This article is about the ways to stay awake all night. As you already know, proper sleep is necessary for our health. But sometimes you need to stay awake all night for many useful things such as working, cleaning, studying and enjoying. Some people are naturally night owls as they have a tendency to be awake for the whole night. If you are staying awake all night, then you are not able to get up early in the morning. And, this is not good from many prospective. However, staying awake all night is not an easy task. But before staying awake all night, you need to get 3 hours of sleep. But don’t make it your routine as it will affect your health. And, you will not be able to work in day time. Some people consume supplements to keep them awake. These supplements are easily available at the drug stores. But supplements are not good at all. If you want to stay awake all night then keep reading this article. You will get some useful tips to stay awake all night.
Understanding How the Body Responds to Loss of Sleep
When trying to stay awake all night, it is important to understand that how your body does responds to the loss of sleep. After about 24 hours of your normal wake up time, your body will likely feel most tired. Experts have even said that this is because of your body’s normal cycle which works in a set system. This process is referred to as your circadian rhythm and means that you might feel more tired at the 24-hour mark of no sleep than you will take at this 30-hour mark.
Your body clock starts giving you periodic second winds when you are sleep deprived. This is basically a way to trigger the wake up signal in your brain that will give your body a boost despite making it sleep deprivation. There are certain things which you can practice in order to trick the body and make it easier to wake up all night.
Best Ways to Stay Awake All Night:
Contents
Following are the best ways which will help you to stay awake all night.
1.) Take a Nap Beforehand To Stay Awake All Night
Taking a nap for even a shorter while can help to wake up all night and will also improve your performance. Tis trick will help to minimize the signs of sleepiness that your body displays when it is sleep deprived. Even a little shut eye for a good 15 minutes can help you to wake up all night without feeling tired or sleepy. These naps are called power naps that will help you feel energized similar to haw it feels when you consume some energy drink for an instant energy boost.
Studies have found that people performed better all day long with the help of taking a short nap for just 26-minutes. So, all you need to do is to shut your eyes for just a few minutes and you will tend to witness the difference that how easier it becomes to make it through the entire night, feeling fresh and energized. The key used in this remedy to wake up all night is to take a short nap or power nap.
A power nap is required when you are feeling tired due to sleep depravity otherwise you will end up getting into a deep sleep without even realizing. And trust me; a deep sleep after your body is tired is very hard to wake out of. You can also try to sleep a little bit longer the night before you are actually planning to wake up all night. This way your body will tend to “bank” the sleep, making it easier to get through the stretch of sleeplessness and helping to wake up all night. If you are planning to be up all night then take a nap during the day. Try to take the nap six or seven hours before your bedtime.
2.) Move Around to Stay Awake All Night
Exercising before bedtime is a good way to keep yourself awake. Don’t try to do cross fit style and high intensity workout as it will make you tired. So, simply walk or you can do other exercises to stay awake for the whole night. Only ten minutes of light exercise will help you to be awake.
3.) Caffeinated Drinks to Stay Awake All Night
Coffee or other type of caffeinated drinks can boost your energy to get you through the night.
- Drinking coffee can help you to be awake for 3 to 4 hours at night.
- So try to drink a cup of coffee every few hours, you will be awake and energetic.
- Start with a cup of black tea or you can drink other energy drinks like red bull.
- If you don’t want to drink coffee then you can drink cold water. The coldness of water will keep you awake and alert.
4.) Lower the Temperature to Stay Up All Night
Your body’s temperature naturally lowers while sleeping and so people tend to sleep better when it’s cold and cozy. However, hot rooms can also probably make you feel sleepy. In addition to lowering the room temperature, you can also open up the windows. The breeze flowing in will help you to wake up all night. This way the trick will work best to help you wake up all night.
- Your body prefers warm temperature to sleep. The warmer the temperature the more you want to fall asleep. Turn on a fan and open the windows.
- If your atmosphere is too hot and you can’t cool it then take a cold shower. That will help you to boost alertness.
- Another way is to apply cold compress to your wrists and head.
5.) Healthy Snack to Stay Awake All Night
Low blood sugar can make you sleepy and foggy. So you should keep your energy level up by having healthy snacks. You need to eat snacks that will give you the energy for a longer time.
- Eat yogurt and granola with peanut butter, fresh fruit and celery.
- You need protein healthy carbs like oats and lots of fruits and vegetables.
- Eat almonds, cashews or pecans.
- Avoid sugar as it can burst energy immediately. It will leave you fatigued and foggy.
- You can have toast with peanut butter to stay up.
6.) Keep the Lights Bright to Stay Awake
Light will slow your biological clock and you sleep more when lights are off. So, keep the lights on as it will hit your receptors which will delay your circadian rhythm and change your biological clock. This is really helpful for you and you can enjoy your night.
When planning to wake up all night, make sure that your room is well lit with bright lights that are actually brighter than the usual. Wondering how this trick works in helping you to wake up all night? Well, your body clearly understands the difference between the changes in lighting and darkness. This way your body will feel more awake in the bright lights. Since the body clock is linked physically to the eyes, if you are feeling super tired the next day, simply go outside in the sun. Getting exposed to the sunlight will help to wake your body up from the tiredness and sleep depravity. When in darkness, your body produces melatonin, which is the sleep hormone. This is the reason why we often tend to turn down the lights at night when trying to sleep. But that’s probably going to make you sleepier when trying to wake up all night. This makes it as one of the best trick to wake up all night.
7.) Talk to a Friend to Stay Up All Night
If you have someone or your friend to talk then you can stay awake easily. So, when you are planning to have fun or any other work at night then call your friend and enjoy the whole night. Friend will stimulate your brain with conversation and presence and you don’t fall asleep at night.
8.) Get Some Sun To Stay Awake All Night
- Sunlight influences your circadian rhythms which help to govern your sleep-wake cycles. Before you sleep all night, spend at least half an hour in daylight. This will keep your sense revitalized.
- Or drinking lots of water will keep you active. Drinking plenty of water will make you go to the washroom again and again and you will stay awake. Moreover, dehydration will make you feel sleepy and lethargic.
9.) Stimulate Your Mind to Stay Awake All Night to Study
Keeping your mind alert is very important to stay up all night. You have to switch tasks from time to time to keep your mind active.
- Pay attention to notice everything.
- Watch a movie and ask yourself questions to keep your mind active.
10.) Stimulate Your Body to Stay Up All Night Without Being Tired
There are few tricks that you can do to keep your body active and alert yourself at night. You cannot fall asleep if your body is active.
- Stretch your wrists, calves and forearms to make your body feel more active.
- Roll your shoulders forward and backward and move your head from side to side.
- Give yourself hand massage.
- Pinch yourself if you are falling asleep.
- Chew gum or you can suck mint to keep your mouth active.
- Look out a window and gaze a new location, if your eyes are getting tired.
11.) Stay Busy and Move
Keep on working and moving will tend to alert your brain which will eventually help you to wake up all night. In case if you do not have sufficient time to exercise, you can simply engage in some conversation, or just perform the chores. Try to do something to focus your body on a new action instead of feeling tired and sleep deprived. Bringing changes in the activities may also help to wake up all night. This way, your body will become more attentive and alert in order to compensate for the new activities being performed.
12.) No Carbs, Only Protein
Proteins take time to digest and when trying to wake up all night, these will tend to a lot work to your body and divert the senses from feeling drowsy. The tendency of our body is that it requires something to burn in order to stay busy and this will help you to get through the night. Particularly if you are focusing on a brain-intensive task similar to writing a paper, so this adds to a good idea and makes you grab some snacks or an extra meal to keep you awake all night. Instead of focusing on carbs like potato chips, pizza and most of the biggest late-night cramming staples which can make you gain weight, simply focus on your protein consumption.
The reason behind this recommendation is that Carbs tend to store energy for later and can eventually make you feel sleepy on the other hand proteins tend to provide your body with instant energy. Everyone tends to associate foods with high carbohydrates levels and with a lot of energy, but what they actually do is to prepare your body to exert the energy which is produced. Confusing, isn’t it? Well this means that carbs help your body only when they are accompanied with regular exercise. So, it is better to take proteins in order to wake up mall night. Proteins are much more helpful in keeping you going through the night and helping to wake up all night without feeling drowsy.
13.) Do Some Periodic Exercise
Physical workout has strong effects on your brain and also helpful in increasing the productivity on your body. A quick, 20-minute workout can help your brain directly to wake up all night. This is actually advisable when preparing for an exam. Exercise can help to boost the ability of your brain to learn and also improves your memory. The trick also helps you to indulge in creative thinking which in other terms is referred to as trait neuroplasticity.
When not wanting to exhaust your body with a full body workout, try to exercise for a shorter span than what you usually practice. However, doing a few pushups or jumping jacks, going for a walk or any activity which gets your blood flowing will help to keep your brain on the right track and assist in the process to wake up all night. This is basically a physiological response to thousands of years of evolution. When your body is exerted with physical energy, it automatically signals to your brain that it is time to be alert and focused and not to feel sleepy or lazy. This makes it as another important tip that can help you to wake up all night.
14.) When You Are Done, Rest and Regroup
With the help of the enlisted tips, you could finally make it to the task. But, it’s not just about the task but about your health too. So, after you are done accomplishing the goal, not its time to think about your body and give it the rest which is required. It is time that you get back to the track on how your body naturally works. Trust me, it is going to be really tempting to go back home and hug your bed as soon as possible and this time sneaking under the covers will help you get through the next day as your body has taken the rest and recovered from last night. This is probably an after trick when you are done with your task and to wake up all night.
One of the most important recovery tricks is to stop pulling all-nighters as much as possible. Do it only when it is a “Do or Die” situation.
Useful Tips:
- Find ways to keep yourself busy and occupied.
- Do exercises to stay awake all night.
- You can play your favorite game on your mobile phone to stay awake all night without caffeine.
- Take a cold shower so that you can’t sleep at night.
- By taking a small walk outside you can wake up for the whole night.
- Stretch your muscles so that you feel good instead restricted and slow.
- Talk and have a laugh with your friends or mates. If you enjoy then you will forget about being tired.
- Get fresh air because it really works great to wake you up at night.
- Drink water with ice because dehydration can make your feel tired.
- Wash your face with cold water to stay awake.