How to Feel More Energized

As we are nearing the end of autumn, we can feel more and more exhausted, sleepy, and without much energy. To feel more energized, we need to find out what drains our energy. Is it poor diet habits, poor sleeping, or everyday stress? Or, maybe our energy flows away for all these reasons. Dietitians suggest eating berries because they can boost our energy level. They also highly recommend avoiding too much sugar, coffee, and energy drink. Although they can immediately make us feel more energized, they have very short effect in a long run. To make matters worse, shortly after taking the energy drink and the first burst of energy, we begin to feel more and more exhausted. To raise the energy level in a healthy way, experts suggest spending more time outdoors, exercising and walking. Physical activity, especially if taken outdoors, can lift our mood and fuel our body with renewed energy. If we want to maintain a high and stable level of energy during the fall, we should not forget our state of mind, too. In that sense, the article “How to Energize Yourself” offers the following tips.

Switch between tasks. Another way to energize your mind is to switch to doing something new. Switching gears to something new when the first thing isn’t working is a great way to make yourself feel energized.

Reward yourself for your achievements. Setting up rewards for yourself is a great way to feel energized and motivated to continue on with your work or whatever else you have to do.

Avoid multi-tasking. You may think that multi-tasking will keep you alert and can make you get everything done faster, but studies show that multi-tasking can actually drain you of energy faster, make you more distracted, and also make you less efficient than if you were focused on just one task at a time.

Try the “ten more minutes” trick. Whenever you’re really flagging in the middle of a task, tell yourself, “I’ll just do this for ten more minutes.” Repeat this to yourself like a mantra as you continue to tackle the task. Setting a short time limit can make your task feel more manageable and less overwhelming and can keep you focused instead of making you lose patience.

Schedule your day around your energy peaks. This is another great trick for energizing yourself throughout the day. Though most people don’t have the luxury of scheduling their entire day around the peaks and valleys of their energy levels, small changes can make a big difference. If you know you have the most energy in the mornings, schedule your run for the mornings instead of struggling to run after a long day of work;

Take a vacation. Though you obviously can’t take a vacation every time you feel the need to really energize yourself, you’ll be surprised by how significantly a much-needed vacation can help spike up your energy levels when you return to your daily life.

Take breaks every 60-90 minutes. Even the most focused, enthusiastic person needs to take a break every hour or hour and a half. Taking breaks, whether you’re taking a 15 minute walk, stepping outside to call home, or just switching gears and reading a few news stories, will make you feel reinvigorated and ready to tackle the tasks in front of you.

Get social. If you feel your mind starting to drift off and start gearing up for a nap, then it may be time to hang out with your friends. When you’re feeling tired and sleepy, the last thing you may want to do is hang out with a bunch of people, but that’s precisely the thing that will make you more energized.

One of the most common causes that drain our energy in today’s modern society is our striving for perfection. Exposing ourselves to these impossible standards can raise our stress level and keep us under the constant pressure. To avoid this trap, we can set more realistic expectations. It enables us to respect our boundaries, especially the ones associated with optimal functioning of the body. In late autumn we need more rest and sleep because our body struggles to prepare ourselves for winter. Listening to biological clock and our inner needs will help us not to exceed our boundaries. Letting go of the need to function always as best as we can and keep our activities on optimal level will enable us to feel better and more energized.