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Subscribe to RSSBahar Takhtehchian of Shape magazine reveals how to give yourself an energy boost in the afternoon to power through the end of the work day.
East Coasters know what we're talking about: It's 3 p.m., and despite your ever-growing, never-shrinking to-do list, all you want to do is curl up in a ball and nap under your desk. But it'll come for you soon enough, West Coasters -- the 3 o'clock crash hits all of us, as Bahar Takhtehchian of Shape magazine explained to Kathie Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb on TODAY this morning.
Here are Takhtehchian's tips:
Move it! Try swapping out your desk chair for a stability ball, or do a couple of bicep curls. (No, really.) The physical activity will wake up your body and your brain.
Avoid a sugary snack. It'll just make you more tired. Instead, try fresh fruit, some low-fat cheese or applesauce.
Stay hydrated. This means stay away from coffee or other caffeinated beverages, which will provide a quick energy boost, and then you'll crash. Plus, the caffeine will dehydrate you. Gulp down water or caffeine-free tea instead.
Watch the video for more ideas. How do you beat the 3 p.m. slump? Leave a comment with your secrets.
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Leave a Comment:
A brisk walk around the block perks me up. Added benefit: my craving for a sugary snack fades as I go.
That thing about sitting on a stability ball always irritates me. You would look like a real idiot doing that at the office. Give me a break.
As demonstrated by "The Office's" Dwight and Jim :)
haha! exactly.
I find drinking water helps a bit. However, what really tends to work for me is dabbing a bit of cool water under/around my eyes. Luckily, I don't wear eye makeup...
This snippet didn't say why 3PM was the "worst," though - I'm disappointed!
Caffeinated drinks do not dehydrate people. That is another common myth--along with the one that a person has to drink 8 glasses of water a day and caffeinated drinks don't count. This particular article is another one of those silly ones that are put out because there isn't anything useful for the person to write about.
Some people crash at 2PM; some at 3PM--this is why the British have tea and people in other cultures take a siesta. Give it a few days, and this same twit will be telling us all to take a quick snooze at our desks (which works for some people and doesn't work for others).
Not everyone crashes after a sugary or salty snack, not everyone has the opportunity to have fresh fruit or cheese, and not everyone even gets tired just after midday.
Seriously, Shape magazine? Isn't that one of those bogus magazines put together by English majors who can't get real jobs and just recycle information from other bogus magazines--the kind that get printed up and sold to doctors' offices for cheap, and we read because there isn't anything else to look at?
This is actually a pretty accurate article. Name-calling people will only hurt you.
I drink upward of 12 glasses of water a day, and for good reason. As a result, my kidneys are healthier than yours. Caffeine occasionally cause a crash, though the common solution to it is unfortunately more caffeine.
Sugary foods shouldn't be consumed at all, period.
Exercise is probably the best countermeasure. Apples, yogurt, and cocoa aren't too bad either.
First, get a job. Then worry about getting a siesta.
Caffeinated drinks do dehydrate people. Blood vessel restriction and the fact that caffeine acts as a diuretic pulling more water from your blood than it needs to, causes dehydration and more frequent urination.
Also drinking 8 or more glasses of water is definitely a great thing for you. It helps to filter out any harmful substances in your body, helps to cleanse keeping everything healthy.
The 3 pm crash is a general term meaning that there is sometime during the day when you crash. Most of the time it happens to people who work at desks but they give some very good resolutions for this problem.
Oh and yes everyone crashes after a sugary snack, it just depends on how each individual person responds to the sugar. Some people produce more insulin to counteract the sugar at a faster pace, causing the crash. Or some people take more time to reduce the blood glucose level meaning that they don't feel the crash nearly as hard.
If you don't have the opportunity for fresh fruit or veggies or cheese getting up and walking around and having a glass of (free) water is just as good of a solution.
change your clocks
Caffeine acts as a mild diuretic only in people who are "caffeine-naive": people who aren't exposed to it regularly or have abstained for a week or longer. People who regularly consume caffeine rapidly become tolerant to its diuretic effects. Thus caffeine is not a diuretic for most people. You can hydrate yourself effectively with caffeine-containing liquids, even at high altitude.
The effect of drinking tea at high altitude on hydration status and mood.
See also Caffeine at High Altitude: Java at Base cAMP.
If mountain climbers at high altitude can hydrate sufficiently with caffeine-containing drinks, the average office flunky can do so safely as well!
If you know it all, why even bother reading what others have to say. Negativity writing like what you posted shows you are nothing but another troll in the internet world. Useless.