Not having to hunt to survive and forage for a place to live every night is a definite advantage of society, but it does come with some advantages. The cubicle, after all, is ill-suited to staying fit, and few people have obligations that don’t sometimes keep them out well after dark. If you’re dealing with fatigue or a lack of energy, there are a lot of potential factors that could be impacting your overall health. Fortunately, most of those factors can be tweaked to your benefit. If you want to stay energized and develop healthier general habits, here are some simple choices you can make.
Start With a Smart Breakfast
Eating a healthy meal in the morning is good advice for practically every aspect of your well-being, but you can also tailor your meal to help you get an added reserve of energy throughout the day. A diet rich in protein will help maintain balanced long term energy levels, but that doesn’t mean that you need to stuff your face with bacon and sausage. Yogurt, eggs, berries, and nuts can all provide a healthy source of protein for your daily routine.
Consume Fluids Smarter
A cup or three of coffee may be a part of your regular routine already. In addition to offering a solid dose of caffeine, it also contains high levels of protein. But a heavy dose of caffeine isn’t the most sensible choice for long term consumption. Caffeine’s effects are short term and counterbalanced by the jitteriness that regular coffee consumption causes. It’s also an addictive substance that shows diminishing returns over time.
Fortunately, there are a lot of drinks out there that use caffeine modestly and supplement it with other ingredients tailored towards long-term energy output. Teas like yerba mate and matcha combine often smaller portions of caffeine with antioxidants and other healthy herbal ingredients, but ingenuitive manufacturers are creating their own healthy energy boosting formulas. MUD\WTR in particular is a specially formulated and better balanced alternative to coffee.
And Stay Hydrated
Water is necessary for your body’s continued functionality. It affects everything from joint health to internal body temperature, but it can also have a major impact on the factors that determine your energy levels. Keeping hydrated can also prevent fatigue throughout the day and affect your cognition, mood, and sleep cycle. Getting enough sleep and staying positive are two of the biggest ways to improve your overall activity levels, and keeping hydrated is a necessity for both. Making a habit of having a large glass of water with every meal can assist with that greatly.
Stay Away From Harmful Substances
Coffee can make your jittery and irritable, but there are other substances that can have a dramatic effect on your mood and your energy. Alcohol can make you sleepy and sluggish when you imbibe during the day, but too much drinking can also affect your mood and your sleep cycle – making it an obvious stress factor when you’re having trouble staying energized. Nicotine has a similar effect to caffeine: creating an artificial burst of energy that will eventually leave you fatigued.
Stay Active
Getting out and about is the best way to keep your energy levels high. When you exercise, you’re essentially telling your body to boost its energy levels, and that’s a high that can last throughout the day. Paradoxically, pushing your body harder can actually make you less exhausted in a significant way. If you’re going to be working out anyway, we recommend doing it outside. Being in sunshine helps your body better root its sleep cycle, but it can also boost your antioxidant levels and the endorphins that control your mood.