4 Ways To Increase Your Energy

When I talk about increasing your energy, I am talking about a feeling. The feeling of "feeling good" throughout your day. In the afternoon when you get home from work, you feel good, and have the energy to doing your evening routine. You want to have the energy to do an activity for yourself. We all want that don’t we? I want that for you as well.

Here are 4 tips I have used to Increase my Energy.

1: Diet

 Make sure every meal has a serving of protein and healthy fats.

What we eat does affect how we feel. When you eat a diet of refined sugar and processed carbohydrates then you will feel the effects of it as short sharp burst of energy in your body. When you have a diet of complex carbs, proteins and fats then you have long periods of sustained energy. Take some time and reflect what you ate today or yesterday. Assess if you had a serving of protein and a healthy fat in each meal? This is a game changer, when I started doing this, I wasn’t having any protein or fat in my lunch. When I started adding these to my lunches I went from shoving cookies into my mouth at 3 pm every day to feeling full longer and having sustained energy till dinner.

2: Sleep

Sleep is medicine and it is so true. Sleep is the time when your body heals and detoxifies. This helps you feel good and gives you energy for your day. Getting enough sleep begins with your evening routine and getting yourself into bed 30 minutes to an hour before you need to be asleep. This is important for winding your body down and setting up a healthy sleep habit. When you get a propers nights sleep, you feel rested, energized and your mind is ready to tackle the day. Sleep also plays a role in what you eat. When you wake up rested and relaxed so you are able to make better food choices like veggies, healthy proteins and fats to sustain your energy. Lack of sleep, sends your body into stress mode, making you crave more sugar and comfort foods. Remember, on average you should be getting around 7 hours of sleep daily. Every individual is different with their sleep requirements. If you can fall asleep easily at night or just when you are resting, that is a sign you are not getting enough sleep.

3: Meditation

You have read this right. Slowing down and making space for a few minutes in your day will actually help increase your energy. Like they say on air planes, you need to put your oxygen mask on first. You need to fill up your cup first. If you take the time to slow down, it actually provides you with the space to be more productive and increase your energy throughout your day. I suggest taking 10-15 minutes at some point in your day to meditate. You will notice a difference in how your feel. I am here to tell you, you don’t need to hustle and grind out life unless that brings you joy.This is exactly to opposite of what you want to do. Mental exhaustion is the number one way to zap your energy.

4: Exercise

Moving your body for 30 minutes everyday. You need to move your body regularly for at least 30 minutes a day. It is important for your mental health as well as your heart health to get your blood circulating and your heart rate up higher than resting rate. This doesn’t mean you have to do hot yoga or intense work outs daily. It means move your body in ways that are serving you . Maybe it is cross fit 2 times a week, hot yoga 3 times a week, runs the remaining days. Move in ways that make your body feel good. Maybe your activities switch up every season, from swimming to skiing etc. It is important to find ways that you love to move your body daily.

Now that you know the 4 ways to help Increase your Energy what's next?

Just reading without applying the knowledge leads to what experts refer to as brain clutter. Just like a clean house leads to relaxation and ease, a clear plan mentally leads to relaxation and ease.

Take some times to schedule each step into your calendar. In the beginning it may take a bit of time to create a schedule and routine, but then once you have one it is very simple to keep repeating it.

New habits have an adjustment period. Remember change doesn’t happen over night. 

Check that each meal you are eating has protein and a healthy fat serving.

Schedule your bedtime. I use the alarm on my phone. It tells me when I need to be in my bed, work backwards from the time you wake up and count 7 hours (or the amount you need). Then you need to set your night routine to begin at least 30 min. prior to your bedtime.

Schedule 15 minutes a day to meditate into your schedule. It could be first thing when you wake up or at the end of your work day. Try this for a week and see the difference this will make in your life.

 Exercise, schedule when you are going to work out daily. Figure out what time works best for you, is it first thing in the morning or is it after work before you go home. This may take time to sort out a work out routine, so be patient with yourself. I suggest that you commit to following through with moving your body daily in some form. If a high impact exercise day comes and your muscles are really tired honour yourself and do a yoga class or go for a walk.

When you are wanting to throwing in the towel and giving up remember habits are formed by staying consistent and repeating.