We don't trust tea drinkers!

My friend Kolleen and I have a funny inside joke about people who don't drink coffee: WE DON'T TRUST THEM.
Who wouldn't like coffee? It's so warm! Coffee flavor is yummy! We live in a coffee mecca! And, who doesn't want a little boost in the morning? So those who don't drink coffee are CRAZY! And we don't trust them.

But now I don't drink coffee in the morning.Uh oh.

Since I am trying to figure out the culprit behind my headaches, I had to give up my beloved morning coffee. Coffee is, like, my only vice. I hardly drink, I eat healthy, I don't eat much sugar, but I love my morning coffee! Anytime anyone has suggested I give it up for every day use, I scoff. "Not my coffee! I refuse! That is my one vice in life!" Let me tell you...it was one of the hardest things I have had to do. Which was actually also troubling to me! I only drink 1 cup of coffee in the morning, so I should be able to give it up without to much of a physical (mental is another story) problem. Right? Wrong!

I was so tired and irritable and blah! For about almost a week! I was worried about myself. I didn't think it was the caffeine.

Anyway, the whole point is that I was told I could have green tea. I don't like green tea! It makes me feel funny in my head. I know. What doesn't these days?

But one of my coworkers was talking about how she was going to get a Matcha Green Tea Latte one afternoon. What the heck was that? She was RAVING about them and how she makes them at home. She was describing all of the benefits of Matcha green tea and how she just craved them sometimes! So, she went to Starbucks and I did some research. Turns out, she knows what she is talking about! Here's are a couple of tidbits:

8 Wonders of Match Green Tea
Benefits of Matcha Green Tea - Dr. Weil

Now before you go to Starbucks, or your local coffee cart to buy a Green Tea Latte, know what you are buying. Many places only have traces of matcha in their drinks, have additives, LOTS of sugar, and tout it as good for you. These drinks are not what I am talking about. Real Matcha Green Tea is used in Japanese tea ceremonies and gives you many more benefits than the Green Tea Lattes that are being made for us. Educate yourself before you jump on the bandwagon!

So I found some at Whole Foods and started making my own (after I got over the sticker shock!). Oh...my...goodness...Did my outlook improve! Holy Cow. I had my energy back but in a very different way.

This is not the green tea I had been having in tea bags. This was a creamy, lovely, much richer version and I did not get the caffeine rush, or the dehydration (I found later), or the stiffness during yoga! (Which I found later as well). At the time, all I knew was that I felt great! My energy was back! And I had something better than watered down clear tea to greet me in the mornings.I had added almond milk to it as well as hot water, shook it up in my mason jar from my smoothie that morning, and drank it. THIS WAS MY NEW FAVORITE THING!

If I was Oprah, everyone would be drinking this by now! It would be on "Oprah's Favorite Things Christmas Show" and everyone would get a free tin!!

And then I remembered this article. This article threw me for a loop a few weeks back about how most of the tea we are drinking is full of pesticides because of the way tea is grown, processed, and bagged:

The Truth About Tea

Which makes total sense to me. If we are conscious of the fruits and veggies we put in our body because of the pesticide use in our country, why would we not be conscious of any plants/herbs we put in our body? Why would our growing of tea be any different?

So I am in search of a reasonably priced, respectively sourced, ORGANIC Matcha Green Tea. So far I've tried "Got Matcha". I'm impressed with the quality, but the price has a bit to be desired. If you become a member, it is 1/2 price, but I haven't done that yet. I like that it is organic, I like where it is sourced, and I like the company.

So now that I can start having coffee again, I am only having it on the weekends! I do not want to be reliant on coffee to get my day started. Green tea has less caffeine and makes me feel WAY better throughout the day than my coffee did. I feel like I can have another cup in the afternoon, if I like as well! So many more benefits. So many less consequences for me. Green tea is actually alkaline in the body, rather than creating an acidic environment, which, we are learning, creates and atmosphere for disease to thrive. This is something I am trying to avoid!

More questions and answers about Matcha!

That is my spiel about Tea! Please read the article on the tea we drink. Choose wisely. We are all voting with our money and our choices! The more we purchase responsibly produced, healthier for us items, the more we will create demand.

Thanks for reading! Now go drink some Matcha Green Tea!

Be well,
Mandy