Photo: Seth Restaino (Getty Images)
During my years on the party scene, nothing was more essential to my survival than coffee. Its rich caffeinated essence kept me going when my body probably should have quit on the spot. Thankfully, I have moved on from that portion of my life, but I haven’t turned my back on coffee. In honor of the recently celebrated International Coffee Day, I’m sharing these tips to ensure you get the most out of your coffee experience.
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According to information gathered from Metro.co.uk, the best time maximize your caffeine intake is 10 a.m. Lifestyle expert Dr. Sara Brewer says this is because your cortisol levels are higher when you first get up. So put off that cup of joe until after these levels have evened out.
Brewer explains, “Your blood cortisol levels are highest between half-an-hour and two hours after waking and when your cortisol is peaking, it’s the worst time to drink coffee because caffeine mimics the stress response and causes your cortisol levels to rise even further. This disturbs your biorhythms and induces a caffeine intolerance so it is less effective later in the day.”
If watered-down ice coffee ruins your afternoon, try coffee ice cubes. Making them is as simple as it sounds and will keep you going all day long. Just put cooled-down java into an ice cube tray and pop it into the freezer. Later, drop those bad boys into your afternoon ice coffee for a hack that will put some pep in your step.
If a latte is your thing, but you don’t want to splurge on a pricey milk frother, you can turn to your French press for help. Put hot, full-fat milk inside your French press, and then plunge it until it becomes foam. This takes about a minute, depending on how foamy you want your milk. If it’s not to your preference, put the lid back on and keep plunging.
Finally, if you’re splurging on cold brew every afternoon, you can make it for next to nothing in your own blender. According to Chow, coarsely grind 4.5 ounces or 1 3/4 cups of coffee beans into your blender. Next, add 3 1/2 cups of cold water. Cover and let sit for at least 12 hours for the best homemade cold brew.
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Do you have any coffee hacks that we didn’t cover? Let us know in the comments so we can spread the love around!
