Around the holidays, many people are stressed out and tired! Lots of my friends don’t feel like they want to exert the extra energy required to complete their work and the holiday traditions. I can completely understand! Before I went all holistic on my doctors and ditched the medication, I would regularly spend nine or even ten hours sleeping. Part of that was a side effect of the seizure medications (yes, I was on two at once!) and another part of that was eating unhealthy foods.
Now, I have boundless energy and can muster it whenever I want! I know how to refresh myself after an exhausting day. I have learned certain tips and tricks that will take me from feeling run down to running around! This actually took me years to learn and master, but anyone can do it!
1. Learn to Breathe Correctly
When I was scouring the internet to discover natural ways to prevent seizures, I discovered the Buteyko breathing method. It is actually very simple to get started doing. Buteyko breathing exercises focus on increasing the body’s oxygen content in order to utilize it more effectively. Every organ in our body relies on oxygen and when we get depleted of our energy, it is an indication that our oxygen sources have lowered.
Breathing through the nose is essential not only to eliminating and cleaning the air that enters our body, but also to the proper gaseous exchange that happens in our lungs. Focus on breathing through your nose 24/7 and you will be well on your way to an increased level of energy and better health!
2. Drink Plenty of Water
In addition to lowered oxygen levels, we have started to consume more and more processed foods. This has a dehydrating effect on the body. Dehydration means that the body has to conserve water for the most essential organs. Therefore, you will start to feel run down, you may experience more colds when you are getting dehydrated.
3. Lower Your Carbohydrate Intake
I have experimented with a lot of diets over the years. One of the best diets for increasing your energy levels is the ketogenic diet. It is prescribed for people who have epilepsy, but is now being recommended to people who are also trying to lose weight as well as diabetics and those suffering from Alzheimer’s. While I hate being on a diet, I love the way that the ketogenic diet keeps me feeling full and feeling well fueled.
Carbohydrates will provide your body with energy, however foods that are heavy in carbohydrates create an inflammatory response in the body. Simple carbohydrates, such as those which are in sugary drinks, cookies and processed foods, burn through your system quickly. They spike the insulin levels as they provide a fast boost of energy.
The ketogenic diet focuses on reducing the carbohydrate intake to less than 20 net carbohydrates per day. The ketogenic diet focuses on getting your body to burn fat for fuel instead of carbohydrates. Ideally, you will be eating 75% of your diet will be healthy fats, such as grassfed butter, avocados, olive oil and coconut oils.
The great thing about the ketogenic diet is that once your body becomes fat burning, you don’t feel the need to snack on foods throughout the day, which frees up some of the time that you may have spent grazing on foods that were creating a sluggish feeling in your body.
4. Exercise!
It definitely sounds couter productive to exercise wehn you lack energy, but it i s one of the biggest boosts to my energy levels when I do exercise. It gets the cardiovascular system working, the blood flowing and delivering oxygen throughout my body. If I am feeling run down, but I still have plenty of things to do, I incrase my walking speed to a brisk pace. If I have some flexibility in my day, I take the dog outside for a breath of fresh air. It invigorates me. Exercising can increase your vO2 max, it can iimprove your stamina, it helps you to fall asleep and get more restorative sleep. Exercise will improve your energy levels. Make it a consitent practic and you will see your excess weight drop as well.
5. Essential Oils
Essential oils smell really nice. Honestly, I haven’t used this method to increase my energy that much. I am fascinated by them, but tend to forget about them. I learned about the seizure preventing effects of Frankincense and I purchased a bottle a year ago. It does seem to sharpen my focus when I smell it. That can lead to getting things done and improving energy levels as well.
My cousin recently gave me some DoTerra oils. The lemon essential oil smells bright and cheery. It is a quick pick-me-up!
Schedule an Energy Booster
These are all very simple thing that will increase the quality of your life. They will improve your energy levels and help you to accomplish more throughout your day, so why is it that we all struggle so much to squeeze in exercise when we know it will help so much? It is often because we don’t amke it a priority. We are trying to squeeze it in instead of ensuring that it is an integral and essential part of our day. I’m guilty of it as well. If you truly want to increase your energy, plan one of these activities into your day tomorrow and see how you feel after you do it. You’ll discover that it becomes easier and easier to do when it becomes a habit that is planned into your day. 