Back to ArticlesMany of us are familiar with the internal body clock and how it works. When it’s bright, we’re awake and the reverse is also true for when it’s dark. It’s a body system that runs based on habit.
In the Yellow Emperor’s Inner Canon, a classic ancient text that has remained the fundamental source for Traditional Chinese medicine, the healthcare principle for achieving optimal health is this: to live one’s life in harmony with Mother Nature.
According to this classic, each day is divided into 12 periods, each consisting of 2 hours blocks. For each block of 2 hours, a set of the meridian (or channel) is believed to be at its prime, with most of the body’s energy and blood running through it. When we follow this natural “body clock”, we can effectively nurture or treat our meridians and their related organs.
You can achieve a healthier body by making simple changes to your daily routine through following Mother Nature. For example, choosing the right food and activity for the time of day, or massaging or tapping key acupoints along the active meridians to obtain better blood circulation and thus assist to remove or cure diseases. It is most effective to treat each specific meridian and its associated organ when it is at its peak function during the day.
Understanding your body’s meridian clock will not only enable you to read your body better but also alert you to the signs and symptoms of your body experiencing imbalances. Knowing when is the right time for each specific action also allows you to live a more holistic and healthy lifestyle.
In TCM, Yang is known as masculine energy, stronger in the daytime while Yin is known as feminine energy, stronger at night.
Read on for an overview of the meridian clock and better understand how your body functions throughout the day.
Detox Time: 11 PM to 3 AM (Deep sleep)
Sleeping before 11 pm is exactly what you need to help nourish and develop Yang (when it is weaker). Even during the sleeping state, this does not mean the body is completely “switched off” because several meridians are on their “night duty” as shown below.
Our body needs to enter the deep sleep phase before our liver works on replenishing and healing itself. This is why burning the midnight oil or sleeping very late will exhaust the vital essence in your body, triggering gallbladder, liver and lung-related diseases.
Consuming supper at this time is also not advisable as the movement of intestines and stomach require energy and will affect our gallbladder and liver from being able to perform their detox work.
11 PM – 1 AM – Gallbladder
The gallbladder cleanses the tissues in your body and processes cholesterol at this time in preparation for the liver detox hours.
1 AM – 3 AM – Liver
This is also known as the liver detox hour. Failing to be asleep during these hours to enable your liver to perform its task in the long term causes premature aging and hormonal imbalance. We’ve also discussed this in our previous article about the prevention of breast cancer.
There are also other signs and symptoms that may occur as a result of failing to let the liver detox during this period and you may experience issues with the reproductive system, liver diseases, as well as depression.
Deep Sleep: 3 AM – 5 AM – Lungs
Your lungs are performing the duty of “balancing all” during this period, redistributing energy and blood over the body. When the lungs are performing this function of distribution, it must not be disturbed. This is why you should be in deep sleep to enable your lungs to perform its optimum function.
But how can we gauge whether we are in a state of deep or light sleep, though? Deep sleepers usually fall asleep rapidly, rarely waking up at night, and can easily return to sleep immediately even if woken up. Deep sleepers often keep a sober mind and work efficiently during the day while light sleepers are the opposite. If a person wakes up during this time, this could be a signal of insufficient blood and energy in the body. The best solution for this is to practice breathing exercises.
The lungs are also commonly known as the area where we process grief and sadness, hence a person who is feeling upset may find themselves feeling restless and waking up during this time period. For this, you can practice meditation, yoga, or breathing exercises to ease the emotional tensions you may feel.
Poo Time: 5 AM – 7 AM – Large Intestines
The large intestine concentrates on transporting residues and clearing waste from the human body. For a healthy person, the first bowel movement of the day usually occurs during this meridian time.
During this timing, it is not recommended to consume coffee as it is known as a diuretic and may hinder your bowel movements. Instead, start your day with a glass of warm lemon water. Drinking this on an empty stomach can help to purge your intestines and stomach, promoting the clearing of toxins, facilitate defecation and provide refreshment for your body.
Symptoms that may result from not honouring this meridian time are the occurrence of sinus, weight gain or even skin allergies.
Breakfast time: 7 AM – 9 AM – Stomach
The stomach is an organ that stores food, which is the source of nutrition for the activity of our internal organs and the center that we rely on for survival. The stomach energy is at its peak during this time which is why breakfast is known as the most important meal of the day.
You should not worry about eating a big breakfast as the spleen and kidneys can digest and absorb food most efficiently during this time period, and your stomach can digest the food completely as well. Food is then transported as the energy needed by your body (instead of being stored as fat) to support your internal organs.
If you do not make it a habit to have a healthy breakfast during this time, you’ll find that your stomach will have nothing to digest but secrete too much gastric acid. This may lead to disorders of the digestion system in the long run, causing health conditions such as gastric ulcers, as well as gastritis.
Creativity time: 9 AM – 11 AM – Spleen
Like the stomach, the spleen is responsible for taking in food, transforming it after digestion and absorption and delivering nutrition to all our tissues and organs. According to TCM, the spleen is the foundation of the acquired constitution and the source of generation and transformation of vital energy and blood.
The spleen is also known to support metabolism. Hence, this is the best time to engage in creative activities such as brainstorming. This is also why skipping breakfast is not recommended as no new energy would be converted. This brings the body into stress mode, whereby insulin levels would fall and adrenaline levels would increase as more glucose is released from the liver as the body tries to compensate for this.
Afternoon Nap: 11 AM – 1 PM – Heart
The heart is in charge of the blood vessels in your body, and it is also in charge of sweating which stems from the blood. Taking a short 10 minutes to 40 minutes nap at this hour can nurture your soul and build your body. You’ll find that by doing this the body is able to reserve enough energy and vigour to continue with your studies or work for the rest of the whole afternoon.
If you are unable to catch some sleep at this time, it is helpful just to close your eyes for a short while because, at this time, the internal heat reaches its peak performance. Taking a break during this time will keep the mind calmer, and slow down our pulse rate which helps in reducing the body’s internal heat.
If you move about at noon under the hot sun, you’ll find yourself feeling very hot and perspiring profusely – too much perspiration impairs Yin and blood. A short nap or rest can to combat this.
It’s best to arrange for lunchtime between 12:30 PM and 1 PM when the Heart Meridian is on duty. At 1 PM, the small intestine begins to work. According to the Yellow Emperor’s Inner Canon, the heart is in charge of our internal spirit. A smooth heart meridian along with sufficient energy and blood brings about a good mood.
If the energy in the heart is smooth, you’ll find yourself feeling energetic, vigorous and high-spirited. Otherwise, we will feel depressed and negative. Simply speaking, this organ not only circulates and maintains your body’s blood pressure but also regulates your mood and emotional well-being as well.
Conversely, 11 PM – 1 AM is when your heart is at its weakest which explains why most heart-related incidents tend to occur during this time period.
Lunch time – Afternoon
1 PM – 3 PM – Small Intestine
Although the small intestine, spleen, and stomach are all digestive organs, they each have their respective duties. The stomach acts like a grinding and mixing machine which would have fully digested the food you have eaten for breakfast by this time. If you did not consume a healthy breakfast, you would notice an energy crash during this time and notice yourself craving for sugar or caffeine.
After the stomach completes the digestion of our breakfast, the job of transformation is assigned to the small intestine which carries out “fine processing” work. The small intestine absorbs nutritional substances more meticulously, “classifies” the foods, absorbs their essence, transforms them into energy and transports them to the internal organs to maintain the body’s normal activities. The remains are delivered to the large intestine, which continues to absorb moisture before transporting waste to the anus to be discharged from the body.
During this time when energy and blood pass through this meridian, the small intestine has the strongest ability to digest food, absorb nutrition and pass along waste. When one eats an appropriate lunch, the small intestine obtains enough nutritional supply and the energy and blood within the small intestine are sufficient.
The small intestine meridian links with the heart and has a close relationship with the Heart Meridian. If the small intestine meridian has sufficient energy and blood, the heart will have a strong ability to supply blood.
When the small intestine has smooth energy and blood, we feel extremely energetic. Otherwise, the energy and blood supply of the whole body is affected, the extra burden added to the heart and its meridian.
Over the long run, eating improperly at lunch leads to insufficient energy and blood in the small intestine. If one cannot absorb enough nutrition, physical constitution declines, leading to the attack of various diseases.
Study/Work and Drink More Water – 3 PM – 5 PM – Bladder
This is a golden period in the day when we have the most accurate judgment, strongest vigour and highest work efficiency. That’s why many people feel productive during this time.
It is a peak period for metabolism. The bladder, one of our major organs for metabolism, is in charge of storing and discharging urine, expelling extra moisture from the body just like a sewer pipe.
It is recommended for you to drink more water or have some herbal tea to ensure the smoothness of the sewer pipe which optimises the metabolism process. This is commonly known as tea time and just what your body needs! This is also beneficial for the detox of the kidney.
Eat more black food – 5 PM – 7 PM Kidneys
Kidneys are the origin of our congenital constitution or inherited health and a place for storing vital essence. According to TCM, the kidneys govern bones and generate marrow which communicates with the brain. All of the body’s essential energy and spirit come from our kidneys.
Fatigue, poor circulation, cold limbs, water retention, dizziness, and lower back pain are common during this time for people with weak kidney function. Work pressure and overworking are causes of kidney deficiency as we consume too much vital essence.
Kidneys show a preference for black coloured food. Therefore eat more black fungus, black sesame, black beans to help tonify (increase the energy) the kidneys.
It is also recommended to have a light dinner during this time as you prepare to wind down for the night.
Meditate or take a walk after a meal: 7 PM – 9 PM Pericardium
The pericardium is the thin membrane wrapping the heart, playing an important role in protecting it. In TCM, the pericardium is like an official serving the heart. Hence, it is a golden occasion to nourish the heart and stomach.
Doing vigorous exercises is not beneficial at this hour to the health of our spleen and kidneys. It is best to do more gentle exercises instead, half an hour after dinner. It is also not advisable to take a walk immediately after meals as walking would affect digestion and impair the health of the spleen and stomach.
Moreover, it is not recommended to consume heavy meals during this time. Instead, take this time to listen to music or engage in relaxing activities with your loved ones such as gathering together for a chat or watching the television to promote digestion.
It’s also recommended to take a walk at least 1 hour after dinner.
Feet bath and go to sleep: 9 PM – 11 PM – Triple warmer
Triple warmer is in charge of transporting and deploying vital energy and body fluids. If we do anything other than sleeping at this time, too much vital essence and blood become concentrated at one place in the body and the triple warmer is unable to allocate enough energy to other places.
Therefore, we should go to sleep so as to help us to maintain a normal excretion and good metabolism rate. This represents your functional energy — which is your endocrine glands and hormonal system that is responsible for your body’s immunity.
Bathing the feet during this time is effective to help relieve fatigue and promote good sleep. This is especially so for middle-aged and older people.
Doing this can also help to promote optimum coordination between the heart and kidneys. This coordination enables us to achieve an optimum state of sleep.
If your body is in a balanced state, you will experience a stable and relaxed mind at this time. If you feel anxious, this means that your system is overloaded.
So to avoid this, try not to eat after 8 PM. This is why as mentioned earlier, having supper is highly not recommended.
Remember, we should always make sleep a priority as proper sleep is necessary to replenish energy and restore vigour, with the effect of nourishing Yin and cultivating vital essence.
The right care, at the right time, in the right place
By understanding your body’s meridian clock, you’re able to achieve optimal health through Traditional Chinese Medicine. Aim to follow Mother Nature and your body’s natural clock to start making simple changes to your daily routine. Not only will your health and body feel better but you’ll also be on your way to a more fulfilling and long life.
If you want to learn more about health, wellness, and how to live your best life, check out our workshops and my other article.
