If you’d like to feel better than ever, and be more successful at everything you do, listen to your body clock! Here’s how to make the most of your body’s natural highs and lows, courtesy of First magazine:

• 9:30 a.m.’s the best time for anxiety-inducing tasks, like confronting a loved one, or making a work presentation. Why? According to University of Texas researchers, your ability to perform mental tasks varies by as much as 30% over the day. And midmorning is when your brain-fueling neurotransmitters reach their peak, making it easier to focus and think logically. You’ll also be more even-tempered
• To cut your daily calorie intake by 10%, eat a turkey sub at 12:30 p.m. Low-fat, high-protein food counteracts the appetite-stimulating brain chemicals that peak at midday, and create the cravings that send you to the vending machines. Try turkey, fish, skinless chicken breast, egg whites, low-fat dairy, or lean beef.
• If you wanna de-stress fast, hold your breath at 1:30 p.m. That’s when lung function’s at its lowest, and you experience a spike in carbon dioxide levels and stress hormones. So, hold your breath for as long as you can, slowly exhale, then take 5 deep breaths. That’ll restore normal CO2 levels in as little as one minute, cutting your stress in half.
• To get the fastest relief, take your pain medication at 9:00 p.m. A French study found that taking pain meds and other anti-inflammatories at night instead of in the morning provides twice the relief, with a 75 percent lower risk of side effects. Why? Because your body’s better able to absorb medications while you sleep.

To recap, for the best body-clock results, face the music at 9:30 a.m., cut your calorie count by eating lean protein at 12:30, de-stress by holding your breath at 1:30 p.m., and make your pain meds more effective by taking them at 9:00 p.m.