How to kick the caffeine habit and stay alert in the morning

A slight addiction to caffeine is fairly common among college students, what with all the late night studying for exams, but it’s not entirely healthy. If you find that you can’t even crawl out of bed in the morning without a cup of coffee, but want to kick the habit, try these alternative strategies for staying awake and alert in the morning:

1. Take a shower

If you normally do your bathing at night, try switching your shower routine to the morning. Like splashing cold water on your face, taking a cool shower will give your day a refreshing and invigorating start. You can also use a citrus-scented body scrub or shampoo to further help you snap out of your morning grogginess.

2. Move your alarm

Instead of repeatedly hitting the snooze button and accidentally being late for class (again), move your alarm across the room so you are forced to get out of bed when it goes off. Make sure the sound you use for your alarm is particularly abrasive – if that doesn’t convince you to fly out of bed in the morning, we don’t know what will.

3. Exercise

Working out releases endorphins and is a great way to get you energized and ready to meet the day. Try waking up half an hour earlier each morning and going for a quick run. Top it off with a cool shower afterward, and you won’t need to clutch your coffee mug all day.

4. Make your own energy drink

Rather than buying coffee each morning, which can quickly become expensive, save some cash by making your own morning beverages at home. Energizing drinks like peppermint tea or green juice filled with fruits and veggies are not only healthy, they will also get you ready to confront the day.