Maximize Your Energy (drink)

Use these three easy steps to maximize your energy (in other words, how to pick the RIGHT energy drink for your current situation)
Step One: Assess your true fatigue level.
Are you tired but not sleepy, or are you just bored? Are you in need of energy that cannot be provided by a brisk walk, a few jumping jacks and a tall glass of water? Have you been up for more than 12 hours (and is it TRULY necessary that you are up for at least 6 more)?
By answering these questions, you should get a better sense of how tired you really are. 
*If you are just bored, try to wake up naturally: take a brisk walk, do some plyometrics in the hallway or restroom, climb a flight of stairs or eat something if you haven't eaten in more than 3 hours. 
*If you are feeling like a zombie and you have been up for more than 16 hours, understand that there are probably no energy drinks that can help you as much as a 20 minute or 6 hour nap.

Step Two: Pick the drink that matches your fatigue level.
In increasing order of potency, here is a scale of energy drink classifications to help you pick the one that will provide you with just enough energy to get by. Note: if you frequently pick and use an energy drink that is stronger than the one that you really need, you may develop a tolerance and then you'll REALLY be in trouble - try to get by with the weakest one that you think will do the job of making you awake and alert:
1. Tea or coffee-based (like the wonderful amazing Starbucks Refreshers or Monster/Rockstar's coffee-flavored drinks)
2. Non-carbonated, with juice
3. Non-carbonated, no juice
4. Carbonated, with juice
5. Carbonated, no juice, "sugar-free"
6. Carbonated, with sugar (warning: only use these in dire situations because the sugar in a certain green energy drink can make a lot of people too jittery, not to mention, cutting down on simple sugar intake is recommended by almost every doctor I've ever met) 

Step Three: Drink it over several hours.
Challenge yourself to drink only half a serving every three hours. Keep in mind that it will take AT LEAST 20 minutes for you to "feel" the energy drink working. It takes 30 minutes for the first sips of an energy drink to reach maximum concentration levels in your blood. If you think this is too long, think about this: only alcohol, aspirin and caffeine get absorbed through the stomach, everything else has to wait until it enters the small intestine to get absorbed. (Which reminds me, if you have an empty stomach as you sip that energy drink, your stomach may get a bit irritated. Time your energy drink consumption accordingly.) Give the caffeine some time to get to work before you decide you need another dose. 

The bottom line is choose your drink wisely, try to do without as much as possible, and NEVER, EVER EVER CHUG AN ENERGY DRINK!


 

How Caffeine Works - a primer

Caffeine is a compound naturally found in cocoa beans, kola nuts, tea leaves and other plants like guarana. Caffeine is a stimulant that affects your whole body. Caffeine is a vasodilator, meaning it makes your blood vessels slightly larger in diameter. However, caffeine constricts the blood vessels in your brain. This effect is why caffeine can be found in certain pain or headache medications. It is easier to stem the tide of pain to your brain than to ease the pain once the full force has hit.

            How would you like to get paid for preventing someone from doing their own job? Football quarterback-tackling metaphors aside, caffeine works by keeping adenosine from doing its job.

The Difference Between 5 and 7 Hour Energy

You've seen them in grocery stores and gas stations, energy drinks proposing a timeline of effectiveness with just their name. But what's the difference between 5 and 7 Hour Energy? 
Answer: The number in the name - that's it! If it says 7 hour energy, a tiny part of your subconscious will be on board, thinking OK, I am totally alert now. Alas my friends, this is the Placebo Effect. The truth is caffeine has a half-life of three to six hours (different metabolisms mean different rates of caffeine break-down), so regardless of what it says on the label, 3-6 hours later, only half the original dose of caffeine is still active and effective in your system. This is why it pays to enjoy the energy drink over several hours - NEVER, EVER, EVER CHUG AN ENERGY DRINK!!! It is SO not good for your heart or brain - it's like an ambush, or like setting the treadmill to 8mph before you even step onto it.
Allow me to explain: Caffeine metabolism 101:

15 Ways to Convince Your GF Baseball is the Best Sport

What do you do when your darling girlfriend (or boyfriend) doesn't understand why you NEED to watch the baseball game? How do you convince them that this seemingly boring sport is truly the best sport of all? Try these arguments on them:

1.      When hockey players win the Stanley Cup and when football players win the Super Bowl, they get commemorative baseball hats.

2.      Even those who don’t enjoy baseball can’t deny they enjoy getting to "first base" on a first date.

3.      Also like dating, baseball is "a game of inches".