How To Dodge The Dreaded Mid-Day Energy Crash

Knowing how to properly nap can be a superpower in itself. A good nap can make you feel reenergized and ready to attack the rest of your day. This is not just a feeling. Studies have shown that napping can reduce stress, support immune response, and improve alertness. 

But as you probably know, not all naps are created equal. Some naps leave you feeling even more tired and groggy. Don’t worry, we’ve all been there. Read on to learn how to best maximize your naps for optimal performance.

Start Your Day with High Energy

The first tip begins long before the midday sleepiness has even set in: it starts with breakfast. Eating a breakfast high in sugar or carbs is going to be your first priority. A sugary breakfast is often followed by a hard crash a few hours later. 

Instead, focus on consuming healthy fats such as avocados and eggs. Other healthy breakfast fats you’ll want to replace sugar with include grass-fed butter and MCT oil.

If becoming sleepy during lunchtime has been a regular problem, you might want to try the Bulletproof Diet. This diet strays from macronutrients that drain energy, such as artificial sweeteners, processed foods, and gluten, and instead replaces them with foods intended to power you throughout the day. More on this later. 

Tips for starting the day the right way:

Salt, Bulletproof Coffee

We all know too much salt can be bad for one’s health. But salt does play a role in maintaining mineral balance and is important for regular cell function. This balance can be thrown off throughout the day, especially if you begin to get stressed. When you are overly stressed, your adrenals have difficulty producing the hormone aldosterone, which helps regulate sodium and potassium levels. This can result in feelings of lethargy later in the day. 

That is why it is recommended to start your day with a large glass of water mixed with half a teaspoon of high-quality sea salt, such as pink Himalayan salt.  Regular table salt will not do the trick. Doing this will make sure a “salt crash” does not take place. 

Drinking coffee prior to taking a quick nap is known as a “coffee nap.” One study revealed that participating in coffee naps can be better in reducing sleepiness more so than drinking coffee or taking a nap alone. The best way to optimize coffee naps is to limit your nap to 20 minutes and to drink the coffee immediately beforehand. 

Plan Your Snooze 

Make sure you plan your nap at a time during the day that won’t interfere with your sleep later in the night. For most, this time period lies somewhere between 2 p.m. and 3 p.m. Moreover, it is best to take note of what your body signals to you and take naps accordingly.

Not a Napper? How to Master the Midday Recharge

If you are someone who has trouble napping but still feels in need of being recharged midday, here are some techniques that you can implement to get the benefits that come with a good nap.

Meditation, Yoga, and Exercise

It has been shown that a thirty-minute meditation can do the same amount of work as a deep two-hour sleep. Certain yoga poses can also provide you with much-needed energy. Yoga poses can nourish and recharge your adrenal glands while bringing circulation back to your head. 

Exercising is another way you can re-energize yourself. The good news is that you don’t need to engage in an hour-long work-out to accomplish this. A simple ten-minute workout routine can do the trick. 

Another hack is utilizing a vibration platform. A 30 Hz, Whole Body Vibration (WBV) therapy can help to improve mental sharpness, increase blood circulation, and increase the secretion of serotonin. This is an easy-to-use method that can help relieve you of any feelings of sleepiness.