Study Stimulants?

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.

Vanguard23

Full Member
10+ Year Member
5+ Year Member
15+ Year Member
Joined
Sep 5, 2006
Messages
770
Reaction score
0
What sort of stimulants are good for studying?
And no, I'm not talking about narcotics.
Caffiene with some sugar are good for boosting neurological activity and energy levels, for certain.
What about jogging regularly? Anyone experienced a noticeable boost in mental awareness after a period of regular exercise?
What other hints do you find help your study sessions' productivity?

Members don't see this ad.
 
What sort of stimulants are good for studying?
And no, I'm not talking about narcotics.
Caffiene with some sugar are good for boosting neurological activity and energy levels, for certain.
What about jogging regularly? Anyone experienced a noticeable boost in mental awareness after a period of regular exercise?
What other hints do you find help your study sessions' productivity?

Well, that's good, since narcotics generally aren't used for their stimulant effects.;)
 
Well, that's good, since narcotics generally aren't used for their stimulant effects.;)

Touche, good sir :D

But yah, I find that I have a lot more energy when I'm in a regular exercise routine (i.e. jogging a few miles every other day or so). And of course, I do drink a lot of diet mountain dews. What's that called? It's like being an alcoholic... but instead of alcohol it's caffeine... shoot... drawing a blank here.
 
Touche, good sir :D

But yah, I find that I have a lot more energy when I'm in a regular exercise routine (i.e. jogging a few miles every other day or so). And of course, I do drink a lot of diet mountain dews. What's that called? It's like being an alcoholic... but instead of alcohol it's caffeine... shoot... drawing a blank here.

A dewaholic?
Have you tried B-Vitamin complexes?
 
Members don't see this ad :)
What sort of stimulants are good for studying?
And no, I'm not talking about narcotics.
Caffiene with some sugar are good for boosting neurological activity and energy levels, for certain.
What about jogging regularly? Anyone experienced a noticeable boost in mental awareness after a period of regular exercise?
What other hints do you find help your study sessions' productivity?

coffeine all the way. But i try to limit my coffeine source to green tea. It acctually works great. And exercise is awsome. There is nothing better then doing some cardio to wake up and be energized for the rest of the day. Plus is releases stress which helps. I would go crazy this semester taking 23 credit hrs and studying for the MCAT if not for the regular gym visits (God bless AO and ipods):D
 
I actually made my own pills last year. I'm heavily into supplements, nutrition, fitness, etc. so I did some research on nootropics. Basically what my pills consist of is rhodiola rosea, piracetam, phenibut, acetyl-L-carnitine (ALCAR), cocamine, and caffeine. I don't take them often, but rather sell them to friends and whatnot, but it DEFINITELY helps with concentration and cognitive abilities. Also increases ability to understand and remember information :)
 
I like yoga breaks, because they don't take much time. You'd be surprised how refreshing it can be to give your brain a flush every hour.
 
Has anyone tried Focusfactor, they are some pills I purchased at CVS a few weeks back. I haven't been faithful with taking them, but I want to know anyone else's experiences. How can you tell if they are working? They are supposed to increase memory, concentration and focus.
 
Yah actually right before I took the MCAT I drank a quart of green tea, took a multivitamin, and took two ginseng capsules.

Loved them bathroom breaks! :D
 
I actually made my own pills last year. I'm heavily into supplements, nutrition, fitness, etc. so I did some research on nootropics. Basically what my pills consist of is rhodiola rosea, piracetam, phenibut, acetyl-L-carnitine (ALCAR), cocamine, and caffeine. I don't take them often, but rather sell them to friends and whatnot, but it DEFINITELY helps with concentration and cognitive abilities. Also increases ability to understand and remember information :)

I do something similar, but instead, I get a bunch of cough syrup and stuff and cook it all up in a trailer I have in the woods. :eek:
 
Has anyone tried Focusfactor, they are some pills I purchased at CVS a few weeks back. I haven't been faithful with taking them, but I want to know anyone else's experiences. How can you tell if they are working? They are supposed to increase memory, concentration and focus.
I got some off ebay for a few bucks the other day. I take them sporadically at best, and haven't noticed anything yet. But, I hope to get on a regular schedule of taking them with breakfast at some point. We'll see.
 
i would say try this

Amp.jpg
 
I actually made my own pills last year. I'm heavily into supplements, nutrition, fitness, etc. so I did some research on nootropics. Basically what my pills consist of is rhodiola rosea, piracetam, phenibut, acetyl-L-carnitine (ALCAR), cocamine, and caffeine. I don't take them often, but rather sell them to friends and whatnot, but it DEFINITELY helps with concentration and cognitive abilities. Also increases ability to understand and remember information :)

I had never tried rhodiola rosea until medschool on the reccomendation of one of our proffs but it really is a great supplement for concentration and studying stamina. It works best though if you do one week on and then one week off. I also reccommend B vitamins, vitamin water is actually selling a newer flavor that is green tea with B vitamins that give you a good mid-day boost :) Much luck to those prepping for the MCAT!
 
Members don't see this ad :)
Exercise is a great "study stimulant". Cardiovascular exercise promotes healthy blood flow to the brain and makes your body more 'active'.

Nutritional supplements that are good are caffeine (in moderate doses), green tea (which contains caffeine as well), and multivitamins. No need to spend $60 on a specialty multivitamin, the $7 for 350 tablets at Wal-Mart works just the same.
 
A physician told me that a little caffeine can increase concentration levels, however there lies a fine line. He said a lot of caffeine will disrupt fine motor skills and short term memory.
 
I had never tried rhodiola rosea until medschool on the reccomendation of one of our proffs but it really is a great supplement for concentration and studying stamina. It works best though if you do one week on and then one week off. I also reccommend B vitamins, vitamin water is actually selling a newer flavor that is green tea with B vitamins that give you a good mid-day boost :) Much luck to those prepping for the MCAT!

That's cool on of your professors recommended it to you. Most people are in the dark when it comes to things like this. I'm taking the MCAT april of 08, so I have my work cut out for me. Green tea is another great supplement. Not only good for overall health, but helps with concentration. Not to mention exercising.
 
A physician told me that a little caffeine can increase concentration levels, however there lies a fine line. He said a lot of caffeine will disrupt fine motor skills and short term memory.

And cause slight chest pains. If I drink too much then I start to get them, so I started limiting it to one cup instead of two and a half. Guess my dopamine levels were too high.
 
Exercise is a great "study stimulant". Cardiovascular exercise promotes healthy blood flow to the brain and makes your body more 'active'.

Nutritional supplements that are good are caffeine (in moderate doses), green tea (which contains caffeine as well), and multivitamins. No need to spend $60 on a specialty multivitamin, the $7 for 350 tablets at Wal-Mart works just the same.


Regular exercise if the BEST stimulant. I started speed walking on my treadmill each morning and try to get 1 or 2 more in throughout the day. This really has helped me. My endorphins are up which makes me actually excited to study for the MCAT each day. In addition, I feel ready to study -- you know, I don't feel I need to get up every 5 mins for a distraction. Best thing, I use it as a tool when I DO need a break. I walk for 30 mins a stretch and it really does the trick in getting me to settle down. Besides this, in terms of vitamins, I take a B-complex supp. and a flinstone's chewable each day. I think that's sufficient!! Hope this helps. :D
 
i also want to mention that i have been studying at the gym while doing cardio (either walking on incline or on the eliptical). While i do my 60 minutes i am reading my study guides etc. so i do not get bored. I have to admit that not everything can be studied that way (for instance physics is imposible lol) but bio, psychology, history or anything that interest you and doesn't require calculations is doable. I think i retain more info during that hour then i would do if i wasn't excersizing. I guess the endorphins plus a lot of oxygen going to the brain helps a lot. I have been studying like this for all of my art history classes and have high A's in all of them so far. EK bio also works for me at the gym.
Also listening to AO makes time pass fast and you still get some info into your head.
Another thing i use is L-carnitine and B-vitamins.
 
I just ordered a Sandisk MP3 player online(didn't really need an iPod as there was nothing that really fit what I needed). Stores 2 gigs and will be used mostly to hold my AO files while exercising and walking between classes.
 
Im weirded out nobody has mentioned anyhting about omega 3 fatty acids. Any thoughts about this? This is typically found in fish...Can be taken in as a supplement from fish oil.

Its not exactly a stimulant but has seemed to help with cognitive functioning. google is your friend.
 
What sort of stimulants are good for studying?
And no, I'm not talking about narcotics.
Caffiene with some sugar are good for boosting neurological activity and energy levels, for certain.
What about jogging regularly? Anyone experienced a noticeable boost in mental awareness after a period of regular exercise?
What other hints do you find help your study sessions' productivity?

Study at multiple locations... Based on my learning and memory class and a memory textbook by John R. Anderson, your body still processes all the information around you even though you can't remember it... The idea is that if you study at multiple locations, the study material gets processed with multiple cues (different study locations) and thus you have more retrieval routes to remember what you studied...This way your less likely to have proactive interference when trying to memorize new info...And if you think this is garbage, ask the experts...GoodLuck
 
I just ordered a Sandisk MP3 player online(didn't really need an iPod as there was nothing that really fit what I needed). Stores 2 gigs and will be used mostly to hold my AO files while exercising and walking between classes.

Good call. I have the Sansa Sandisk MP3 player and it's a great buy. I got the 4GB one.
 
Good call. I have the Sansa Sandisk MP3 player and it's a great buy. I got the 4GB one.
The 2GB one is quite nice so far.

As for the exercise, I've found myself having 'runner's high' on several occasions. It seems like my mind is much more active and supplied with energy since I started running/jogging 30 minutes every other day.
 
Guys for me i have to get a little massage from my girl friend first. Then do some "push up'...waaw dats a great stimulant then anything
 
Top