Why the Best Time to Drink Coffee Is Before You Wake Up

Many of us believe that life (or at least your day) begins with coffee. Whether hot or cold brewed, French-pressed or dripped, Americano or latte, or Zest's wake-up caffeine pill, we rely on our morning caffeine fix to wake up our body and sharpen our mind. In fact, some of us can’t complete a full sentence before that first cup.

Somewhat contrary to the recent trend of delaying caffeine popularized by Andrew Huberman, here's why the sleep experts at Zest Labs believe that the best time to have caffeine, is just as you're waking up.

Why? It’s all about stress hormones and biological rhythms, and a concept called the coffee nap.

Drinking coffee and circadian rhythms

Our circadian rhythm is our internal body clock. It helps regulate our sleep-wake cycle, including the morning release of cortisol and epinephrine. These are hormones that enhance alertness and focus. The release of cortisol is timed to our sleep wake cycle, with levels that peak around 45 minutes after we wake up, then drop rapidly for the next few hours and slowly decline throughout the rest of the day.

Coffee, specifically its caffeine content, can impact circadian rhythms. Here's how coffee can affect circadian rhythms:

• Delayed melatonin release: Melatonin is a hormone that helps regulate the sleep-wake cycle. Caffeine too late in the day can delay the release of melatonin, making it more difficult to fall asleep at a desired time. This delay in melatonin release can shift the circadian rhythm, making it harder to align with desired sleep schedules.
• Resetting the body clock: The body's circadian rhythm is regulated by an internal "body clock" located in the brain. External cues, such as light exposure and daily routines, influence this clock. Caffeine can affect the timing of the body clock by altering the perception of time and the synchronization of internal processes. This can lead to a temporary shift in the circadian rhythm, shifting your sleep patterns and daily rhythms. In the case of Zest, as the caffeine is being released as you're waking up, this helps you shift your daily rhythms forward, and support waking up earlier. However, habitual caffeine consumers (200mg+/day) develop a tolerance to caffeine’s effect on cortisol, meaning this does not apply to most daily coffee drinkers

It's important to note that individuals have different sensitivities to caffeine, and its impact on circadian rhythms can vary. Some people may be more tolerant, while others may be more sensitive to caffeine.

Caffeine and cortisol

The day-to-day release of cortisol is timed to our sleep-wake cycle, with levels that peak around 45 minutes after we wake up. They then drop rapidly for the next few hours and slowly decline throughout the rest of the day.

You may be familiar with Andrew Huberman, neuroscientist and professor at Stanford University School of Medicine, and his recommendation to wait 90 to 120 minutes (2 hours?!!) for his first cup of coffee, even though he’s “thinking about and fantasizing about and craving caffeine” the moment he wakes up.

“One of the best ways to ensure a caffeine crash is to drink a bunch of caffeine, block all those adenosine receptors, and then by early or late afternoon when that caffeine starts to wear off and get dislodged from the receptors, a lower level of adenosine is able to create a greater level of sleepiness. It took me years to figure this out!" Huberman said.

“The reason I delay caffeine is that one of the factors that induces a sense of sleepiness is the build-up of adenosine in our system,” he said. "The buildup of adenosine accumulates the longer we’re awake, so early morning your adenosine levels are likely to be very low.

"However, caffeine is an adenosine blocker—actually a competitive antagonist, meaning it binds to the same receptors that adenosine does."

We want to correct the record: Caffeine consumption does not cause an afternoon crash by "blocking adenosine too early." Afternoon fatigue is influenced far more by meal timing, hydration, and overall caffeine intake throughout the day. If a caffeine crash does occur, it is generally because of how much caffeine was consumed, not when it was consumed. Additionally, Adenosine does not continue to decline upon waking — it is rapidly cleared during sleep and begins accumulating again once you wake up. This means that delaying caffeine does not help “clear” adenosine—it is already at its lowest point upon waking.

Caffeine and adenosine, and why caffeine is more effective right after sleep

While you’re awake and going about your day, a chemical compound called adenosine gradually accumulates in parts of your brain. Adenosine is typically what makes you feel drowsy and ready for bed. Caffeine works by binding to adenosine receptors in our brain. When caffeine binds to those receptors, it blocks our ability to feel the effects of adenosine, so we feel less sleepy, more energetic and focused.

Because adenosine is cleared from your brain when you sleep, this frees up the receptors such that caffeine is able to more effectively bind to them. This effectively means that you’ll be able to better feel the effects of caffeine, and feel more alert and focused as a result. This is also known popularly as a coffee nap.

To delay, or not delay?

The same reason why a coffee nap works, is the same reason why caffeine is actually more potent immediate after waking up.

Dr. Huberman has recently clarified his stance, and specify that it is for people who regularly experience an afternoon crash:

There is no scientific evidence that delaying caffeine intake prevents an afternoon crash. If someone experiences an afternoon crash, the best solution is a second dose of caffeine in the early afternoon, not delaying the morning dose.

To ward off this crash, Zest's timed-release wake-up pill gradually releases caffeine over the course of 2 hours. This maintains a more gradual and consistent level of caffeine in your bloodstream, avoiding the spike and subsequent crash associated with consuming caffeine from a cup of coffee, which metabolizes all at once and cause a higher cortisol peak. This steady release helps sustain your energy levels throughout the day and avoid that typical afternoon crash from caffeine. This gets you the best of both worlds: no delaying, and also no crash.

Where to start?

If just the thought of delaying your morning caffeine buzz stresses you out, consider trying Zest. As many people gulp down their coffee out of habit as part of a chaotic morning, it might also be worth experimenting with Zest's delayed release caffeine, to better optimize your caffeine delivery.

Bottom line: The best way to optimize caffeine for maximum potency is just after you wake up, and to release it gradually to support cortisol levels throughout your morning and prevent a crash. Zest's timed-release technology will help with both.