Five Great Ways To Stay Energetic

There are many reasons for us to get tired. It could be due to health issues, lack of sleep, stress or work pressures. Mental and physical fatigues happen if we push the mind and body beyond its limitations. In the past, I used to burn the midnight oil to complete my work tasks and then feel lethargic and tired the next morning. I discarded these habits as I learned that it affects my overall functionality, especially when working on a task that needs my full attention. When we work on a task with less focus and attention, it is like lifting a heavy dumbbell while recovering from a hangover.

So, what could we do to instantly boost our energy and remain highly energetic? I hear you say “drink coffee, man!” Yes, I do agree that caffeine helps. However, it brings down our alertness after its effects get washed off gradually from our system. Once the effects are down, we are tempted to have another cup of coffee.

Honestly, I do drink a cup of black coffee daily before my workouts. It helps me to stay alert, sharp, active, and focused throughout my workouts. Though I agree that caffeine boosts energy levels, I have also experienced my eyes shutting down when I reach mid-day. This happens when the caffeine effects slow down. And guess what….my mind tells me to make another cup of coffee to stay awake. One lesson I learned about caffeine is that it helps when consumed in moderation but raises irritability and mood swings when consumed in excess.

You might be probably thinking now, “stop talking too long about caffeine and tell me what I could do to stay energetic.” Okay… let’s begin. I am going to share on five ways to boost our energies and keep those energies firing throughout the day.

Breath Control Method

The first one is to practice breath control. In Sanskrit, life force is known as prana. When prana is down, we become weak and fatigued. Breath is the vital element of our life force. One way to raise this prana is through breathing exercises. Breathing exercises are called pranayama in Sanskrit. There are many methods to do these exercises. One of my favorites is the breath control method.

This is how we do it: Inhale deeply and hold your breath for ten to fifteen seconds and then exhale slowly. Repeat this for about three to five rounds in the morning, afternoon and evening.

Why should we hold the breath? As breath is a vital element of the life force, the vital energy needed for the body isn’t properly absorbed into our system if our breathing patterns become irregular. This causes fatigue and lack of energy in our body. Hence, holding the breath for some time helps the body to absorb the essential energy it needs to recharge and rejuvenate.

Water

The second way is to drink adequate amounts of water. Water helps us to re-charge our energy by battling dehydration. Dehydration is one of the reasons we feel tired. You may have come across those who feel tired the next day after a night of heavy drinking. The hangover shows signs of dehydration in the body. Water helps our body to transport oxygen in our blood and improves our blood circulation. Being well-hydrated and having a good blood circulation keeps us fresh and energetic.

Active Physical Movements

Do some morning workouts. The workouts needn’t be long. It can be short workout with short rest intervals. You may try to give your body some form of movements for about ten to fifteen minutes. It can be a fifteen minutes morning dance with your favorite music or doing as many push-ups or crunches as you can with short rest periods around ten to fifteen minutes. Get a good sweat and feel the sharpness in your mind. You may then enjoy a cold shower, eat healthy meals and then start your day.

Self Care

Taking care of the ending part of our day is very important in preserving our energies. Do not watch, listen or overthink of stuff that affects your mental and emotional peace especially in the late hours of the day. When mind gets affected, sleep patterns might get disrupted. It is not always about the quantity of our sleep but the quality of our sleep. So even if we are going to sleep for six hours or less with calmness of mind, we are still going to wake up fresh. But if we are tossing and turning on bed with pressing thoughts for ten hours, then we are more likely to wake up feeling tired.

Diet

Avoid sugary and high carb foods. These foods are good for raising the blood sugar levels. These foods energize us for a while and then later drag us into deeper tiredness. Foods containing carbohydrates help us to produce serotonin in our brains. Therefore, foods highly rich in carbohydrates are going to make us more sleepy. When sugar intakes are high and they are not properly used up, they remain in the bloodstream which causes us to feel fatigue.

To keep our energies firing, it is good to feast on fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds, dates, millets or honey. These foods are examples of positive pranic (life-force) foods. They work on increasing and strengthening our life-force, keeping us energetic, strong, young and healthy.

Takeaways

Two elements of the universe, air (breath) and water have to be used thoughtfully to boost our energies. Regular physical exercise and self-care in the form of preserving mental and emotional health is important to enhance our energy levels. Lastly, our diet plays an important role in helping us glow with vitality — the positive pranic foods.

Remain energetic always. Thank you for reading my insights. If you enjoyed reading this, you may wish to read my other stories related to energy.