What If You Experience Caffeine Withdrawal
You definitely dont have to cut caffeine out cold turkey. You could start by weaning yourself off slowly or cutting your caffeine intake in half. But, if you do decide to go all-in on cutting caffeine, you may experience symptoms of withdrawal like headaches, irritability or jitteriness.
Those symptoms will usually resolve within a few days after stopping caffeine, says Dr. Darling.
Make sure you stay hydrated and take ibuprofen or acetaminophen for headaches. As you pick up healthier behaviors and those symptoms stop, youll start getting a real sense of how your body operates without caffeine and you may be surprised by how well you feel without it.
We do the same things every day. We get into our routines and habits and we often dont realize how these behaviors are affecting us, says Dr. Darling. Its worthwhile to take a look at what your life could be like without relying on caffeine. The key to success is creating healthy routines that naturally give us energy.
Swap Your Morning Coffee For Raw Cacao
You can brew raw cacao nibs to create an energy-boosting drink.
“Raw cacao is a recent discovery of mine and now a part of my daily morning routine,” Whipple shares. “I’ve recently swapped out my black coffee for this smooth, chocolatey tasting beverage.” Cacao is a nutrient-dense food, with high amounts of minerals, copper, iron, manganese and zinc.
Cacao also contains theobromine, a compound closely related to caffeine but which provides a smoother, crash-free boost of energy. Brewed the same way you would make coffee in a French press , the cacao helps you stay alert and awake without the unavoidable caffeine crash. Whipple is partial to Crio Bru available on Amazon.
Do 5 To 10 Minutes Of Light Exercise When Youre Feeling Tired
Just a few minutes of light exercise will really get your energy level up. If youre feeling tired and need to keep going, take a break and do some push-ups, jumping jacks, or climb the stairs a few times. If you can, take a short walkand if you can walk outside, thats even better! Just a few minutes outside in the sun can make you feel energized. But just do what worksa few minutes of any light exercise will get your blood flowing and your energy level back up.
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Pile On The Nutrients
Instead of consuming caffeine and refined sugar, which give you a brief moment of energy followed by a crash later, a healthier approach is to eat some natural sources of sugar like fresh fruit, says Dr. Darling. This means you can skip those vanilla lattes and snag an apple, some blueberries or maybe even a banana for a quick pick-me-up.
And dont forget about the most important meal of the day: When you have breakfast, include some protein and fiber-rich foods for an added boost of energy.
Ways To Boost Energy Without Coffee
Posted by DaVinci Healthcare Expert on Mar 10, 2022 2:00:00 PM
The morning cup of joe is a comforting, stimulating start to most peoples day.
Enjoying coffee in moderation is fine for many people. However, depending on coffee to combat low energy throughout the day likely points to an underlying cause of tiredness. Studies show that the body builds a tolerance to coffee, interfering with natural energy production and high-quality sleep.
Pinpointing and supporting the root causes of low energy is critical for overall health, and its important to find ways to naturally boost energy without coffee or other caffeinated beverages. Read on to learn why our society is becoming increasingly tired, along with nine ways to tackle ongoing low energy levels.
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Eat Small Frequent Meals
When you eat can make just as big a difference as what you eat. If you’re skipping breakfast and eating a massive lunch, you’re sabotaging your afternoon productivity. Any time you eat too much, you’ll feel sluggish.
To maintain a consistent energy level throughout the day, opt for several small meals with snacks in between.
By eating in this manner, you ensure that your body is consistently supplied with fuel throughout the day.
Drink Some Energizing Tea
For a naturally caffeine-free afternoon energy boost, swap out your cup of coffee for a warm glass of herbal tea. Rosehip, ginger, gingko biloba, and ginseng are all energizing options. Green tea is also a great natural energy boost. The delicious drink is naturally hydrating, contains a bit of caffeine , and its loaded with antioxidants and brain-boosting polyphenols.
Rowdy Tip: Make sure to buy higher quality teas, as they are more potent. Cheaper teas contain more fluoride too.
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Find A Source Of Sensory Stimulation
Try one of the following tips to engage both your brain and your senses:
- Stay in a well-lit area too much dimness leads to drowsiness.
- Chew ice or gum to get your mouth moving and your taste buds stimulated.
- Listen to music to stay awake and improve your concentration.
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published on February 4, 2017, and was last reviewed on April 19, 2022
Grab A Glass Of Water
Fulfill that thirst before you do anything else. You should be drinking water all day, but your body is typically dehydrated when you wake up, so this is something you should do first thing in the morning.
You probably havent had any fluids for the last eight hours, so the best thing you can do is drink a glass of water first thing in the morning, advises Dr. Darling. That can actually help you feel more awake.
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Whatever You Do Stay Hydrated
If youre asking how to get energy without caffeine, you need to remember water! If youre feeling fatigued, struggling to concentrate, or battling a headache, caffeine withdrawal might not be to blame. Instead, you might be feeling the effects of dehydration. If youre feeling thirsty, dehydration has already set in, so try to get ahead of your thirst with your drinking.
How much water does an adult need each day? The answer varies. If youre exercising, in a hot environment, or drinking alcohol, youll need to up your water intake. The folks at Harvard Medical School recommend four to six cups as a baseline. Keep up your hydration habit, and cutting back on caffeine will be that much easier.
Evaluate Your Sleep Patterns
Frequent fatigue may indicate that you are not getting enough sleep. Experts stress that adults need at least seven hours per night, but many people shortchange themselves. By evaluating your sleep patterns to ensure you are getting enough sleep, you can take proactive steps that may correct fatigue. Create a relaxing routine before bedtime, which might include turning off screens, dimming the lights, and sipping a warm, noncaffeinated beverage.
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Think Through Your Timing
Lets get the bad news out of the way. If your morning latte or chai is a daily habit, youre probably going to experience something like withdrawal. According to Cleveland Clinic, caffeine withdrawal symptoms last about two to nine days and might include:
Depending on your job, muscling your way through the side effects during the work week could be pretty difficult. It might make more sense to start on a Friday, weekend, or vacation, when youre freer to nap off a headache or just veg out.
Revisit Your Alarm Settings
Waking up to the sound of a nuclear alarm might feel like a quick solution to jumping out of bed bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, but no one likes feeling jarred awake. Some alarm clocks and smartphone settings wake you up gradually, and you can even look into getting LED lights that mimic a sunrise for a more peaceful approach to getting out of bed.
Its a really gentle way to wake up and a much better way to start your day than a blaring alarm at 6 a.m., says Dr. Darling.
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Blood Sugar Dips And Spikes
A common cause of daytime sleepiness or sluggishnessespecially after eatingis a dip in blood sugar . This crash can happen if you eat a meal or snack high in refined carbohydrates or sugars, which spikes blood sugar before leading to a subsequent dip accompanied by discomforts like tiredness, head pain, irritability, and cravings for more carbs and sugar.
Examples of high-carb and high-sugar meals would be large portions of white bread, white pasta or white rice, cookies, cakes, candies, soda, fruit juices, and many commercially prepared baked goods.
How To Get More Energy Without Caffeine
Do you feel sluggish and tired all day long? Does your coffee pot feel like your only source of energy throughout the day? Believe it or not, you dont need caffeine to feel energized. In fact, drinking too much caffeine can diminish your bodys natural ability to produce energy. Lets take a look at how you can improve your mental health to get more energy without caffeine.
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How Do You Energy
Here are five techniques and activities that are not only proven to add a lot of energy to your day, but also add to, rather than take away from your overall health:
Reinvigorating Coffee Alternatives For Those Who Say No To The Joe
As a college student, it’s rare for anyone to go a day without ingesting some form of caffeine, usually in the form of coffee. However, while coffee has been proven to provide some health benefits, it has also been linked to side effects such as increased risk of heart attacks in young adults and high blood pressure.
Additionally, coffee delays our bodies from experiencing exhaustion instead of energizing it and has addictive properties caused by delayed dopamine absorption in the brain, which make us feel that mood boost from caffeine every time we drink coffee.
I get itcoffee comes in so many tasty forms and is a social and trendy way to get yourself going every day. Personally, though, coffee makes me anxious and more stressed than I am without caffeine. I choose to not drink coffee because I want to allow my body to acknowledge the scope of its exhaustion and to use only natural, non-stimulating methods to help re-energize it.
For those of us who are non-caffeine drinkers but still need to function on little sleep, there is hope. Here’s a list of energizing, non-caffeine beverages that have gotten me through three semesters of college classes, meetings, and late night study sessions.
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Occupy Yourself With Something That Isnt Work
When you focus too long on one thing, your mind can become tired and overwhelmed. Take 5 and occupy yourself with anything other than work. Text a friend, chat with a coworker, doodle in your notebook, or read a chapter in a book. Giving yourself a little personal time throughout the day helps ease work fatigue and recharge for your next task.
Power Nap When Necessary
This may feel like cheating the system, but it works. If you can power nap for 10 to 15 minutes at a time, you can jumpstart your bodys battery to get you through the rest of the day. Make sure you avoid naps that are longer than 30 minutes and avoid sleeping after 3 p.m., which will throw off that sleep-wake schedule youre working on.
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Consider A Nicotinamide Riboside Supplement
To support normal levels of NAD and therefore mitochondrial health, consider supplementing with nicotinamide riboside .
NR is converted to NAD in the body, promoting cellular energy production. Whats more, experts believe NR may actually trigger the formation of new mitochondria1 by increasing the activity of SIRT12.
Energy begins at the cellular level with mitochondria. You might remember mitochondria from high school science class.
These guys are the powerhouse of the cell, converting food and oxygen into energy our cells use to do everything from powering our muscles to circulating blood.
NAD is a coenzyme that is crucial for this process. However, as we age, NAD levels naturally decline.
Add Chia Seeds To Your Cereal
“This food packs a punch with fiber, protein, and healthy fat that will give you a boost of energy you need in the morning,” explains Kimszal. Chia seeds have earned the “superfood” designation thanks to their high concentration of nutrients, antioxidants, and Omega-3 fatty acids . They also give you a little zip of energy. And for more ways food affects your health, check out Eating More of This Could Help Protect You From Coronavirus.
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Ways To Feel Awake Without Caffeine
Whether you prefer espresso, tea or energy drinks, caffeine can feel like an important part of our daily routines. That isnt necessarily a bad thinga visit to the coffee shop can be part of your self-care plan or a way to catch up with friends. However, if youre still feeling tired or sluggish, here are a few tips to help you stay energized throughout the day while curbing your caffeine intake.
Get Seven To Nine Hours Of Sleep
Yes, it’s a no-brainer, but the best way to ensure you’ve got a burst of energy without caffeine in the morning is to get enough sleep at night. In fact, a 2015 study published in Sleep Health: The Journal of the National Sleep Foundation found that adults ages 18 to 64 should get seven to nine hours of rest each night. So make sure you go to bed early to wake up feeling refreshed and ready to take on the day.
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Try Ginkgo And Saffron
In a 2021 Journal of Clinical and Translational Research review, scientists found that saffron and ginkgo could help your brain function. Saffron is an antioxidant and can stop plaque or protein from building up in your brain. Meanwhile, ginkgo may be able to help your memory, concentration, and fatigue.
Though the results were not conclusive on whether ginkgo and saffron provide benefits, they had minimal side effects. Ask your healthcare provider whether you should add them to your diet or aromatherapy routine.
Boost Your Energy Without Caffeine
Getting enough sleep is the best way to ensure youâll have the energy you need for your day. And when you work with the daily energy peaks and dips of your circadian rhythm, having an extra cup of coffee wonât seem so tempting or necessary. Keeping your sleep debt low and healthy eating high on your list of priorities can help you make the most of your daily energy.
Now, instead of relying on over-caffeinated energy drinks or staying up into the wee hours scouring the dark corners of the internet to buy sketchy energy pills, you can simply climb into bed, turn out the lights, and sleep your way to more energy. And you can use the RISE app to plan your sleep schedule and your daily activities so that they line up with your bodyâs circadian rhythm.
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Stretch Out Your Limbs
If you sit at a desk all day, your body probably gets stiff during a long day of work. Take a 5-minute break and stretch. Bring a yoga mat and stretch in your office or head out to the grass in front of your office building for some sunshine and stretching. Practice a few of your favorite yoga poses or shake out your shoulders. When you get your muscles moving and lose, you increase your energy while decreasing muscle discomfort.
Surprising Ways To Get More Energy Including Stress Relief And Healthy Eating
Go to the store, and you’ll see a multitude of vitamins, herbs, and other supplements touted as energy boosters. Some are even added to soft drinks and other foods. But there’s little or no scientific evidence that energy boosters like ginseng, guarana, and chromium picolinate actually work. Thankfully, there are things you can do to enhance your own natural energy levels. Here are nine tips:
1. Control stress
Stress-induced emotions consume huge amounts of energy. Talking with a friend or relative, joining a support group, or seeing a psychotherapist can all help diffuse stress. Relaxation therapies like meditation, self-hypnosis, yoga, and tai chi are also effective tools for reducing stress.
2. Lighten your load
One of the main reasons for fatigue is overwork. Overwork can include professional, family, and social obligations. Try to streamline your list of “must-do” activities. Set your priorities in terms of the most important tasks. Pare down those that are less important. Consider asking for extra help at work, if necessary.
3. Exercise
Exercise almost guarantees that you’ll sleep more soundly. It also gives your cells more energy to burn and circulates oxygen. And exercising can lead to higher brain dopamine levels, which helps elevate mood. When walking, pick up the pace periodically to get extra health benefits.
4. Avoid smoking
5. Restrict your sleep
6. Eat for energy
7. Use caffeine to your advantage
8. Limit alcohol
9. Drink water
Image: ©Gilaxia | GettyImages
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