From morning coffee to power nap How to live in harmony with your inner clock
Nothing is more important for your body than drinking enough fluids. The best way to start the day is with a large glass of lukewarm water - spiced up with a little lemon, lime, mint, ginger or apple cider vinegar. This prevents dehydration, helps detoxify and gets your digestion going.
Image: iStock/Valeriy_G
Your body will be in detox mode until around midday. Meals that are difficult to digest are taboo! Go for a smoothie instead - whether with sweet ingredients such as blueberries, spicy ones such as moringa or unusual ones such as beetroot and chia. You can also boost your vitamin intake with a tablespoon of coconut oil or nut butter.
Image: iStock/nerudol
Coffee fans need to be strong now: Unfortunately, brown gold is not an ideal drink to start the day. Only around three hours after getting up will your cortisol levels have dropped enough to make that first coffee really make sense.
Image: Sebastian Gollnow/dpa
Stay away from your morning coffee - your body is still in stress mode. If your cortisol level is high, coffee will only give you an extra boost. So if you get up at 6.30 a.m., it's best to steer clear of it between 8 and 9 a.m. After lunch, however, it's okay to have an espresso.
Image: Daniel Karmann/dpa
No matter how stressful your working day is: You should give your body a break after 12 noon. Now is the ideal time for your first real lunch. Vegetables, protein and carbohydrates are particularly suitable - your body can process them optimally at this time.
Image: iStock / Elena_Danileiko
You may be familiar with the so-called siesta from your beach vacation in the Mediterranean: smaller stores in particular close between 2 and 5 p.m. so that everyone can take a break. A power nap at this time can also do wonders for your well-being.
Image: iStock / Deagreez
According to studies, a power nap of around 20 minutes is considered ideal. If you sleep longer, your natural day-night rhythm can become unbalanced. So if you say goodbye for a quarter of an hour at around 1.30 pm, this is anything but laziness.
Image: iStock / Milkos
You can really get going between 2 and 4 p.m. - the supposed afternoon slump is a myth. During this time, your body is naturally particularly efficient and focused.
Image: Sebastian Gollnow/dpa
Need a little sugar boost in the afternoon? Then reach for fresh fruit rather than a chocolate bar. Fruit should be eaten separately from other meals anyway - and it provides you with the ideal energy boost before exercise.
Image: sda
Which brings us to the next important topic: the workout. If you want to build muscle, the afternoon or early evening is the best time to train. This is when your body temperature is naturally higher - and the risk of injury is lowest. But the basic rule is: exercise is always good, no matter when.
Image: KEYSTONE
If you don't get to exercise until late in the evening, it's better to stay relaxed: Focus on calm activities such as yoga, stretching or a walk. An endurance run just before going to bed is not good for you or your body.
Image: Sebastian Gollnow/dpa
The following applies to a healthy diet: there should be a break of around four hours between meals. An early dinner around 6 p.m. is ideal for your body and digestion. It is best to eat light carbohydrates such as sweet potatoes or protein-rich foods such as fish.
Image: iStock / lll0228
The sun sets the rhythm: It controls our day-night rhythm - and therefore also our internal clock. Your body starts to release the sleep hormone melatonin at around 9 pm. So it's time to wind down slowly.
Image: iStock / FTiare
To shut down better, you should avoid a few things in the evening: Caffeine, sugar and heavy food disrupt your sleep just as much as the blue light from screens - whether TV, cell phone or alarm clock. One hour before going to sleep at the latest: everything off!
Image: iStock / OcusFocus
If everything goes according to plan, you will be in the deep sleep phase at around 2 am. It's not until around four hours later, i.e. around 6 a.m., that your body slowly starts to wake up: melatonin secretion decreases, while body temperature and blood pressure rise again.
Image: KEYSTONE
You may be wondering how you can tell that your internal clock is out of sync. There are a few signs: Do you feel tired or even down all the time? Do you often have ravenous appetite attacks? Then this could be the reason. The best remedy: get out into the fresh air - and eat and sleep regularly.
Image: iStock / MangoStar_Studio
Nothing is more important for your body than drinking enough fluids. The best way to start the day is with a large glass of lukewarm water - spiced up with a little lemon, lime, mint, ginger or apple cider vinegar. This prevents dehydration, helps detoxify and gets your digestion going.
Image: iStock/Valeriy_G
Your body will be in detox mode until around midday. Meals that are difficult to digest are taboo! Go for a smoothie instead - whether with sweet ingredients such as blueberries, spicy ones such as moringa or unusual ones such as beetroot and chia. You can also boost your vitamin intake with a tablespoon of coconut oil or nut butter.
Image: iStock/nerudol
Coffee fans need to be strong now: Unfortunately, brown gold is not an ideal drink to start the day. Only around three hours after getting up will your cortisol levels have dropped enough to make that first coffee really make sense.
Image: Sebastian Gollnow/dpa
Stay away from your morning coffee - your body is still in stress mode. If your cortisol level is high, coffee will only give you an extra boost. So if you get up at 6.30 a.m., it's best to steer clear of it between 8 and 9 a.m. After lunch, however, it's okay to have an espresso.
Image: Daniel Karmann/dpa
No matter how stressful your working day is: You should give your body a break after 12 noon. Now is the ideal time for your first real lunch. Vegetables, protein and carbohydrates are particularly suitable - your body can process them optimally at this time.
Image: iStock / Elena_Danileiko
You may be familiar with the so-called siesta from your beach vacation in the Mediterranean: smaller stores in particular close between 2 and 5 p.m. so that everyone can take a break. A power nap at this time can also do wonders for your well-being.
Image: iStock / Deagreez
According to studies, a power nap of around 20 minutes is considered ideal. If you sleep longer, your natural day-night rhythm can become unbalanced. So if you say goodbye for a quarter of an hour at around 1.30 pm, this is anything but laziness.
Image: iStock / Milkos
You can really get going between 2 and 4 p.m. - the supposed afternoon slump is a myth. During this time, your body is naturally particularly efficient and focused.
Image: Sebastian Gollnow/dpa
Need a little sugar boost in the afternoon? Then reach for fresh fruit rather than a chocolate bar. Fruit should be eaten separately from other meals anyway - and it provides you with the ideal energy boost before exercise.
Image: sda
Which brings us to the next important topic: the workout. If you want to build muscle, the afternoon or early evening is the best time to train. This is when your body temperature is naturally higher - and the risk of injury is lowest. But the basic rule is: exercise is always good, no matter when.
Image: KEYSTONE
If you don't get to exercise until late in the evening, it's better to stay relaxed: Focus on calm activities such as yoga, stretching or a walk. An endurance run just before going to bed is not good for you or your body.
Image: Sebastian Gollnow/dpa
The following applies to a healthy diet: there should be a break of around four hours between meals. An early dinner around 6 p.m. is ideal for your body and digestion. It is best to eat light carbohydrates such as sweet potatoes or protein-rich foods such as fish.
Image: iStock / lll0228
The sun sets the rhythm: It controls our day-night rhythm - and therefore also our internal clock. Your body starts to release the sleep hormone melatonin at around 9 pm. So it's time to wind down slowly.
Image: iStock / FTiare
To shut down better, you should avoid a few things in the evening: Caffeine, sugar and heavy food disrupt your sleep just as much as the blue light from screens - whether TV, cell phone or alarm clock. One hour before going to sleep at the latest: everything off!
Image: iStock / OcusFocus
If everything goes according to plan, you will be in the deep sleep phase at around 2 am. It's not until around four hours later, i.e. around 6 a.m., that your body slowly starts to wake up: melatonin secretion decreases, while body temperature and blood pressure rise again.
Image: KEYSTONE
You may be wondering how you can tell that your internal clock is out of sync. There are a few signs: Do you feel tired or even down all the time? Do you often have ravenous appetite attacks? Then this could be the reason. The best remedy: get out into the fresh air - and eat and sleep regularly.
Image: iStock / MangoStar_Studio
Did you know that your body has an internal clock that determines when you are awake, hungry or tired? Your circadian rhythm influences more than you think - on a daily basis.
Smoothie, cheese sandwich, coffee or power nap? We usually make these decisions out of habit - or because it suits us.
But we rarely really listen to our bodies. This is because few people know what lies behind the so-called circadian rhythm. This "internal clock" controls when we are awake, hungry or tired - and how we can live in harmony with ourselves. In the picture gallery you can see what is important here.
