Finding Your Lost Energy
60Tired? If you're like many, the feeling of fatigue is something that you deal with on a day to day basis and more than likely something you have just come to accept as a way of life. This is unfortunate because it doesn't necessarily have to be this way if you make small adjustments to the way you live each day.
Many people are surprised to learn that some of the things they have never even considered could be zapping them of their much needed energy and that once they make a habit of changing these things they feel like a completely new person.
While it is important whenever you feel extreme fatigue to check in with your doctor so you can rule out medical issues such as hypothyroidism, chronic fatigue syndrome, anemia, and other conditions, if it is just come and go feelings of being worn down than more than likely this is a problem you can deal with yourself.
Below are 7 reasons why you might be feeling more tired than usual.
1. You Hardly Ever Make Time To Exercise
Between trying to get the kids out the door in the morning while still making it on time to work to rushing home so you can prepare a healthful meal, exercise just somehow slips right by you. This is really unfortunate because if there is one regular thing in your day that will give you more energy, this is it. Exercise really helps to get the blood flowing to the muscles, delivering more oxygen and nutrients throughout the body and releases a whole variety of hormones that serve to stimulate your nervous system and keep you alert. By skipping out on exercise you will feel more like you are dragging yourself around all day, not to mention you may start putting on unnecessary weight, thus making each movement harder for you.
Don't think you have to devote an hour and a half to exercise each day to see rewards though. Something as simple as a fifteen minute walk during your lunch hour and 20 minutes of free weight lifting at home in the evening a few times a week while you watch TV will do the trick quite nicely.
2. You Have An Irregular Sleep Schedule
If you are one of those people who loves staying up way past midnight on the weekends and figures you can make up for it by sleeping until noon you are sadly mistaken. It really is best, in your fight against fatigue, to try and get to bed and wake up at the same time each day. Your body has a natural biorhythm and throwing it off is really going to mess with the natural hormonal processes that occur during your sleep and wake cycles. If you really must stay up late on the weekends, do your best to get up at a similar time as you would during the week but then add a mid-afternoon nap the next day to recovery from the lost sleep.
3. You Are Constantly Going On And Off Medication
If you are always taking a pill for something, this could be affecting how well you feel. Individuals who regularly use medicine to treat even the simplest of things could be interfering with their bodies' natural defence mechanisms and altering their body's chemistry. When possible, it really is best to avoid taking medication and let your immune system work on the issue at hand. Ensuring you have proper nutrition to begin with will provide your body with the anti-oxidants that help to fight off free radicals that can cause illness in the first place.
Additionally, many of the medications that are out there such as anit-depressants, pain medications and antihistamines do contain ingredients that have a tendency to make people sleepy so keep this in mind if these are one of the pills you are taking.
4. You Have A Big Window In Your Bedroom
Do you find that you get up when the sun does? Or that while you lay there trying to go to sleep the moon is casting a shadow across your room? If this is the case for you then you need to take some steps to ensure that your room is pitch black while you sleep. Sleeping in complete darkness is a very important thing if you want to feel fully rested and prevent mid-night wakenings. Keep in mind also that each time you wake up in the night, your deep sleep cycle will be disrupted and it is this deep sleep cycle that makes you feel rested in the morning. Keeping it going continuously is your best defence against a tired morning.
5. Caffeinated Beverages Are The Only Liquid That Passes Through Your Lips During The Day
Some people, due to the fact that they are already exhausted, start their morning with a tall, fresh cup of coffee. Then they arrive at the office only to load up their mug for another, making another 2-3 trips before the afternoon hits. By this time they sure do have a lot of liquid floating throughout their body, however it is caffeine-containing liquid that is only going to dehydrate their bodies further than it already is. Fatigue is often a major sign of dehydration so if this scenario sounds quite familiar to you, this caffeine-junkie habit may be a significant cause as to why you feel the way you do.
Instead of serving yourself coffee after coffee, try to alternate coffee with caffeine-free flavoured teas or water. This will keep you more hydrated and also keep your skin healthier in the process.
6. You Aren't Using The Best Of Posture
Next time you are at work, have a look at your posture about mid-way through the afternoon. By this time fatigue has more than likely set in, you are feeling quite ready to go home for the day and you are probably slouched over at the desk.
When this happens, not only do you take the appearance of a tired person, but you are restricting your airflow which can definitely cause feelings of fatigue. Whenever you notice this happening, make an effort to sit up straight and take 4-5 deep breathes in and out. Then get up, go get yourself a glass of water and when you come back to your desk, try and maintain a better postural position for the rest of the afternoon. Chances are you will leave work feeling better than when you first came in.
7. You Are Under A Great Deal Of Stress
One of the biggest sappers of energy in today's world is stress. Everyone seems to be stressed. Whether it is work, relationships or the fact you just can't lose those last ten pounds, stress has crept up and you are on the verge of losing it. Relax. It happens to everyone. When you are feeling like it is just a little too much to handle, it's really important to make a point to get away for a while, even if it's just for an hour, and do something that you really enjoy and can get into. Experts call this process 'flow' and it occurs when you lose yourself in an activity, forgetting anything else that is on your mind. Finding an activity where you can reach this flow state is really important in terms of stress release. If you can partake in it on a weekly basis you will find that your stress levels are much more controlled and this directly affects the amount of fatigue you are feeling.
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