Sleep is very important for your health. It is a state in which your body rests nicely, especially brain. However, sometimes you just need to stay awake, for example, to finish some project or to study for upcoming exams. Let us learn how to do it without harming your health!
10 Things Helping to Study for Long Hours at Night
Before using any advice, notice that staying awake for the whole night long is never good for your health. If you have to do it, make sure you rest nicely the following night. Moreover, it is hard not to fall asleep in the morning; and if you do, your daily regime will be broken. Therefore, consider staying awake at night a last resort.
List of the Best Envigorating Foods
If you want to stay awake at night, you should consume only healthy, refreshing food. Do not eat anything fat and hard to digest, as you will feel sleepy. Here is the list of best invigorating foods.
Apple
Apples are full of energy, as they contain many vitamins. Moreover, these fruits are filled with microelements, such as iron, that are invigorating. Therefore, eating an apple helps you stay awake and refreshes your brain. As there are many acids in apple content, they ‘turn you on’ immediately.
Chocolate
Chocolate is known to be good for your brain. As it contains natural sugars and some special substances too, a bar of chocolate can increase the metabolism and raise serotonin production. So, you feel happy and lively. That is why you should get some chocolate before going to study for the whole night long.
Grapefruits and Oranges
These fruits are full of vitamin C, which is rather invigorating. In addition, they contain a lot of water, which helps your cells work nicely and increases metabolism. It is also a good idea to get a chocolate with citrus filling, as this way you combine two useful foods in one.
Eggs
Chicken eggs contain many proteins. They are needed for your whole body to maintain hormone production at a good level. That is why you usually eat eggs in the morning. However, if you need to stay awake at night, this food can help you. As proteins start to digest, you will not feel sleepy for a couple of hours at least.
Spinach
This vegetable is a good product for staying awake, as there is a nice combination of iron and vitamin C in its content. We have mentioned before that these two substances are the best for refreshing your body and increasing metabolism. Therefore, eat some fresh spinach during the night to invigorate yourself.
Nuts
All kinds of nuts are good for your brain. They stimulate its work, providing a full combination of beneficial vitamins.
Just a handful of nuts can help you work and study much more productively.
However, eating too much is not really helpful.
Banana
Bananas are the best fruits to give you an energy reserve. They are full of complex carbohydrates that digest for a long time. It is a good thing if you need to stay awake for long, as two bananas can provide you with energy for more than five hours in a row.
Yogurt
Yogurts contain many beneficial bacteria. It is good for your digestive system, but also gives you some energy. Eat or drink some yogurt during all the night you study to help your body remain invigorated. You may add some berries to it; they are good for staying awake too.
Oatmeal
Oatmeal is another healthy food you eat in the morning. This cereal contains many carbs that are slowly digested. Therefore, if you eat a bowl of oatmeal with milk, it will help you stay awake for a few hours. You may mix it with yogurt as well.
Pomegranate
Pomegranate is full of vitamins A, B, C, E and P. This combination is very beneficial for health and invigorates nicely too.
Pomegranate stimulates appetite.
This way your body stays awake until it gets something to eat. Use it for staying awake for as long as you need.
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Healthy Energy Drinks
There are also some beneficial drinks that can help you stay awake at night to study. Notice that we have not added coffee to this list, as it is bad for your health to drink it at night. Nothing mentioned is harmful though.
Water
There is nothing to refresh better than a glass of water. It increases your metabolism and helps your cells cleanse. You should drink at least two liters of water daily. However, if you stay awake at night, the same quantity is needed additionally.
Fresh Juice
Orange, apple or grapefruit juices are as refreshing as fresh fruits are. Add some ice to them in order to make the drink the most invigorating. Notice that you still need the same amount of water, as it is not a beverage, but a catalyzer for your body.
Black Tea
Black tea contains a lot of caffeine. However, unlike coffee, it does not give it away immediately. When you drink a cup of black tea, you get some energy for a few hours. Moreover, any tea stimulates the work of digestive system, which makes you stay awake as well.
Homemade Lemonade
Mix some lemons, mint and sugar in water. Add some ice to make it refreshing.
Such drink contains a lot of vitamin C and carbohydrates that are both healthy and invigorating.
Make sure it is cold, as a warm lemonade is not very tasty and cannot refresh that well.
Cocoa
Cocoa with milk is actually a liquid chocolate. It also provides serotonin production and makes your brain stay fit. What is more, cocoa is never harmful, so you can drink as much as you need. Unlike the lemonade, it should be warm, even hot, to work as meant to.
One Cycle Sleeping
Sleep pattern contains cycles that go one after another. One cycle takes approximately 1.5 hours. It is easy for your brain to wake up at the end of a cycle.
Therefore, if you sleep for 1.5-2 hours, you will rest and feel lively for the whole night.
If you start feeling drowsy again, you can use a 15-minutes sleep. This way you let your brain refresh before a sleep cycle starts; just make sure you wake up in time.
Physical Exercises
Some physical activity can help you stay awake. We are not talking about serious exercises, just stretch a little. For example, do some jumping jacks (jump, lifting your arms). Tilt your neck aside or straighten your back. Do it as soon as you feel sleepy. This way you make blood circulate nicely and get to brain, so an energy charge spreads through your body.
Refreshing Essential Oils
Some essential oils help you sleep well, while the others are good for staying awake. For example, apply some tea tree, citrus or peppermint oil on your neck. A few drops will do the thing. The pleasant aroma of these oils invigorates nicely, making you feel lively and ready to work.
Hot and Cold Shower
A cold shower refreshes all of your muscles and helps blood circulate faster. This way you get a lot of energy.
It is also a good idea to take a hot shower and then switch water to cold immediately.
So, pores open and are cleansed, so you feel refreshed and cheerful. Take a shower each time you want to sleep during the night.
Fresh Air
Make sure the room you are working in is ventilated nicely. Fresh air makes your brain operate better and helps you stay awake. If it is winter, open a window for 15 minutes and leave the room. Repeat it every 2 hours, so that the air inside is always fresh and clean.
Pleasant and Energizing Music
Songs you like provide serotonin production, which makes your brain work better and invigorates nicely. However, make sure the music you listen to is lively, but not disturbing. Find the golden mean where the song does not distract your attention (as you still need to study), but is loud and happy. It is better if there are no vocals.
Group Work
It is a lot harder to fall asleep, if there is a company. If your friends need to study too, ask them to join you for the ‘night marathon’. You may talk every hour or discuss some difficult topics. This way you both will learn faster and stay awake. Although, make sure your partner does not fall asleep. As soon as it happens, you will not be able to study any longer.
Proper Lighting
Make sure the room (and your desk in particular) is well-lit. First of all, it is better for your eyes. Secondly, a bright light keeps you awake nicely. Perhaps, it is more convenient to use some night light, as you feel relaxed with it, but the lack of light means for your brain that it is time to sleep. Contrariwise, a bright light means day, a time to work hard.
Studying for all night long is, of course, not good for your health. However, if you do need it, make sure everything helps you stay awake.
You should not drink coffee or energy drinks, as they do not invigorate, just prevent you from sleeping.
Everything we have mentioned in the article works better together. For example, sleep for 1.5 hours, stretch your back, take a shower, drink some water and start studying. Don’t forget to tell us about your studying night experience!
