I drink several cups of tea a day. Not only because tea blends make getting in a large nutrient variety much more manageable, but because there are so many therapeutic benefits to drinking teas made out of plants!
One of the super fun things about teas is that they come in all sorts of caffeinated strengths. Additionally, other compounds in the teas can help you get pepped up for the day ahead or help you wind down for the night.
I even switch my teas up based on what phase of my cycle that I’m in. We recommend specific teas for each phase of the cycle inside our 4 Phase Cycle Detox. This can get so customized that it’s super fun to switch things up!
Here is a breakdown of how I use teas throughout the day, according to my energy levels and what I hope to get out of them:
Teas for Morning Energy
Tea can provide a pretty wide variety of caffeine levels. Some, like yerba mate, is pretty darn close to coffee in caffeine strength. Black teas come in at a bit of a lower level and green teas have even less.
For those reasons, I stick to drinking yerba mate and black teas right after I wake up. I do, however, often mix in caffeine free goodies, such as hibiscus, rosehip, ginger, dandelion root for all their nutritional and therapeutic benefits. Ginger is especially great at getting you up and going in the morning, without any extra caffeine!
Low Caffeine Teas for the Late Morning
Fairly often, I want something hot and energy-pepping sometime in the late morning. Chances are, you’ve been working for a couple hours already, and it’s nice to have the ritual of taking a break, getting up to stretch, and make up something deliciously energizing.
At these times, I usually stick to green tea, since it has a much lower amount of caffeine. Teas that make for an amazing combination with green teas include peppermint, rosemary, nettle, raspberry leaf, and lemongrass.
Caffeine Free After Lunch
I generally don’t drink any more caffeine after lunch, since I feel that the residual effects keep me from sleeping as soundly throughout the night. (This is due to the fact that caffeine has such a long half life.) So after lunch, I stick to caffeine free teas such as rooibos (my favorite!).
Roobois pairs beautifully with hibiscus, rosehip, lemon/orange peel, nutmeg, and lemongrass. Something a little more simple but absolutely delicious is rooibos brewed with cinnamon and/or raw cacao.
Sleep-Inducing at Night
I have a sleep-hygiene-friendly sleep ritual that I do pretty much every night. A big part of that is having a small cup of tea that is made up of herbs that are known to be calming and sleep-inducing. These teas include valerian root, lavender, and chamomile (especially chamomile!). To make things more fun and get some extra nutrients into your diet, I add in some of the other caffeine free teas (like rosehip, raspberry leaf) to these bedtime teas.
For my favorite pre-bed tea mix, follow this Tranquilizer Tea Blend recipe.
Happy tea drinking!
XOXO,
