[ganudorm]

I often feel sluggish when I sit hours at a time staring at CPA exam material. I don’t want to place overreliance on caffeine when I will not be consuming caffeine on my test date in less than two weeks.

I try to eat apples and fruit with natural sugar to keep me awake along with green tea (ugh – caffeine, i know)

Any ideas? I’ve passed 3 of the 4 parts but my body is not handling this particular stint of time very well in terms of energy. I believe it’s because I’m out of shape from busy season.

[Anonymous]

Go to a quiet library…

I feel much concentrated in there.

[SeattleAccountant]

Load on multi-vitamins+ minerals it seem to help. Very similar situation to yours: last test, very low energy, had to start drinking coffee again that does not good to me overall but provides short term boost. Bought 5 energy drink and don't have guts to drink it, keep thinking of all possible health effects. I hear you about out of shape but test prep is so much sedentary activity.

Hang in there, we are almost done – hopefully last test and what's it!

Becker Class of Jan - Aug 2013: FARB DONE!!!!
CPA license pending 🙂

[SeattleAccountant]

double post, ops

Becker Class of Jan - Aug 2013: FARB DONE!!!!
CPA license pending 🙂

[peetree]

coffee coffee coffee coffee water water water water water coffee coffee coffee coffee

yogurt, fruit, peanut butter and jelly sandwich, coffee coffee coffee 😀

I drink a lot of coffee when I'm studying to help me stay engaged.

FAR 02/21/13 - 95
REG 07/02/13 - 87
AUD 08/02/13 - 94
BEC 08/30/13 - 85
Ethics Exam - 90

Illinois candidate awaiting his license

Used Becker Self Study | Ninja Audio | Becker Flash Cards | Ninja Notes | Wiley Test Bank

[Anonymous]

https://img.phombo.com/img1/photocombo/6774/cache/SnortingCoke_display.jpg

Just kidding. I find myself addicted to caffeine, 5-8 cups of coffee a day :/ but it helps A LOT. I also make sure to exercise (weight training and cardio) 5 days a week and eat healthy. Take a massive multi-vitamin pack (Animal Pak) and lots of protein shakes; and a gallon of water a day minimum, generally closer to 1.5 gallons. I attempt to avoid sugars, as they cause me to crash after. Overall, I think a healthy lifestyle is the key to high energy levels and a well functioning brain.

[Jennifer241]

@Adrost

HAHAHHAHAA!!! That is awesome, but yeah sometimes I feel like I am doing it all wrong…

AUD - Jan 9,13 Pass
REG - Aug 30,13 Pass
BEC - Oct 26,13 Pass
FAR - Dec 4,13 Pass

Licensed CPA in the state of Oregon

[Anonymous]

This is going to sound a bit counterproductive but I am one of those grad students that doesn't have a life outside of studying so I have alot of practice with 8-10hr Becker sections. If you start hitting the wall at the end of the day, get up and go do some sort of exercise (I always knock of a few of my daily miles in the afternoon) and follow it up with some sugar. It gets your blood pumping and the endorphins help kick up the motivation level.

[Anonymous]

I Listen to Isochronic wave music at a very soft volume in the background when I'm doing my practice questions.

Here is a good example:

This has done wonders for me in terms of concentration.

But then again, it's not for everybody. To some people it just puts them to sleep, not me though. You should give it a go, and see if it helps.

[CPA_Runner]

During my time studying I abused the hell out of caffeine…..coffee….red bull…5hr energy shots…you name it i used it. A lot. And ate a lot of unhealthy food. And didn't exercise.

NOT RECOMMENDED!!!

I ended up doing pretty well (I work full time too), but it definitely took a toll on my physical and mental health.

I'd absolutely recommend at least 30 min of cardio a day…more if you can. Healthy lifestyle is very important. Remember this is a marathon not a sprint.

Good luck y'all! 🙂

AUD - 80 (05/23/2012)
FAR - 75 (08/09/2012)
BEC - 81 (12/05/2012)
REG - 71 (10/16/2012); 70 (02/12/2013); 78 (04/08/2013)
Ethics - 98

[Anonymous]

I think exercise has a lot to do with it too. Take a quick break and go for a 15 minute walk or something outside. That always works for me.

[Tawilkins]

That's the worst part of studying… getting tired or having no energy, not to mention getting BORED! I usually try to hit the gym sometime during the day, even for just 20 minutes of cardio. It definitely helps to get the blood pumping plus it helps my concentration too. I always feel ready to tackle anything after a good workout.

Oh, and I do consume a ton of coffee too. I think I've consumed so much that it has little effect on my now. 🙁

the fact that you are almost finished would probably be enough to get me going!! 🙂

AUD - Done
BEC - Done
FAR - Done
REG - Oct.

[Anonymous]

Try this:

Energy Balls

½ cup tahini, ½ cup desiccated coconut, 1 cup of dates/ raisins/ figs; ½ cup of nuts or seeds (peeled almonds, cashews, sunflower etc). To coat- coconut, sesame seed, ground almonds. Put ingredients in blender and mix on maximum speed until firm, play dough consistency. Roll mixture into bite sized balls then in shredded coconut, ground almond or sesame seeds. Chill before serving. Experiment with goji berries, raw cocoa nibs, ashwagandha, ginseng… whatever you can think of! Soak the fruit a little for easier digestion, but keep refrigerated otherwise can keep out of fridge.

or

Vegan chocolate coconut balls: 1.5 cups shredded coconut sweetened, 1/2 cup agave syrup, adjust amount for your taste, 1 cup cocoa powder, Vanilla (optional), 1/4 cup coconut oil, Mix all ingredients in a bowl and roll the balls, chill.

There are plenty of recipes on the web. Some include oats, and whatever you can think of. It has good all natural sugar instead of refined one, and gives you not only energy, but good nutrients for your brain like walnuts, etc.

[Author]

Replies