Green tea

pfenixa
pfenixa Posts: 194 Member
edited September 21 in Food and Nutrition
I'm sure alot of you have at least heard the idea of weight loss benefits from drinking green tea. I recently became interested in it but...I don't like tea. Well, regular tea I don't like, but I've heard people drinking the Liption green tea with citrus doesn't taste like regular tea. Looking at the nutritional info I'd probably stay away from the bottled Lipton tea because of all the sugar, but I notice they have a bunch of green teas to brew and "on the go" including one with pink lemonade or blueberry pomegranate. I don't know if "on the go" would mean it kinda isn't really decent tea, kinda like how chocolate milk mix isn't the same as buying a jug of chocolate milk. :tongue:

So does green tea taste like regular tea? Are any of the Lipton teas mixed with other flavors any good? Or do you guys know any other brands of green tea that are pretty good?

Replies

  • lu123
    lu123 Posts: 247 Member
    I really like Twinings green teas, they do a few really nice ones that I would recommend to you. Green tea with cranberry, green tea with pineapple and grapefruit, green tea with apple and pear they are all REALLY delicious.

    I personally don't think they taste like regular tea, but I take normal tea with milk so its a bit different.

    Hope it helps :smile:
  • jillcwhite
    jillcwhite Posts: 181 Member
    my favorite right now is Diet Snapple Bret Michaels blend - 5 caloires for 8 oz & 0 carbs
  • carrieberrie
    carrieberrie Posts: 356 Member
    I love green tea. I fill a sun tea jar and let it brew for a very hours in the sun. I slice lemons and put it in with the tea while it is brewing, gives it a nice flavor, then I sprinkle some 0 calories sweetner in it and its so refreshing!
  • heidijean
    heidijean Posts: 1
    Hi there,
    Green tea comes from the same plant as regular "black" tea, but is less processed. I find it has a lighter taste and is more 'smooth' (if that makes sense) :) Of course, the longer you steep it, the intensity of the flavor increases. From my research regarding green tea and weight loss - it sounds like the quantity of green tea would need to high (like more cups that one would/could typically drink in a day) to see any benefit, and some of the commerical green teas (especially those that are mixed with other flavors) may not provide a large amount of the ingredient that is supposed to affect metabolism. (as opposed to actual ground tea leaves). However, green tea is a low calorie, low caffeine liquid option, which would count as part of your fluid intake and may help with weight loss just in the sense that you may choose it in replace of a high-calorie drink or in b/t meals to help curb your appetite!
  • rose1617
    rose1617 Posts: 469 Member
    I like to keep on hand the lipton diet green tea with mixed berry. it's really good.
    It does have aspartame in it rather than sugar and to me it's only good cold. If it sits out for any amount of time, I lose my taste for it.
    But that's probably just me.
  • danibabs
    danibabs Posts: 298 Member
    I'd say try out some different varieties of green tea. I don't drink coffee so I've grown into a bit of a tea addict. And since I normally drink black tea it took a little while to develop a taste for green. But there really is a huge variety with a wide range of flavors that are in the tea itself, rather than artificial additives and sweeteners. My absolute favorite is Kusmi tea. They have great quality and variety. They have a delicious strawberry green tea, as well as jasmine, almond and rose for pretty non tea like flavors. As far as a good one to pick up in the grocery or convenience store, Snapple diet green teas have 0 cals and 0 sugars and have a very very light flavor.
    White tea also has many of the same benefits of green tea and is usually lighter and sweeter. Actually black tea is good for weight loss too, along with a host of other things, there's just not as much research done as on green tea. Mate is a type of black tea that has as much caffeine as coffee if that's something you're looking for, and I think it tastes like Guinness.
    If you've only had tea from mainstream companies, it's kind of like the only beer you've ever had is Bud Light. Explore a little bit and I bet you'll find somethign you like that's less processed and really awesome not only for your metabolism but for your whole body.
  • I try to drink between 3 and 5 cups of green tea a day. I brew it hot and then drink it as fast as I can. I don't really care for the flavor but I do think that it has helped my metabolism. One article I read said that for a woman about my size (5'6", 150 lbs), drinking a cup of green tea can cause the body to metabolize about 40 extra calories. So on the days that I drink 5 glasses of green tea, that's basically the same as doing a workout that burns 200 calories (I don't count these as my exercise calories or anything like that, and I still try to exercise every day regardless of how much tea I drink. I just like knowing that they may be being burned). Plus there are all the antioxidant benefits. One study showed that concentrated green tea shrank cancer cells in lab rats. So I'm going to keep drinking it, and I'm going to make it a point to drink as much as I can every day.
  • pfenixa
    pfenixa Posts: 194 Member
    If you've only had tea from mainstream companies, it's kind of like the only beer you've ever had is Bud Light. Explore a little bit and I bet you'll find somethign you like that's less processed and really awesome not only for your metabolism but for your whole body.

    It's more about the type of tea rather than who made it. Yeah, Bud Light tastes different from Natural Ice, but they still have the same basic taste underneath it all. All ales or lagers have a basic taste associated across any brand. That's how it is with any black tea I've tried. I don't like the basic taste of tea and variations or added flavors don't help. Judging from what heidijean said, if they're from the same source then I figure I probably won't like green either, lol.

    I figure I'm still going to give at least one a shot. Hey, if it's good for you why not? Only live once. :wink:
  • I stopped drinking coffee four days ago. It is so much easier than I thought! I replaced my 3 usual cups with 1 cup of green tea.
    Not only would I have three cups, but always an ice coffee in the afternoon! I actually feel so much better! I was tired of feeling like I "needed" my coffee in the morning. Plus, I can't drink black coffee. I would have to add 1/2 and 1/2 and a sugar substitute.
    I also have given up diet soda all together. My new caffeine is exercise! It makes me feel so much better than any amount of caffeine can. I am drinking a lot of water. In the afternoon I am having Trader Joe's unsweetened green tea with mint. It comes chilled in the dairy section. I really love it!
    The green tea in the morning, and sometimes before bed, is from a brand called Bentley. I picked it up at TJ Maxx. It has acai berry in it. It is one of those fancy brands.
    I feel so much better. So alive in the daytime! I am a type 1 diabetic, so these changes are so important to me.
  • hot2b86
    hot2b86 Posts: 19
    I love green tea and have been drinking it for years now.. Its an every morning thing for sure and more when I can. I read in one of my fitness mags that by drinking 2 cups of green tea everyday, u will lose 11 lbs in a year.. that might now seem like alot but thats w/o dieting or exercising. The benefits of green tea are also soooo good for your body. I wish I could get everyone drinking it.
  • Amandac6772
    Amandac6772 Posts: 1,311 Member
    I don't know for sure but I do know that my weightloss has slowed to a snail's pace and I added green tea in my diet in the mornings and I'm back to losing like I was in the beginning. It may just be a fluke but I drink 2-3 cups in the morning now. I like how it taste and it has cut my coffee consumption in half. Now to get rid of the other half.
  • bekylouisex3
    bekylouisex3 Posts: 242 Member
    I drink Tetley Pure Green Tea, I replaced my usual tea in the morning with it and I LOVE IT! I thought I would like it at first but it's fine, I do have a sweet tooth so I have one sweetner in it but usually with my normal teas I have two/three :blushing: so it's better all round :smile:
  • pfenixa
    pfenixa Posts: 194 Member
    After my last post in the thread I went grocery shopping the next day and bought a small box of Stash Green tea. I wanted plain tea without added honey, lemon, etc flavors. I really liked it! It's not as strong as standard black tea and has a different flavor. I also tried one of those Crystal Lite packets of Green tea with honey and lemon, but I didn't like it at all - it was waaay too sweet! So I've been sticking to plain for now and have tried a couple different brands. I really wanted to get Rishi green tea but my Whole Foods didn't have it. :frown:

    Also, after I started drinking green tea I broke past my plateau. Granted, I changed a couple other things at the same time so may not have been the tea, but maybe it was and at least I got something new to enjoy. :drinker:
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