DITCH THE 3PM SLUMP 3 Simple Steps to feeling more energised in the afternoon.
Eat more protein
You probably hear this all the time, but increasing your protein really does wonders to your energy levels and your cravings, especially around the 3pm slump time. Making sure that your lunch and your afternoon tea is high in protein will help to balance blood sugar levels around this time, preventing a crash and that craving for Sugar/chocolate a lot of people feel around 3pm. To help maintain balanced blood sugar levels and high energy throughout the entire day balancing each meal with enough protein, as well as good fats and good carbohydrates is essential. The fats and the carbs are generally easily met, but protein is what people tend to struggle with the most.
So how can you increase your protein?
Making sure that your lunch and snacks contains foods such as lean meats, fish, eggs, nuts and seeds is the best way.
Some ideas include:
Hard boiled egg
protein balls
left over smoothie with protein powder
natural peanut butter and carrot sticks, or apple
Trail mix of nuts and coconut chips.
Tin of tuna
Adding in some chicken, turkey breast or some chickpeas to your lunchtime salad.
2. Add movement into your lunch break
Again, a really easy one to implement and can do wonders, not only for your energy in the afternoon but also for your mind. I find that getting out from behind the desk at this time helps me to re-focus, resulting in increased productivity and that satisfying feeling of getting stuff done! The more you move the more energy you have as well, which really helps to kick that afternoon slump. It doesn't have to be massive gym session or anything to strenuous. A simple walk around the block can do the world of good. So get out on your lunch break and go for a quick window shop, or make a trip to the supermarket and pick up a few things now rather than having to stop off on your way home. Any form of movement away from the desk will help to boost your energy at this time.
3. Sleep.
This is often a big contributor and can be a tough one to identify in many people. If you’re not sleeping deeply then your body isn't able to recharge and repair. It is the same as your phone, if you don’t fully charge it before your day begins then chances are it the batteries aren’t going to last as long as it should, and it’s the same with your body.
A good idea is to download the sleep cycle app and really see how your body is sleeping, or not sleeping throughout the night. If you’r finding that your in a light sleep for the majority of the night then until you fix that, not much else is going to help your energy levels.
Getting into a good routine before bed is essential to enjoying a good nights sleep, so that means no excessive screen time, no caffeine after lunch time and a warm bath or warm mug of milk/chamomile tea are all the go!
By implementing these 3 things into your everyday, the 3pm slump should be a thing of the past. No more grabbing that chocolate or coffee to get you through the last few hours of work and watch your productivity flourish.
