This Is Why You Feel So Tired After Lunch - And How To Beat It

#1

For many of us, the morning is the most productive part of the day - but when we get past lunch, we just slump.

But there's a solid, scientific reason for this, according to Dr Fiona Kerr of the University of Adelaide - and there's a cure.

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Basically, human beings are built for two sleeps a day - meaning your body ‘expects' a nap around lunch time.

Kerr says, ‘A major reason for this is that human beings are biphasic (physically designed for two sleeps a day), with two major bodily rhythms (homeostatic sleep drive and circadian arousal) which pull us in different directions in terms of staying awake or sleeping, but they fascinatingly align in the middle of the day to create a ‘nap zone'.'

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And the best way to beat isn't a Spanish-style siesta - it's a 15-minute nap, Kerr says.

Kerr says, ‘The most common nap is 15 to 20 minutes (often called the Stage 2 nap) which refreshes the brain and increases alertness and motor performance.

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‘Having a nap of twenty minutes is also more beneficial than sleeping for an extra twenty minutes in the morning.