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It has happened to the best of us. Running out of energy and feeling fatigued is a feeling we cannot escape. Story of my life. I’ve put together some guidelines I use to keep my energy going. Even though these 5 ways to boost your energy are the simplest, they are paradoxically also the hardest ways to boost your energy because they are things we always neglect to do, even though we know we should.
Healthy Diet
I will be transparent and say I struggle a lot with this. For the most part, my diet consisted of carbs for many years. How I changed that? My first change for lasting energy was to eat well balanced, healthy snacks. Instead of chips, candy or donuts that only gave me a quick jolt of energy, I switched to eating veggies, no dip. Usually I add a little bit of salt and vinegar on them or if I really want a dip I opt for goat cheese. Having a vegan lifestyle will never be me, however, I decided to turn vegan for a week, once a month. That means no dairy products (including eggs) and no meats, which to those that are Greek -Orthodox is simply known as our fasting restrictions during lent. I do this because I find it is a good detox for my body. You can read more about the benefits of being vegan here.
Limit Caffeine
I started drinking lattes religiously at Starbucks at the age of 26, before then I hardly had coffee. Within a couple of months I had noticed changes in my lifestyle that I did not like. I was relying on my lattes for energy. I did not like the feeling of waking up and relying on a coffee to get me going in the morning. I have heard people say I can’t function without my coffee. If that is also what you say too, sorry to break it to you, but this means you are addicted to caffeine! Sure coffee doesn’t harm you but relying on coffee consumption to feel good in the morning cannot be a good thing. A little side note, coffee does stain your teeth. I have always had sparkling white teeth (probably because I never had coffee), but within two weeks of drinking lattes my teeth had a slight change in shade.
Drink Water
I cannot stretch how important this is. I always have a water bottle with me that I fill up at least 4 times during work hours. Drinking plenty of water has helped me to avoid dehydration, dry skin especially those cold winter months, has decreased the dryness of my eyes and honestly, I don’t feel as tired as I used to before I was regulating my water intake. Key is also to not mistake your thirst with hunger. Thirst and hunger send the same signals to your brain. To test if you are just thirst, drink a glass of water and see if you are still feeling hungry after.
Get Enough Sleep
Sleep is rejuvenating. Nothing I love more than sleeping in or taking my afternoon nap. But having a 9 to 5 job means adios ciestas, sayonara sleeping in. I am pretty notorious for going to bed late. Think 1am or 2am is my bed time. I am not a person that will go to bed at 10pm, but I have now adjusted to having 12am as my bed time. I have already seen a difference in my energy levels. So even if you can’t make huge adjustments, I recommend starting slowly by going to bed half an hour earlier than you usually do each week.
Just Say No
You feel guilty to say no to friends who want to go out with you and then you end up exhausting yourself. You have the right to say no. In fact, you don’t even need to explain why you’re saying no. Learn to pace yourself and your energy levels. I always focus on my top priorities, and say no to activities. I always think of my energy levels as my phone. The more I use my phone early in the morning, the less battery life I have as the day progresses. Don’t burn through your entire battery life all at once. I would recommend spreading out your energy usage and say yes only to activities that truly matter.
What are some ways you boost your energy? Please, share your secrets! This gal definitely needs all the energy boosts she can get.
I find myself drinking more and more coffee even though I know I need to cut back. I've been addicted to Starbucks since I was 16!