3 Hacks To Get A Bigger Caffeine Buzz

Be it finals week, jet leg, or just a Monday, sometimes you need a little extra kick from your daily coffee fix. But before you guzzle down an entire pot of coffee, consider these hacks to boost the caffeine buzz in each cup.

Time It Right

The Hack: Drink coffee between 10am and noon and/or between 2-5pm.

The Why: Do you start every morning with a cup of coffee? You may not be getting the most buzz from your brew. The reason: The circadian clock that controls your body’s basic rhythms is probably releasing cortisol, a hormone that makes you feel awake and alert, during that time. Research found that consuming caffeine during peak cortisol times (like 8AM-9AM, when you’re probably drinking your first cup of the day) interferes with the production of cortisol and causes your body to produce less cortisol, which in turn increases your tolerance for caffeine. So to get more out of each cup, try timing your coffee breaks when your cortisol levels are lower.

Catch Some Zzzs

The Hack: Drink coffee, take a nap, wake up extra refreshed.

The Why: This sort of seems like a no brainer (after all, you often crave coffee when you’re also craving a nap). The trick is to only take a short nap, say 10 to 20 minutes. Why it works: Caffeine takes 20 minutes to set in. Power naps rid the brain of adenosine, which makes you drowsy. So nap off the drowsy stuff, then wake up to the full effects of caffeine. Woo!

Take Another Shot

The Hack: Channel your inner Oprah every time you look at the Saxbys menu.

The Why: Espresso is essentially concentrated coffee, but a single shot contains less caffeine than a cup of coffee. So to add an extra caffeine bolt to your regular order, just add an extra shot. A few pro ordering tips:

Drip coffee + a shot = a red eye
Drip coffee + 2 shots = a black eye
Chai tea + a shot = a Dirty Chai (our personal favorite!)
A latte + a shot = ….a latte with an extra shot

Happy caffeinating!