Journey to the Sunnyside

Ever notice how cravings seem to sneak up in the late afternoon—right around 3 p.m.? That’s not just you, and it’s not random. It’s your body clock, blood sugar, and hydration all working against you at the same time. In this 10-Minute Monday, Mike breaks down the science behind the afternoon slump, why it makes alcohol more tempting, and the four simple moves that can stop it from hijacking your evening. Practical, science-backed, and easy enough to put into play today.

Want to drink less with no pressure to quit? Go to https://ctbk.co/4doo5dq for a free 15-day trial.
--
Listen to Journey to the Sunnyside Podcast: https://bit.ly/4bxCqT3
Subscribe to Sunnyside’s YouTube Channel: https://bit.ly/3zuoID4

CONNECT WITH SUNNYSIDE:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joinsunnyside/
- Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/joinsunnyside/
- Twitter:  https://x.com/joinsunnyside
- TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@joinsunnyside

ABOUT SUNNYSIDE: Sunnyside is the #1 alcohol moderation app that helps you drink less without any shame, guilt, or pressure to quit. Optimize your alcohol habits to achieve benefits like sleeping better, losing weight, feeling more energy, and saving money. We know that an all-or-nothing approach doesn’t work for everyone, so we focus on helping you set your own goals, celebrate small wins, and build a lasting system of accountability. As a result, 96.7% of our members see a big drop in their drinking after 90 days.

Disclaimer: This podcast is not intended as medical advice, and the views of the guests may not represent the views of Sunnyside. If you’re concerned about your health or alcohol use, please consider seeking advice from a doctor.

Creators and Guests

Host
Mike Hardenbrook
#1 best-selling author of "No Willpower Required," neuroscience enthusiast, and habit change expert.

What is Journey to the Sunnyside?

Journey to the Sunnyside is a top 2% podcast, reaching over 400,000 listeners every week. It’s your guide to exploring mindful living with alcohol—whether you're cutting back, moderating, or thinking about quitting.

While Sunnyside helps you reduce your drinking, this podcast goes further, diving into topics like mindful drinking, sober curiosity, moderation, and full sobriety. Through real stories, expert insights, and science-backed strategies, we help you find what actually works for your journey.

Hosted by Mike Hardenbrook, a #1 best-selling author and neuroscience enthusiast, the show is dedicated to helping people transform their relationship with alcohol—without shame, judgment, or rigid rules.

This podcast is brought to you by Sunnyside, the leading platform for mindful drinking. Want to take the next step in your journey? Head over to sunnyside.co for a free 15-day trial.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in our episodes do not necessarily represent those of Sunnyside. We’re committed to sharing diverse perspectives on health and wellness. If you’re concerned about your drinking, please consult a medical professional. Sunnyside, this podcast, and its guests are not necessarily medical providers and the content is not medical advice. We do not endorse drinking in any amount.

Speaker 1:

Welcome to Journey to the Sunnyside, the podcast where we have thoughtful conversations to explore the science of habits, uncover the secrets to mindful living, and of course, your own mindful drinking journey. This podcast is brought to you by Sunnyside, the number one alcohol moderation platform. And if you could benefit from drinking a bit less, head on over

Speaker 2:

to sunnyside.co to get a free fifteen day trial.

Speaker 1:

I'm your host, Hardinbrook, published author, neuroscience enthusiast, and habit change expert. Hey, everyone. Welcome back to Journey to the Sunnyside. I'm at Cardenbrook, and today, I'm sitting on my deck here in Scottsdale. So we changed location.

Speaker 1:

We drove last week across from Boulder through Colorado into Arizona, and so I'll be here for the next couple months. So if you're seeing me on video, I'm outside. It's a little bit toasty here still, but I figured it's a great place to do the first episode in a new location. So quick question for you and tell me if this sounds familiar. It's about 3PM in the afternoon.

Speaker 1:

Maybe you're dragging a little bit that day. You're staring at your screen. You maybe can't focus. You're feeling tired. Your mind is already wandering and thinking about that glass of wine or that cold beer tonight.

Speaker 1:

And the thing is that dip in energy, it isn't random. It's not about motivation. It's not about willpower, which you'll hear me say over and over again. It's actually your body's clock at work. And when it shows up, your cravings or the urges, they get louder.

Speaker 1:

So today, I want to break down what's really happening during this slump, why it makes alcohol more tempting, and then give you a few simple strategies that you can use to flip that around in your favor. But first, let's get into the science in plain English. So first of all, your body runs on what's called the circadian rhythm. So you probably already heard of this, but most people think of it as a thing that makes you sleep at night and then wakes you up in the morning. But inside, there's actually a twenty four hour cycle going on and you get these smaller waves, little peaks and dips in alertness.

Speaker 1:

And one of those dips hits in the mid afternoon and research calls it the post lunch dip. And you don't think of that as a scientific term, but it's actually been researched. And it happens even if you didn't eat a big launch full carbs, which most people associate to that. It's actually just a built in drop in energy into our biology. So that's the first factor.

Speaker 1:

Now let's get into the second factor and that is blood sugar. So let's say lunch was a sandwich, chips, maybe a soda, pretty typical lunch for a lot of people that are just kind of grab and go. You know, you get a spike in blood sugar when you eat that kind of stuff, and then you're gonna get a crash. And when blood sugar does drop, your brain is looking for these quick fixes. And alcohol fits that bill perfectly because your brain already knows it's a fast reward.

Speaker 1:

Now, third factor is hydration. Most people underestimate hydration and how important it is And being just one or 2% dehydrated, which is basically missing a glass or two of water, can make you feel more tired, cranky, and even less focused. And there's a study out by the University of Connecticut showing that mild dehydration alone can drop your mood and mental performance. So in the afternoon, you've got these three things stacked against you, a natural body clock dip, possible blood sugar swings, and usually some dehydration. So all that combo together, even though they're little small things can make cravings feel really strong at a biological level.

Speaker 1:

And a lot of us always associate to a mental thing, there's actually biology going on. But our biology and our habits and our decisions are also linked. So I'm going to talk a little bit about why this matters so much for mindful drinking. Because when you're tired, your brain changes how it makes decisions. And psychologists call it time discounting.

Speaker 1:

So present you wants the quick hit and the future you, that's the one that has to deal with the hangover, gets ignored. That's why 03:00 feels like, I'm thinking about I deserve it tonight instead of, you know what, tomorrow morning, it's going to hurt. And here's another piece. Studies show that fatigue makes chew driven cravings stronger. Meaning that if you're in that slump and you walk past a wine rack or you hear glasses clean or there's beer in the fridge, you're more likely to grab it.

Speaker 1:

Not because the trigger is stronger, but because your brakes, they're weakened. So the slump doesn't just drain your energy, it lowers your defenses. And that's why I think it's one of the most overlooked risk zones for anyone trying to change their drinking. Now, the good news is you don't have to fight this with willpower and a lot of planning. You can actually get ahead of it with a couple simple strategies.

Speaker 1:

So let's go through those. First of all, hydrate on purpose. It seems so stupid simple that it couldn't affect things, but it actually is super important. So don't wait until you feel thirsty. When I played football, my coaches used to say, if you're thirsty, it's already too late.

Speaker 1:

You're already dehydrated. You're not going to catch up. So you got to stay ahead of it. And around 02:30, maybe set a reminder on your phone to drink 12 to 16 ounces of water. And in fact, I actually have an app on my phone.

Speaker 1:

I don't remember if it's just called Drink More or something like that. There were a bunch of options, but you could use this too, is that I just set up reminders to have a certain amount of water throughout the day. So you could set that up if you wanted to quite easily or just use a calendar and that sort of thing. And that's enough to take the edge off of the fatigue hydration causes. If you'd like, you can throw in some electrolytes or lemon and sea salt.

Speaker 1:

That sort of thing is going to help push the water into your body. Okay, second is a protein forward snack. So skip the muffin, skip the cookie. You know, they're tempting, I know. And that's just going to feed the crash, however, and you have to realize that instead go with a protein.

Speaker 1:

And if you can get something with a fiber, better. So some examples would be Greek yogurt and berries, hummus and carrots, turkey roll ups with an apple. Depends on your situation. Some people, the turkey and the apple, that's a little more sugar than your body really needs and could spike you, whereas some people can eat that with no issue. It's really like a per person basis.

Speaker 1:

But if you eat that and maybe crash, try something else. And research out of the University of Missouri found that a protein snack, so in the afternoon, steadied appetite and mood all the way into the evening and aim for about 15 to 25 grams of protein. Now, I know this sounds like stupid simple, but as I said, these little strategies sometimes really make all the difference. And if we're looking for just like micro strategies and micro habits that we can add into our day that are just a little bit of adjustment, but make a big impact on how we behave further on into the evening, we should do that. Okay, third is light and movement.

Speaker 1:

And this one's underrated. Just go outside for ten minutes. That natural light hits your brain in a way that artificial office lighting cannot. Actually, office lighting is like the worst and the sun kills you in so many different ways. It's going help reset alertness if you pair it with a brisk walk.

Speaker 1:

There are studies that show that even short bursts of walking reduced fatigue. And in people with drinking habits, it lowers the intensity of cravings. So there you go. You're not just boosting your energy, you're taking power away from the urge itself and staying ahead of it. Fourth is build a 4PM ritual.

Speaker 1:

Now, I chose an arbitrary number. It just really depends on when that issue comes up. If it's 4PM, maybe you're working till 6PM, maybe you work in the evenings and your times are totally different. Don't stick to this actual time. It's just here as an arbitrary number.

Speaker 1:

So if 4PM hits and you start thinking about that drink and you're on a day that's your dry day and you don't want to have a drink, you can't leave that gap empty to decisions too further on because we already know that our decision making has been lowered as far as the quality goes. So the most easy thing is to change the ingredient, not the ritual, so you can pour a nonalcoholic drink that you actually enjoy. For me in the afternoons, I really like to make that late afternoon time bicycles with my kids. You know, go take a loop around the pond near the house or just go to the skate park or do something. I always feel that time is so satisfying to bond with other people in a way that doesn't include alcohol.

Speaker 1:

And over time, your brain is going to reward that hour around that new ritual. And that's how you turn temptation into routine. Notice that none of these are about strong motivation. They're just systems that we plan beforehand. So if you've got your water ready, your snack planned, your walk scheduled in your ritual already waiting, You're not really white knuckling it or trying to push through anything.

Speaker 1:

You're just following through the steps that you already built into your schedule. All right, here's how to put it all into play for the next seven days. Run a small experiment. Let's say at 02:30 every afternoon, you do three things, water, protein snack, and a ten minute walk outside if you can. And then at 4PM or whenever that time is, do your ritual.

Speaker 1:

It doesn't matter if it's something simple like a non alcoholic drink or a tea or going for a bike ride, sparkling water, music, doesn't matter. I mean, it could be playing chess. It doesn't matter. But something pencils it. And then track two numbers on your phone or a notebook, wherever you prefer, your energy from one to five and your cravings from one to five and do it each day.

Speaker 1:

And then at the end of the week, I want you to look back. You know, do you see that your cravings ease down? Is your evening getting a little bit easier? And not because you suddenly got stronger, because you took this experiment seriously. You built your system, you followed through, and you can look back and see if you were able to get through the slump with leverage of that system.

Speaker 1:

Okay. So to wrap it up, here's the bottom one. The afternoon slump is real. It's not a personal thing of failing. It's built into our biology, but our biology isn't our destiny.

Speaker 1:

We can hydrate, eat protein, get some sunlight and move plus build in a ritual. And those four things, they take less than 20 total and they cut the legs out from under one of the biggest craving traps of the day, which is that afternoon slump. So try this week, set a reminder now if you're thinking about doing it or even just get started. And these small experiments help to build momentum. Okay.

Speaker 1:

Thanks for hanging out with me today. If you got anything out of this episode, remember it means so much and helps the podcast if you rate and review wherever you're listening to. I hope you have a beautiful week, and cheers to your mindful drinking journey. This podcast is brought to you by Sunnyside, the number one alcohol moderation platform. And if you could benefit from drinking a bit less, head on over to sunnyside.co to get

Speaker 2:

a free fifteen day trial.