Are you finding yourself struggling with energy and motivation while working from home? Are you looking for a natural way to maintain your focus?
When it comes to focus at work, society’s top choice is coffee. While caffeine can certainly give us a great boost of energy and cognitive momentum, overconsumption comes with its dangers. For some, coffee can cause nervousness, restlessness, and difficulty sleeping. In extreme cases of overconsumption, coffee can cause muscle tremors, and even nausea.
While a cup of coffee every so often won’t do too much harm, there are a number of all-natural alternatives that help boost energy and promote focus. Throughout this article, we’re going to take a deeper look into these alternatives and how they might help you.
First though, we’re going to look closer at why working from home can be so challenging, and offer some tips on creating better habits for keeping your energy levels high throughout the day.
Why is it so hard to focus at home?
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many of us have found ourselves working from our homes. While this is a luxury for many, it’s been detrimental to other’s focus. To put it simply, working from home provides a wide range of distractions that are likely to eat up productivity.
According to Psychology Today, one of the biggest reasons for this is we’ve found ourselves trying to be productive in our personal space rather than our professional environment. Our homes are meant to comfort us while our offices, admittedly, tend to stress us. It’s easy to avoid the stress of work when we’re as comfortable as we are in our personal spaces.
But it goes without saying that this isn’t productive nor healthy. And, unfortunately, many of us still don’t know when these stay-at-home guidelines are going to end. Some major companies like Twitter have already decided their employees can work from home permanently. Your company may be next.
So, what can we do in order to maintain focus while we’re doing our jobs from the comfort of our homes?
The answer to that question is naturally going to look different for everyone. You may find it beneficial to grab a cup of joe while others find coffee brings on too much anxiety. Due to these differences, we’re going to offer alternatives to maintaining a mental focus that comes with little to no side effects.
Better focus isn’t just about natural supplements
Before we get into the supplements you can take to improve focus, it’s important to remember that there’s no natural alternative that can fix all your problems. You should look at these supplements as lending a hand with a bigger issue.
When it comes to maintaining focus, our brains are wired to functioning on a routine. The healthier this routine, the better our focus is. If you wake up at the same time every morning, go to sleep at the same time every night, and perform similar activities throughout your day, you’re going to be much happier and more productive.
But what should this routine entail?
Again, this is something that’s going to look different for everyone. Some will find a morning workout to help while others need a 20-minute nap in the middle of the day to recharge. The bottom line is you’ll want to find a routine that works best for you.
With that said, it is in your best interest to consider some activities that promote health and well-being. These can include, but aren’t limited to:
- Exercise
- Meditation
- Spending time with friends and loved ones
- Staying physically active (take a walk, stretch, etc.)
- Taking time to relax (napping, reading, etc.)
We encourage you to experiment around with healthy activities and to find where your perfect fit is. Don’t be afraid to try something new, you may just surprise yourself: maybe you are a morning person after all.
Top natural alternatives to coffee that improve focus
While you promote healthy activities, it can also be beneficial to look into all-natural alternatives that have been found to promote focus and energy. Admittedly, we could write an encyclopedia about the versatile selection Mother Nature has to offer. But for the sake of this article, we’re going to keep our focus on 9 alternatives to coffee that have shown the most results.
Bacopa Monnieri
Sometimes referred to as brahmi, water hyssop, thyme-leaved gratiola, and the herb of grace, bacopa monnieri has been a principal plant for traditional Ayurvedic medicine. It’s been known to help improve memory, concentration, and attention. Not to mention, it’s also a great source of antioxidants that can protect you from free radical cell damage.
Cannabidiol (CBD)
As you probably know, CBD has a list of potential benefits that make it a staple in natural alternatives. It’s able to do this by indirectly balancing out our endocannabinoid system (ECS), part of our nervous systems that’s responsible for a variety of things, from our immune response to the communication between cells. Since our ECS is so prominent in our daily lives, balancing it out can actually help our brains focus.
To take things further, CBD mimics certain compounds within the body that will have an effect on non-cannabinoid receptors. These effects leave you feeling healthier and, when we feel healthier, we tend to be more productive.
Omega-3 Fatty Acids
When we consume foods and supplements with omega-3 fatty acids, they preserve fluidity of cell membranes. In turn, there’s better communication between nerve cells and this provides us with better concentration and mental coherence. Not to mention, by preserving fluidity of cell membranes, omega-3 fatty acids may help with other ailments, such as anxiety and depression. Did we mention hemp seeds are a great source of these?
Lion’s Mane
Lion’s Mane is a mushroom that’s become a popular natural supplement. One of the most prominent aspects of Lion’s Mane is that it’s an adaptogen. This means it can help restore your body and brain’s balance while you’re experiencing stress. Through these properties, Lion’s Mane has also been found to help improve cognitive performance, reduce brain fog, and promote overall mental well-being.
L-Theanine
This amino acid, originally found in tea, supports mental focus while improving cognitive performance. In turn, you’ll have the ability to learn at a quicker rate while processing information faster. It’s worth noting that when L-Theanine is consumed with caffeine, it can further improve cognitive performance and your overall mood.
Rhodiola Rosea
Like Lion’s Mane, Rhodiola Rosea is an adaptogenic plant that helps your brain and body keep balance during times of stress. To take things further, Rhodiola Rosea can also alleviate fatigue and anxiety. Due to these characteristics, this adaptogen has been found to help improve mental concentration and alertness.
Natural sugars
While it isn’t good to overconsume sugar, natural sugars (more particularly, glucose) have been found to enhance alertness. Preferably, you should receive these sugars from various fruits — like oranges and pineapples — rather than sugary foods like cookies and cake.
Experiment with exercise, meditation, natural supplements and more to find your perfect healthy routine.
Keep in mind, recharging your brain with natural sugars is all about quantity. The right amount can improve memory and thinking. But too much can actually inhibit concentration.
Vitamin B6
Vitamin B6 has been found to support mood regulation, focus, and memory. These prominent characteristics have garnered the vitamin as essential when it comes to our brain health. Unfortunately, our body doesn’t naturally produce these — so, the only way to receive these benefits is through food and supplements rich in vitamin B6.
Water
Staying hydrated is a crucial element to maintaining focus throughout the day. And perhaps there’s no better supplement for that than water. In a study published by the University of East London and the University of Westminster, it was discovered that consuming 300ml of water will improve your attention by 25%!
There’s a better, natural way to maintain focus at home
While supplements are a great way to assist us in mental focus, it’s vital we incorporate a number of healthy activities to make the most of natural alternatives. As mentioned, our brains are wired to be on a schedule. It’s safe to say many of our typical routines were thrown off when this nationwide crisis began.
However, that doesn’t mean we can’t make the changes necessary in order to improve our cognitive performance now and for the future.
As you go about this change, you may find yourself curious enough to research some supplements that can help improve focus. While there are a number of great products for you to choose from, we recommend you check out FOCL Day. These capsules are designed to assist in cognitive performance and incorporate many of the natural alternatives we listed above.
We wish you the best of luck as our definition of normal changes day-by-day. Remember, we’re in this together!