I normally am a tea person. I love different types of tea, but my favorite is masala tea.
I normally just order either a matcha tea latte with soy milk or a chai tea latte. I don't experiment much. However, since my job requires me to stay up at night, I looked at other options to help me stay awake.
From July to September I would eat at my job. However, soon after I realized that it was getting too much and was unhealthy to be eating that late. I also began to count the number of calories that I ate using the MyFitnessPal app. Going on the app made me realize how many unnecessary calories I was consuming and how many of them were coming from the day. In my dairy entries, my breakfast and lunch would be less than 500 calories but then my dinner and snack would take up most of my calorie consumption.
I realized right then and there that I needed a change. I then talked to my nutritionist friend who gave me, what I think in my opinion life-changing advice. She provided me with alternatives for the certain food I enjoy. But most importantly, she showed me what I was failing to admit to myself. I was just eating late at night because I was treating eating like an activity and because I wanted to stay awake, not because I was hungry.
I replaced my soda with water, included more protein in my diet, but most importantly I tried to eliminate sugar. I started getting cold-brew. Honestly, in the first two weeks, I struggled so much with it. Even stevia didn't help make the bitter coffee sweet.
I was adamant. Every time I would wait in line at Starbucks, I would order a tall cold brew for um… two months. Even though I would want a frappe or some other drink, I would force myself to get a cold brew. That self-control was hard, but I convinced myself that it was something that must be done.
Now, I can no longer get a caramel macchiato. It's just too sweet. I now 90% of the time crave cold brew, especially on Thursdays. I also realized that if I stuck with something adamantly, I can make a change. I just don't have to give up.
I now look to bring new and different changes to my life. But most importantly, I hope to not give up because I know that if I can drink bitter cold coffee, I can do anything.