Commuters - How do you stay awake?

[Aptyp]

Do your gas stations sell a drink called Jolt? On my trip to Iowa, I bought a can to boost energy, from Indianapolis to Iowa city, I was so wired, I thought I would have a heart attack. I will never drink one without eating first.

[AndrewBird]

^^^I used to drink Jolt all the time in the morning. Never had any effect on me. Caffeine never did much to me. I've been know to finish a 16oz WhoopAss and then go to sleep.

The chewing gum idea might not be bad. I know it would work for me. The shower thing is a good idea too. By the time I'm out of the shower in the morning, I am WAY more awake.

[equate975]

I did a similar commute to school all last year, 54 miles from driveway to parking lot but it only took me about 45 min since I hit 0 stop lights.

http://www.r3vlimited.com/board/showthread.php?t=119948

[JGood]

I used to have a shit schedule while I was in college. Wake up at 6am, work at a garage down the street from 6:30am-4:00pm, then commute to school 60 minutes, school from 6pm-10pm, commute 60 minutes home and get to sleep by midnight and do it all again the next day. Driving home at that time after a long day of both physical and mental stress is torture.

I never drank coffee, took any kinds of pills, anything. I'd say the thing that helped most was talking. Whether it's to yourself, listening to the radio and "thinking" along with the conversation, calling someone, whatever you gotta do to keep your brain moving. Rolling the windows down and cranking the music up only help for 2-3 minutes tops.

One thing I will say, if you feel your eyes start to close, pull the fuck over and get out. I don't care where you are, how hard it is to merge back into traffic, whatever. Pull over and get out and walk around, don't kill somebody by falling asleep.

[FredK]

One thing I will say, if you feel your eyes start to close, pull the fuck over and get out. I don't care where you are, how hard it is to merge back into traffic, whatever. Pull over and get out and walk around, don't kill somebody by falling asleep.

Yeah, definitely.

7 hours of sleep should be plenty, but some people are different. Some people need 8, some people need 6, some more, some less. Tinker around with going to bed earlier, and also, don't deviate from your sleeping schedule too too much on weekends--don't stay out until 4am.

[shiftbmw]

Brush you teeth. Supposedly the stimulation on your gums does something to keep you awake...

[DarkWing6]

Long story short, I lay waste to the bathroom when I get to work, and proceed to rip ass for the rest of the day until about lunch. I've also tried energy drinks, but they're kind of starting to do the same thing. I have a pretty wussy stomach, it's true.

I gave up on energy drinks and coffee recently for this very reason.

I take the bus and sleep when I have to go up to school (hour+ away) and my commute to work took me 8min today. ;)


To actually be helpful I would say shower in the mornings and chew gum while driving. I have been waking up early for years and the early morning shower is definately one of the reasons I can do it.

[DEV0 E30]

The 5 hours I like, but the niacin will turn some people's veins red or make you feel like you're having a hot flash. It's packed full of B vitamins which do more than just caffeine, but again it's your call.

Having an apple after you've been driving for awhile is a good idea. Starting the morning with green tea is also as suggested a good idea.

--don't stay out until 4am.

Ok mom.

Brush you teeth. Supposedly the stimulation on your gums does something to keep you awake...

I hear a little bit of cocaine on the gums will do the same thing.

[k_wakasugi]

I can't really suggest what to do, but I can tell you what works for me. I definitely do feel more awake on days that I shower in the morning. Brushing my teeth / washing my face with one of those tingly face washes makes me feel more alert. If i start to feel sleepy on my way to work and if it's cold outside, which it usually is at 6a (I also start at 7a with an hour long commute), then I'll roll down the windows a bit to get that blast of cold air on my face. Music doesn't work for me, talk shows that engage me do the trick. I too am a fan of green tea (yamamotoyama brand in case you're wondering) over coffee (mostly because coffee at the office is shit), but I usually don't drink it once I reach the office, so I can't really saw how it'd help on the drive, but the caffeine does help keep me up at work.

Whew... Cliff notes:
- shower / brush teeth / wash face
- cold air from open windows
- engaging talk shows on radio
- green tea

[FredK]

Ok mom.

You're grounded. No Playstation 3 for you for a week.

[Thighs]

when i drove to NC 2 weeks ago for some motors, i got really tired about halfway there and started to doze off. windows down and music helped a little, but i couldnt find any music i liked.

so i just started hauling ass. yeah, dangerous, blah blah blah. but it kept me up long enough to wake up a little and then i stopped for some food.

[SpecM]

I find it nice to talk to myself/the radio. Crazy, but keeps the mind alert.

[delatlanta1281]

When I was traveling alot, I would turn on talk radio, when that stopped working it was onto country. But pull the hell over if you can't stay awake. Better to be late than dead.

[StereoInstaller1]

Clean Jazz at medium (to me, that is) volume, something where I can be impressed with the musicians, not just the sound of the stereo.

Caffiene? I do about 300mg every morning...or I post nasty rants on R3V.

5 hour energy stuff? Works great, but READ THE DAMN LABEL! that is (supposed to be) 2 servings!

Generally, I have to wake up an hour or two before I have to leave the house.

[Van Westervelt]

I am not gonna read both full pages of this... Start getting up a bit earlier, and going for a 20 min run before you shower/eat. Will get your blood and heart going, telling your body that sleep time is over.