Send this to all your coffee drinking friends. Trust me, they’ll thank you.

Coffee Jitters? No Thanks!

We all live busy lives. We want to get more done in less time. It’s no wonder that 64% of people in the United States consume coffee on a daily basis.

Coffee might seem like a straight-forward way to ‘hack’ your productivity, but not without significant side-effects.

We’ve all felt coffee’s effects: a spike in energy, followed by the jitters, and then the crash.

But, what if there was a way to hack your coffee, and achieve all the same great benefits without any of the side-effects? Lucky for you, there is!!

Introducing L-Theanine

Please excuse the long and intimidating sounding name! Put simply, l-theanine is one of the main ingredients in the Tea Plant (Camellia Sinensis).

This rare and powerful amino acid has been consumed for over 4,000 years by people around the world via drinks like green tea and matcha. In that way, l-theanine is one of the world’s oldest brain-hacks!

But the benefits of l-theanine don’t have to be exclusive to tea. For months, I have been taking l-theanine capsules with my morning cup of coffee and the effects have been significant. My energy levels are heightened from coffee without any jitters or crash! I have been able to crush the day.

In fact, the effects are so significant that you don’t even have to take my word for it. The combo of l-theanine and caffeine are extremely well researched (see the bottom of this post for references).

If you only want the jist though, the effects of pairing l-theanine with caffeine can be broken into the following 3 points:

1. Increased Focus / Productivity

When I drink coffee, I feel a boost in focus. But, this doesn’t necessarily mean my productivity increases as well. Sometimes, I find myself feeling overwhelmed and not able to complete tasks!

Conversely, when I drink coffee with l-theanine, I feel ready to take on the world. As emails pop up, text messages buzz, and people stop by my desk, I’m able to tune out the noise and power through everything with ease.

One study found that there was a greater increase in alpha brain wave activity across time in the L-theanine condition (relative to placebo). Other studies have supported this finding. Alpha Brain Waves are basically flow-states of consciousness — like when you’re in the zone during a sport or when you are meditating.

2. No Jitters

As coffee drinkers, we’ve all had a day with ‘one-too-many’ shots of espresso and experienced the infamous coffee jitters. In fact, if you’re caffeine sensitive like me, you might experience this most of the times you drink coffee!

When I started taking l-theanine, I was shocked to find that the coffee jitters almost completely went away! Nobody wants to be jittery and anxious all the time. With a clear a mind, I feel like I’m flowing through my days with more purpose and enjoyment!

A study on l-theanine published in 2016 found that l-theanine increased relaxation without causing drowsiness and reduced resting heart rate. Goodbye coffee jitters!

3. No Crash

Have you every finished a cup of coffee, and found yourself reaching for another cup only a few hours later — I definitely have! Coffee often makes me crash, forcing me to seek another hit of caffeine.

A super interesting effect I noticed when pairing l-theanine with coffee is that the effects of coffee seemed to last longer. When I usually would be reaching for another cup, I still felt dialed in and productive.

Conclusion

For those trying to live more productive lives, l-theanine is another great tool to have in your arsenal and one that I highly recommend from personal experience / the research I’ve done!

Of course everyone reacts to things differently, so I encourage everyone to try it for themselves and do their own research! And remember, there’s no one hack out there that can replace the value of getting enough sleep, eating well, and exercising!

— Sam, Co-Founder Alpha Wave

Research/References