If you're working long hours or have lots to do, it's natural to turn to caffeinated drinks for some much-needed energy. This always seems like a good idea...until you hit that huge caffeine crash.
The problem? You feel even more tired and irritable than you did originally. You may experience a dip in focus, brain fog, headaches and even the inability to think clearly.
Thankfully, after going deep into toxin free brews and 100% natural energy boosters, Im sharing some incredible tips with you today and most importantly, ways to consume caffeine and not end up with energy crashes from coffee.
Here are five of our top tips for drinking coffee without an energy crash. Although, let's talk about the dreaded caffeine crash.
What is a Caffeine Crash?
If you drink lots of caffeinated drinks, then you probably know what we're talking about already.
A caffeine-induced energy crash can occur from 25 minutes to a couple hours after you've consumed an energy drink, regular coffee, tea or any other caffeinated drinks.
Unfortunately, it makes you feel extremely tired and sleepy, irritable, and unable to concentrate.
Sometimes it can even feel a bit like a hangover due to nausea, brain fog and headaches.
Needless to say, it's not a pleasant experience, especially if you're drinking coffee because you're feeling tired in the first place and want a pick me up!
1. Switch to Lion's Mane Mushroom Coffee 🍄 ☕
Are you one of the millions suffering from that afternoon coffee crash?
Don't worry, we get it. It's exactly why we went on a mission to figure out how to prevent crashing from caffeine, so that you can enjoy the benefits of drinking your favourite coffee whilst preventing the dreaded caffeine crash.
After 6 months of fine-tuning and taste testing, we were finally ready to launch our product.
As specialist roasters, we knew there had to be a solution.
Something that provided the drive and mental clarity coffee-drinkers crave, without the nasty comedown experience.
And I never thought that I’d find the answer in…mushrooms.
Hear me out…
Nicknamed the ‘smart mushroom’, Lion’s Mane mushrooms are clinically proven to improve brain function, relieve symptoms of anxiety, boost the immune system, and much more.
Once I learned this, I went all-in.
We partnered with one of the UK’s leading adaptogenic supplement specialists, and devised an innovative new product that will change the game for years to come.
Hundreds of hours of blending and taste testing to achieve a truly superior product, fresher and tastier than anything available on the market.
At the heart of the innovation was an ultra-high quality dual Lions Mane extract.
It was expensive to source, but was it worth it? Hell yes!
It turns out that it increased potency by X2 for maximum absorption. So, you benefit from greater cognitive performance and higher antioxidant levels boosting your mood, productivity and overall wellbeing.
The result? A game-changing mushroom coffee with all of the flavour, and none of the crashes.
But don’t just take my word for it. Here's what our satisfied customers who have tried it are saying:
Jennifer L Said: Exactly what it says on the packaging. I feel more focused and in a calmer state whenever I drink it - it’s magic!
Tony L Said: I love this blend of coffee. I drink a lot of coffee during the day, and it is wonderful to enjoy my favourite energy boost without getting the jitters and the metallic tang in the mouth. This mushroom coffee blend is smooth with subtle undertones of something I can't quite name. Don't be put off by the name; there isn't a hint of mushrooms in the taste.
Daisy M Said: Loving this coffee so much. Great flavour, experiencing the sharper concentration without afternoon headaches at work.
Click the "Shop Lion's Mane Mushroom Coffee & Save £5" button below to switch to a healthy coffee beans without the jiters/caffeine-crash and save up to 20% as a first timer.
This brilliant new functional innovation contains bioactive compounds to help provide you with a clean, sustained energy boost.
The core benefits to drinking lions mane mushroom coffee is that it's crash-free & reduces anxiety .
Thankfully, you won't experience the same rollercoaster ride of high peaks and low dips that is common with regular coffee.
Click here to try out Lion's Mane coffee to save yourself the dreaded crash (Use code 'MUSHROOMCOFFEE10' to save 10%).
2. Drink Plenty of Water
This may seem obvious or even counter-intuitive, but even though coffee is mostly made from water (97%), it doesn't really hydrate you.
While the idea that coffee will dehydrate you has been debunked, coffee is still a mild diuretic. In fact, this means that it'll make you lose fluids.
So it's always a good idea to replace those fluids with water.
But drinking water goes further than that. When you drink a water with coffee, it can help stop your energy crash because it's keeping you more hydrated in general!
The reason you feel the energy crash from coffee 25 minutes to a couple hours after consuming caffeine is because it actually blocks adenosine within your brain.
Adenosine is what signals sleepiness - so when the caffeine blocks it, your brain stays awake and alert.
However, when you're drinking coffee, your brain doesn't stop producing adenosine.
So when the caffeine wears off, all of that extra adenosine floods your brain, making you even more tired than you were before.
Drinking water before or during your coffee will help reduce this effect whilst cleansing your palette at the same time.
When you're drinking speciality-grade coffee, then this is additional hydration is a must.
3. Get a Good Night Sleep
Another way to ensure that your brain isn't overwhelmed with adenosine after drinking coffee is by getting a good night's sleep.
When you're tired, you'll already have a higher level of adenosine in your brain. The caffeine crash will definitely hit you hard if you're drinking coffee in this state.
There are lots of different ways to help ensure a good night's rest. Firstly, don't consume caffeine after 6pm! Caffeine has a half-life of around five hours.
This means that it'll continue keeping you awake for around five hours after consumption. Don't get into a cycle of drinking coffee in the evening, staying awake, and then needing even more coffee in the morning to get you going again.
High levels of caffeine have also been linked to insomnia (difficulty falling and staying asleep), so if you have trouble with your sleep, you may want to cut down on the amount of coffee you're consuming every day.
You can also help yourself get a good night's sleep by:
- Limiting screen use before bed
- Relaxing with a meditative podcast
- Sticking to a sleep schedule
Of course, how much caffeine affects you will change from person to person - some people can go to bed right after drinking coffee with no problem at all.
So experiment with your last coffee of the day to see what works best for you. This will definitely stop energy crashes from coffee.
4. Spread Out Your Caffeine Intake
Spreading your cups of coffee throughout the day will also help to reduce any possible energy crash.
Instead of knocking back coffee after coffee, make sure there are at least a couple of hours between each caffeinated drink.
This will release the caffeine more steadily, over a longer period, which will help sustain your energy levels since the highs and lows will be less extreme. Rather than get yourself into a 'jittery state', you'll feel more alert for a longer period of time.
We suggest having your first cup between 9 and 11:30am, and a second between 1 and 2pm - after breakfast and after lunch is ideal.
This will give you a double boost of short and long-term energy, and it'll help you enjoy the coffee more, because you're not just thinking about that next injection of caffeine.
It's also best not to drink a cup of coffee right as you wake up in the morning. We know it's tempting to get that sudden jolt of energy in the morning, but this actually goes against your body's natural circadian rhythm.
When you wake up in the morning, your circadian rhythm creates cortisol - this is the 'stress steroid'. It makes you alert and awake.
According to research, most people experience a natural cortisol boost around 8 or 9am. So any caffeine you drink during this period is pretty much wasted.
You'll get the energy crash...but without getting any real benefit from it.
Additionally, we recommend cutting off coffee between 12 and 2pm for optimum REM sleep that evening. Depending on your operating hours, this gives you enough time for the coffee to leave your system in preparation for that well rested sleep your body needs.
5. Eat Well
It's also a good idea to always drink coffee on a full stomach. There are lots of reasons for this. Firstly, nutritious food gives you a long-lasting, natural source of energy that will keep you going throughout the day.
Caffeine, in comparison, is a short-term source of energy. So when you drink coffee without eating, your body will be relying solely on this short-term energy, which will run out very quickly!
By eating before you drink coffee, you're giving yourself two sources of energy.
This will give you both a short-term energy surge and a long-term store of energy to last the whole day.
Eating a nutritious meal will help stop energy crashes from coffeeWe suggest drinking coffee with or right after a balanced meal.
Great sources of long-lasting energy include brown rice, eggs, bananas, nuts, and sweet potatoes. Furthermore, if coffee sometimes makes you feel sick, you should definitely eat a nutritious meal before drinking it.
Coffee is acidic, so if you drink it on an empty stomach, it can actually increase the production of acid in your stomach and make you feel nauseous.
Try to also avoid eating highly acidic foods like grapefruit, oranges and tomatoes whilst drinking coffee if this is a problem for you.
6. Avoid the Caffeine Crash with Decaf Coffee
Finally, a surefire way to reduce energy crashes from caffeine is to not consume any caffeine at all!
We wouldn't ever suggest to completely stop drinking coffee, but we do suggest switching one or two of your coffees to decaf.
We know that decaffeinated coffee has a bad reputation - but trust us when we say that speciality-grade decaf coffees taste just as good as normal, caffeinated ones!
We've actually written a whole blog post about decaf ground coffee, including why it has a bit of a bad reputation, and why we think you should give our speciality-grade decaf a go.
7. Plant-Based Alternatives to Caffeine
Okay, so decaf isn’t the only way you can stop the caffeine crash from coffee too.
If the thought of a non-caffeinated substitute to coffee doesn’t fill you with joy, the best vegan protein powder on the market for an energy boost might do the trick.
Jrny shakes replace caffeine with a load of natural alternatives, including Iron, B12, B6, Vitamin C and more, making it perfect to avoid that energy crash, with the added benefit of working to aid your digestion.
It also contains a healthy dose of Magnesium, making it one the best magnesium supplements on the market.
Whilst maybe not the traditional energy booster. If you’re looking for a healthy and plant-based answer to those energy crashes, this might be a Jrny you're willing to begin.
8. Mushroom Supplements for Balance
On the topic of mushrooms and supplements, a great way to reduce the caffeine crash from coffee is to consider alternative energy boosting supplements for Balance.
For example, Lyfefuel, use a unique blend of adaptogenic mushrooms & ancient medicinal herbs shown to boost adaptive capacity, regulate hormones, and reduce overwhelm.
Adaptogenic mushrooms and medicinal herbs are known for their strong bitter flavours, which can make it challenging to consume them.
This is where capsules can come in handy, making it easy for you to experience an elevated state of wellness without any of those bitter notes.
You can also head to our shop to see what decaf coffees we currently have available! Lots of our customers have great things to say about our decafs:
Those were just five ways to help stop energy crashes from coffee. If you'd like to know more about caffeine and coffee, we've written a post all about the effects of caffeine, as well as how to drink coffee more mindfully.
