Warrior Wellness: Pu-Erh; The Ultimate Wellness and Weight Loss Tea

The more people I meet, the more I try to expand their knowledge on the wonders that come with drinking tea. Interestingly enough, more people are surprised to discover that the teas I talk to them about are nothing like they expected.

Well, enlightened followers, to put it bluntly...” This ain’t your mama’s tea!” One extraordinary variety of tea that many still have yet to learn about is Pu-Erh tea.

One of the most interesting teas I have ever encountered, true Pu-Erh tea is created through a special fermentation process unlike that of regular tea. Camellia Sinensis (tea) plants, located in the Yunnan province of China, have a chemical composition that brings about a unique smell and flavor. Starting with these leaves, the tea is brought to the final processing stage to become a green tea except that it is not dried completely. Instead, these damp tea leaves are bound together and placed in either a cave or a storage area to begin to ferment. As the tea begins to age, while preserving a certain amount of moisture, a fermentation process is brought about by various microorganisms. The microbial activity found in the fermentation process which can last from months to decades, is what is responsible for the amazing taste and unique health properties that abound in this tea.

Being the premier choice of tea connoisseurs for centuries, Pu-Erh is a tea that still to this day is unlocking new secrets to better health in the scientific community. Pu-Erh has an extremely high count of polyphenol antioxidants which include the aflavin, catechins, and flavonoids. These have been found to prevent cellular oxidation which leads to the growth of cancers. According to the Yunnan Natural Medicine Research Institute, through scientific studies, it was found that green and black Yunnan Pu-Erh teas were found to have the ability to destroy cancer cells. The high antioxidant count in Pu-Erh teas was also found to lower LDL (bad) cholesterol and reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases.

Drinking Pu-Erh tea has also been known to affect a person’s weight. Not only a hunger suppressant, if the tea is drunk during or following a meal, this tea also allows for the quick break down of any fats or oils that were consumed.

Animal studies have also discovered that consumption of Pu-Erh tea decreases leptin and fatty deposit levels (usually high numbers are found in those who are obese), and increases thermogenesis which allows the body to burn through things faster and better. In a study conducted by the Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at the College of Medicine National Taiwan University, researchers discovered, “The expression of fatty acid synthase (FAS) in the livers of rats fed Pu-Erh tea leaves was significantly suppressed. The gains in body weight, level of triacylglycerol, and total cholesterol were also suppressed in the tea treated rats.”

A workout enthusiast myself, I always try to have a Pu-Erh Tea brewed and ready to drink during or after a workout. I can also attest to the weight loss properties tea has, especially with Pu-Erh. Having added tea to my workout routine again, I dropped over 20lbs in the past month in a half since I started training again. I can safely say it would’ve taken me twice as long to cut the fat without the aid of the tea due to the fact that I only experienced these numbers in the past when large amounts of tea were added to my diet. When tea was not present, my metabolism and fat burning rate slowed down greatly!

So, enlightened ones, what have we taken away from this?

-Pu-Erh, like a fine wine, needs to age and ferment and only gets tastier and healthier with time.

- The antioxidant count in Pu-Erh is extremely high and has been found to fight off cellular oxidation, as well as destroy certain types of cancer.

-Pu-Erh improves cardiovascular function and lowers blood pressure and cholesterol.

-The chemical properties in Pu-Erh helps to fight off excess food cravings, increase a body’s ability to burn off excess calories, targets fat around the body to burn off quicker, and helps break down fats and oils after a meal.

I now keep a thermos of Pu-Erh ready for when I go on runs.

Cheers