having a little coffee with my cream and sugar, I started drinking my coffee black as midnight on a new moon.
This was no gradual transition. I did it cold turkey and on the spur of the moment. A couple months ago, I had taken the train to Grand Central and went to my usual coffee place where I buy my coffee and then usually jockey for space at the tiny messy counter with a million other people reaching for half & half, cream, sugar, spenda, honey, and all that other crap that most people put in their coffee.
Instead, I went straight to my office with a scalding hot cup of black coffee and as I situated myself in my office to start my day, I determined myself to drink the coffee as is.
It was not easy, I confess. The taste was incredibly bitter and I gagged a few times. But I forced myself to drink the entire cup black.
I then repeated the process later in the day and in subsequent days. Nothing but black coffee. Why did I do this? I have been on a strict diet since November and have a goal to lose all my excess weight by the beginning of summer. And I realized that all that cream and sugar in my coffee (2-4 large cups a day) was adding to my waistline.
After a week or two, I started to actually look forward to my cup of black coffee. As well, I cut my coffee intake to just two cups a day. One in the morning and one around 10am. Then I'm done with coffee for the day. I also cut my daily calorie intake by 400+ calories!
I am now burning fat.
Now for some mysterious reason, I have developed a craving for dark chocolate that I have at night. I'm talking 88% cacao chocolate with only 5 grams of sugar per serving. Dark chocolate (not the milk chocolate!) is actually very beneficial for your health and contains flavonoids and other vitamins and minerals that are great for the body. But most people cannot stand the bitter taste of this very dark chocolate. But having developed a taste for black coffee, I now find this dark chocolate irresistible and I have an ounce or two every night after dinner. I even pack it on business trips.
As a result, my blood pressure has also decreased to ideal levels of 110/65 where it used to be 140/90. My doctor says it is because of the lost weight and exercise (I walk at least 5 miles a day now) but also in small part because of the dark chocolate.
So black coffee and dark chocolate. There you go.
Since 5?
Reminds me of the Lady who would return her grandson to the mother who put her son through a horrible divorce. Just before dropping him off at 10 pm or so, she would give him a coke and candy bar for dessert, knowing he’d keep that woman awake for hours.
>> I can drink it any way it’s served to me but black is how I’ve taken it for years.
No muss, no fuss, instant gratification.
>> Lot of graveyard police shifts will certainly alter your coffee tastes...
In my Navy years (SSN) we got our coffee out of a funky chest-high stainless steel tower that held an upside-down jar of Taster’s Choice freeze-dried crystals. You’d push a button and the coffee station would whirr-whirr-whirr some instant coffee into your cup, then you pressed another button for hot water. If you can get used to drinking that crap (and I drank a lot of it) you can get used to drinking ANY kind of coffee! By comparison, Folger’s is gourmet.
I never tried bo cream.
Great quote to start your post. Always liked that one.
I actually did the same thing back in 2003. Back then I went from 304 to 197 pounds in six months doing pretty much the same routine I'm doing now (but the black coffee and dark chocolate is a new twist). Then I stupidly put it all back on over the next 12 years by bringing carbs back into my diet, eating bagels, pizza, breads and other high carb foods. I hope I learned my lesson for good this time. Excess carbs is bad. Even the "healthy whole grains" that the gub'mint tells us we should have 6-11 servings a day of in their stupid pyramid.
NOT Science, but there seems to be a correlation for me....YMMV
Heh!!!!!
Grapefruit is a fat-burner, too.
Coffee filters filter out the oils. A coffee press lets them pass through into the coffee.
You can have your delicious black coffee and it will be smoother and better tasting with just a bit more hassle than filling a typical coffee maker.
www.amedei.com
I’ve been recently gifted by Girl Friday with a years subscription to monthly gift boxes of Amedei’s assorted products . Is this the sort of dark chocolate you use or is yours a local product ?
Ghirardelli dark was always my go to for known quality chocolate . At work I just keep a few Hersheys Dark Chocolate Bars in my locker.
The Amedei and Ghirardelli brands are good too - just keep it over the 70% threshold or it becomes too much like milk chocolate.
The Hershey's dark chocolate has way too much sugar (21g per serving). You want to stick to under 10g per serving. When you get to the 85% cacao level, you are down to about 5g. That's the level I prefer to be at.
I was thinking you were in the city and blessed with the best sources ..... :o)
Will seek out and try the brands you mentioned. Thanks !!
I LOVE coffee. I use a french press most of the time.
After dinner coffee gets a splash of Crave Chocolate Chili liquor. YUMMMMM!
I was TOTALLY gonna post that....
I have always drank mine black out of sheer laziness.
If it’s not with drinking without adding contaminants to make it taste better, it’s not with drinking.
I’ve converted many people to black coffee by making them a really good cup of coffee.
with = worth
Have been drinking coffee black since college days. I discovered that the stomach discomfort I had after an all nighter drinking coffee to finish that term paper was caused by the milk reacting with the coffee, not the coffee itself. Sugar or any sweetener in coffee makes me gag. The little coffee beans you’re supposed to chew as you drink your sambuca after a fine Italian dinner? Ecstasy. Espresso? Bitter black sunshine.
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