Many of you have heard of green tea and all of its health benefits, and are wondering if it is a miracle cure for obesity. First things first, there are no magic pills. I wish it was as simple as taking a pill or drinking a tea but the fact of the matter is you still have to lose weight the old fashioned way.
The only true way to initiate weight loss is to burn off fat or eat fewer calories than your body burns. That being said, there are several benefits to a green tea weight loss plan. If you are willing to add green tea to an overall game plan of eating a well rounded diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables, and exercise than it can be helpful.
Green tea weight loss occurs because of the thermogenic properties of tea. What is thermogenesis? It is a process that causes your body to increase its metabolism, mostly caused by the caffeine in green tea. Coffee also causes thermogenesis mostly because of caffeine and also has many of the antioxidant effects that green tea has.
So why green tea over coffee? Coffee really can be quite beneficial, the problem usually occurs because we often add cream and sugar at which point the benefits of coffee are nullified. Green tea also seems to have a slightly better antioxidant profile due to the polyphenols in green tea.
So is green tea a shortcut to losing weight? The short answer is not really. Green tea is about as magical as blueberries but there is always somebody trying to sell you the secret, so just be wary. Green tea is a nice alternative to drinking plain water and it will help you burn some extra calories but it will only benefit those who add it to a larger idea of overall weight loss that includes eating correctly and exercising.