Many people who have tried intermittent fasting for weight loss reported it as effective and inexpensive.
If you are a coffee lover embarking on intermittent fasting, you might be wondering what you can add to your coffee.
For example, can you add cinnamon to your coffee while intermittent fasting?
Yes. Fortunately, coffee is allowed during the fasting period, and yes, you can add cinnamon to your coffee while intermittent fasting to add some flavor.
One teaspoon of cinnamon powder is 6 calories while one tablespoon is 19, both of which fall well under the 50-calorie limit, which means it is unlikely to break your fast.
Coffee is allowed in intermittent fasting even during the fasting period because it contains zero calories.
You don’t even have to limit the amount of coffee you take because it will not break your fast.
If you would like to spice it up and add variety to your coffee experience, all-natural ground spices are allowed with one catch.
The total calories in the beverage must be below 50, or you’ll risk breaking your fast.
Spices contain calories but in small amounts, the calories are negligible.
Research supports this and shows that adding small amounts of spices maintains your fasting streak.
Natural spices you can try out on your coffee are cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, or nutmeg.
Alternatively, additives like plain cocoa and Himalayan sea salt can also be added to coffee with no caloric consequences.
These two options also contain almost zero calories.
Artificial, zero-calorie sweeteners like Stevia can also be used during your fasting period because they contain no carbohydrates and will therefore not break your fast.
However, they should be avoided because they have been shown to increase cravings.
What Can I Put In My Coffee If I’m Intermittent Fasting?
If you’re relatively new to intermittent fasting, you’ll be happy to know that you can totally have coffee.
However, what you can put it isn’t as clear cut.
As a general rule, ground spices are fine as long as you use moderate amounts.
Coconut milk and cream, salt, almond milk, and vanilla extract are also good to go as long as the beverage remains below 50 calories per serving.
Unsweetened coconut milk and coconut cream both contain calories.
However, in small amounts, the carbohydrates are so low that they are not likely to affect your fast.
While salt is an unusual addition to coffee, some who have tried it post glowing reviews.
Adding a pinch of salt into your coffee will not break your fast.
Cinnamon and nutmeg are also excellent additions to give your coffee some flavor.
Unsweetened almond milk also contains calories but they are so few that it isn’t likely to break your fast.
Lastly, if you add a teaspoon of vanilla extract to your coffee, it is not going to break your fast.
Both coffee and cinnamon are two things are promote weight loss.
Coffee contains chlorogenic acid which has fat-burning properties, and also caffeine which can help boost your metabolism and help you burn fat faster.
Cinnamon contains thermogenic properties that can help to speed up your metabolic rate, resulting in more calories being burnt throughout the day.
In addition, cinnamon helps to keep a person’s blood sugar levels steady throughout the day, which prevents spikes in hunger leading to over-eating and consuming unwanted calories.
When consumed together, cinnamon and coffee have some surprising health benefits.
One benefit is that it can help balance blood sugar levels, as studies have shown that it helps to slow the rate at which the stomach empties after meals, allowing for a more gradual absorption of sugars into the bloodstream.
Cinnamon also has anti-inflammatory properties, making it ideal for those suffering from sore joints or muscle pain.
Perhaps most noteworthy is its potential ability to reduce cholesterol and triglyceride levels, helping to keep your heart healthier in the long run.
Will Cinnamon Kick You Out Of Ketosis?
No, cinnamon will not kick you out of ketosis.
Cinnamon is low in carbohydrates, which are the culprits that usually kick you out of ketosis, which is why cinnamon is allowed in the ketogenic diet.
Cinnamon is an amazing spice, not only for its delicious flavor but also for its potential health benefits.
Studies have shown that cinnamon has a positive effect on blood sugar levels, helping to regulate both your body’s insulin and glucose functions.
Cinnamon also contains strong antioxidants which can help protect cells from oxidative damage and improve overall metabolic health.
In addition, research has suggested that cinnamon may act as a natural anti-inflammatory and have some antibacterial properties as well.
Does Cinnamon Break A Fast?
100 g of cinnamon contains 80 grams of carbohydrates and 261 calories.
If you take a large portion of cinnamon, it will break your fast.
On the other hand, if you limit your cinnamon to 1 gram or below, then the amount of carbs you take is not significant enough to kick you out of your fast.
This is because 1 gram of cinnamon contains only 0.8 grams of carbohydrates which is negligible.
It also depends on how strict your fast is.
Generally speaking, if your fast forbids the consumption of all food, then eating cinnamon is not recommended.
However, if you’re following an intermittent fast that allows for foods with very low-calorie content, then there’s no harm in having a bit of cinnamon in your tea or coffee.
By understanding what type of fast you’re undertaking and how it affects what you’re allowed to eat, you’ll be able to make informed decisions about which foods, if any, are acceptable for your particular regimen.
First, you need to make sure you’re using the right type of almond milk.
Unsweetened almond milk is the best option because sweetened almond milk usually contains sugar which can break your fast.
Next, you need to take a maximum of 1/3 cup. 1 cup of unsweetened almond milk contains 1.5 grams of carbohydrates while 1/3 cup contains less than a gram of carbohydrates.
Therefore adding 1/3 cup of almond milk to your coffee is enough to give you the color and taste of white coffee without the risk of breaking your fast.
If you consume close to 50 calories during your fasting period, you run the risk of breaking your fast.
It might be better to abstain from honey altogether when you are fasting and go for non-calorie sweeteners instead.
I’m Chris Watson & the Founder of EatForLonger.com. I’m a food and wellbeing enthusiast researching and sharing foodstuffs and simple food-based concepts, such as fasting and clean eating.
I hope it inspires you to make tiny changes to what you eat and when you eat while optimizing your healthspan and all-around well-being.
Read more About Me here.