Hey, I recently started going to university, where I sometimes have 4-6 consecutive hours of class. Or classes very early in the morning (8-9 am), and very late in the afternoon (16-17 pm). Some days I felt VERY tired during certain classes (I almost fell asleep during one). Do you know any natural ways to help be very awake and "energized"? (good sleeping techniques, foods, vitamins, exercices, ... anything )
I don't have any natural ways, I pretty much survived college on energy drinks, sugar, and sleeping in classes I could get away with it...
I sometimes go in the back of the library, set my watch to go off in 30 mins, and put my head down and try to sleep. I never schedule myself for so many classes back-to-back. That must be a killer.
Hear, hear. Rei quotes the truth. Apples are a great source of clean and natural carbs for the body. Crap carbs are one of the best ways to ensure that you feel fatigued. A momentary rush of energy followed by a prolonged crashed. Like leaving a car in first gear and then gunning the accelerator. Apples. Yes. I am in complete agreement. You'd be amazed just how well a couple of good apples can serve as a breakfast
Let's face it, school practically demands caffeine. Coffee is natural, if not always the most healthful choice. And there are lecturers that will challenge even coffee's ability to keep the eyelids peeled back.
apples? Interesting ... I'll try it out on monday hiddennovelist: I rather not get into that, seeing as those things wreck your health ... marina: Sadly, that doesn't work for me. If I sleep during the day, even for just a few minutes, I wake up tired, with a head ache, and feeling completely nauseous. And sadly, that schedule is not my choice. I would never have scheduled things that way either Wreybies: I guess that means I should avoid cereals in the morning? Cogito: I don't know if caffeine is a good idea. I've heard you wake up unbelievably with it for a moment, before sinking into an even deeper state of sleepiness after that moment. Besides, I don't like coffee anyway Thanks for all the advice
Exercise and healthy eating. I know it's not easy to find the time to exercise or prepare decent meals, but you'll be surprised how much better you feel when you're fitter. I live in a small country town but come winter and the beginning of the snow season, our town population goes from about 3000 to around 40,000. Needless to say, our winters are chaos and we work around the clock for about four months of the year. When you're fit, you'll be able to concentrate better and for longer periods, you'll crave healthier foods, you'll need less sleep and generally your mood and mental health with improve. It's hard to get started, at first you are more tired, but stick with it and really push yourself. In a few weeks, you'll be bouncing out of bed and ready to run like a racehorse. Good luck
It is hard to get in shape like that. Every time I try, the fatigue overwhelms me, and I quit. But I'll really try this time. It's already been two week or so that I've ridden my bike regularly. And I quit eating junk food. Thanks for the advice
The obvious answer is Mountain Dew. Actually, I don't know how to stay awake. Being in Middle School I can get all my socializing, extracurriculars, and studying done and get enough hours of sleep in comfortably. Maybe you should try apples, but, I am somewhat of a wannabe chef, so... stay away from all the bad food that's tempting. It's probably hard to do that, but the greasy foods take more energy to digest so you feel sleeper. I guess avoid fast-food breakfast and eat the apples a lot of the other guys are recommending. And the old stand-by, coffee. And something with plenty of fiber that keeps you full. Shredded wheat, perhaps?
During my last year of school, I had an intense amount of study. I'd start school at 8.30am, go to class until 3pm and then do an extra two, to three hours of study at home. I can understand your fatigue, and what got me through it was a mixture of stretching, music and tea. Simple stretches, at sporadic intervals during study time, or between classes, really helped relax my muscles (I have crazy stress), which in turn, helped reduce the physical fatigue I'd feel at the end of the day. Music, I don't know what you're into, but a good ole upbeat song woke me up when I was struggling to find the energy to not fall asleep. Tea, a good strong tea kept me awake during my study sesssions. I liked strong, black tea, with no sugar (again, your preference), although camomile tea every now and then was pretty awesome, too. Also I might add, just eating healthy and exercising will help too, however, I know realistically, an exercise and healthy eating routine is difficult to manage when you're devoting all your time to study. Give it a go never the less. I found taking small steps to improve health worked for me. Like, I gave up fast food in the morning (man, that was hard, my school had a macdonalds and a burger king directly across the road, lol) and made sure I walked to school and my friends houses instead of asking for a lift.
I hear them 5 hour energy drink things will do the trick... though I have only seen the commercials...
I am never very hungry. I definitely couldn't go eating dry wheat and stuff And I'm really going to avoid bad food, seeing as everyone seems to agree it makes you sleepy. I used to stretch a lot, I was pretty flexible. But the fatigue is what made me give up ... I guess I could give tea a shot I don't know how you managed to go to a macdonalds in the morning, I would probably vomit if I ate some greasy cheeseburger so early I tried them. I haven't really noticed any effects. Besides, taking a look at the nutritional values, will shock about anyone.
Try tea. Calms your senses. Avoid eating rice during the day, makes you sleepy. You can also try an enery shakes with two raw eggs, handful of raisins and almonds all made up in the juicesr. sounds disgustive, but it's effective, energising and fills you with stamina.(an advice that can be for fooballers). Drink glucose water if you get it there. Avoid heavy lunches, try having snacks instead. A few tips..I have loads more if you need more .
I don't even know where I would find rice during the day The shake sounds repulsive, especially because I don't like every single one of the ingedients. Don't hesitate to give me more tips, it can only help
Energy drinks are usually just a massive amount of B vitamins, and if you drink too much, you may feel a tightening in your chest. I cant drink them because the doses are too strong for me. You'll crash as soon as you pee them out, so five hours at a maximum would be about right. You could stay awake for much cheaper by simply taking an overdose of a B complex vitamin and a caffeine pill. I dont recommend that; it's pretty taxing on your body. Dont really have much more advice for you besides what some people have said. If you can, get a good night's sleep --it's lack of REM that usually causes a need for energy drinks in the first place. Like Neha said, try snacking throughout the day, especially during your back to back classes. Water, tea, healthy carbohydrates for quick-acting energy (as opposed to protein), etc... As for what you might be able to do when you are really falling asleep in class? Last year, when I averaged around four to five hours of sleep per night, I used the rubber-band method where I snapped a few against my skin to wake me up for a few minutes, while I tried to rouse myself again, usually by drinking an energizing tea that I made taste rather awful with syrups and herbs.
