Do you feel tired and drained though there is no visible reason for that? In this article, we want to talk about what takes our vitality away, how to boost energy levels, and ultimately be happier with life.
Common reasons for lack of energy
Very often people don’t even know why they feel so tired and have zero energy. Therefore, it is essential to find out why you feel the way you feel and what was the cause of your lack of energy.
Here are some ideas what could be a reason for lack of energy.
#1: Suppressing negative emotions
Most of us suppress negative emotions. All unexpressed emotions are stored in our bodies in the form of blocks in our chakras that prevent free energy flow.
Did you know that suppressing emotions, whether it’s anger, sadness, grief, or frustration, often leads to physical stress on your body, anxiety, and panic attacks?
Research shows that people who tend to block their emotions have difficulty falling asleep, sleep disorders, and daytime tiredness. They also experience more depression, anxiety, and stress in daily life.
#2: Negative thoughts
Negative thinking is any form of thinking that sounds rational and accurate in your mind but only makes you feel bad about yourself or your life.
Most of us spend a lot of time negatively thinking and worrying about the future, replaying events in the past, and generally focusing on something we are not happy about.
Negative thinking drains your energy and makes you feel exhausted! It can make you feel stressed, anxious, and even depressed due to the fact that focusing on negative thoughts triggers the release of cortisol, the stress hormone.
#3: Energy-draining foods
Eating and drinking are effective ways to boost your energy levels. However, what you eat does matter. The foods and beverages listed below are more likely to drain your energy:
- Processed grains such as those found in white bread, white pasta, and white rice may cause more harm than good when it comes to your energy levels.
- Foods high in added sugars may increase the likelihood you’ll crave other sugary foods, potentially creating an energy-depleting cycle.
- Alcohol – although it may help you feel more relaxed or fall asleep more easily, it may actually drain your energy by causing you to wake up the next morning feeling less rested.
- Too much caffeine can negatively affect the quality of your sleep, which can reduce your energy levels.
- Fried and fast foods are generally high in fat and low in fiber, two factors that can slow down your digestion. Slower digestion can reduce the speed at which energy-boosting nutrients enter the body, delaying the increase in energy most people expect following a meal.
- Cereal – many cereals are loaded with high-fructose corn syrup, sugar, genetically modified corn, unhealthy chemicals, and refined carbs. To process all these you have to spend all your energy!
- Soda can change what kind of rest you get during the night. Even a full night of sleep may not give you the liveliness you need during the day.
- Bagels are high in refined carbs but lacking enough nutritive value. Having bagels for breakfast can take away the stamina you need to get through the day.
Of course, there are lots of other foods that can be added to the above list. We just listed common examples of energy-draining foods. You should definitely add dairy, eggs, and all sorts of meat to this list!
#4: Touch starvation
Skin-to-skin contact is vital for our mental, emotional, and physical health, too.
When you feel overwhelmed or pressured, the body releases the stress hormone cortisol. One of the biggest things touch can do is reduce stress, allowing the immune system to work the way it should.
Research shows that people who are lonely or deprived of affection are predisposed to suffer from depression, anxiety, stress, low relationship satisfaction, difficulty sleeping. All these are key factors for energy loss.
#5: Chronic lack of sleep
It drains your mental abilities and puts your physical health at real risk!
How to boost energy level?
Now let us share with you the 7 effective tips on how to boost your energy level.
#1: Positive thinking
A positive mindset greatly contributes to energy efficiency, and, in general, makes life easier. Start with practicing gratitude and using positive affirmations to get your day started. Another great way to start is by stepping outside of your daily routine to help someone else. A simple act of kindness can provide an amazing perspective and fill you with positivity.
Give yourself the necessary support by reading the law of attraction books, watching self-help documentaries, and spending more time with positive-minded people.
#2: Healing childhood traumas
Unhealed trauma drains your energy and pulls happiness from your life, even when you do not think about your painful past. Therefore, it is essential for most of us to heal our inner child.
You can start by making a dialogue with your inner child by looking at the picture of yourself during the age when the trauma occurred. Say nurturing things to your inner child, like: “I love you, I hear you, thank you, I’m sorry that happened to you. Now you are safe.” Also, you can write a letter to your inner child or perform meditation and creative visualization.
#3: Minimize your time in social networks
Gadgets consume both energy and time! But sometimes you want to check one thing and get stuck. In order to prevent this from happening, make a plan before you open the app. Set your personal rules for using social media like, for example, to use it only when there is a specific purpose, like writing a post, watching training videos, check the pages of important people whose posts can provide you some important information and those who write something interesting and useful.
When you don’t have a clear plan for your time on social media, you can waste lots of time and energy. After spending an hour on scrolling through your feed you will feel tired and apathetic.
#4: Exercise
Exercise delivers oxygen and nutrients to your tissues and helps your cardiovascular system work more efficiently. And when your heart and lung health improves, you have more energy to tackle daily chores.
#5: Eat the food that gives you energy
Here is the list of the foods that can give you more energy (based on a vegan lifestyle):
- Lentils – the fiber and the low amount of carbs can help stabilize blood sugar to avoid spikes and crashes of energy.
- Nut butter – contains great healthy fats and is high in protein to give you long-lasting energy. Nut butter also contains a good amount of fiber. As you may know, fiber helps with your digestion and can keep you feeling full and energetic hours after a meal. You have a variety of options: from peanut butter to almond butter to even sunflower seed butter.
- Spinach – gives you vitamin A, calcium, potassium, magnesium, folate, and iron. These nutrients help bring energy to your muscles that will help during workouts and during long days at work.
- Sweet potatoes – their carb content is perfectly balanced with vitamin A, vitamin C, and fiber. The carbs will give you energy-boosting sugar while the fiber and nutrients will make sure you’re getting it over a long period.
- Chia seeds contain a golden ratio of fiber, protein, and healthy omega-3 fats. The fiber and the protein will work to release the energy of the chia seeds over many hours. Healthy fats can boost your energy levels.
- Brown rice can provide a good amount of calories combined with high fiber, protein, and carbs.
- Fresh fruit is the ultimate natural energy bar. Fruit contains the perfect combination of simple sugars and fiber. The fiber combined with the sugar will release energy over time, which will keep you feeling energized for longer.
- Oats contain magnesium, B vitamins, potassium, and iron, which give you high quality and healthy energy.
- Almonds contain are high in healthy fats and fiber to keep the energy in your system for a long time.
- Cacao – the high iron content will help bring oxygen to your muscles and organs that will make you feel alert and energized.
#6: Tactile contact
There are many different ways to welcome more affection into your life right now even if you consider yourself a lonely person:
- Book a massage or Reiki healing session – these are a proven way to relax and enjoy the benefits of another person’s touch.
- Get your nails done – it will give you the human contact you need.
- Adopt a pet – cuddling pets is very soothing not to mention that animals are natural healers.
- Visit the hair salon – even a simple wash and blow-dry can provide you with ultimate relaxation.
- Take a dance class – certain dances (like the tango, for example) don’t work without skin-to-skin contact.
If you are not a lonely person but you still feel touch starving, hug your children, your parents, wife/husband more often. Give your friends a hug when you meet them. Also, make sure you give yourself a regular self-massage!
#7: Breathing exercises
As we breathe, so we live. The vast majority of people do not use the entire volume of their lungs when breathing, but only the upper third. The remaining 2/3 of the lungs are never ventilated. Accordingly, the organs, tissues, and systems of the body do not receive enough oxygen which can be another reason why you feel tired.
Try pranayama! Pranayama is associated with breathing exercises that have a beneficial effect on the body, saturating it with oxygen. Regular practice of pranayama boosts energy levels, reduces anxiety, stress, and even improves overall health. Here are a couple of examples of pranayama that you can practice:
- Murcha Pranayama (for energizing the body and removing negative emotions from the mind);
- Anuloma Viloma (for lowering stress and anxiety);
- Sheetkari Pranayama (for energy-boosting and relaxation);
- Humming Bee Breath (for anxiety relief).
The Bottom Line
With increasingly busy lives, most of us regularly find ourselves feeling tired and drained. However, if you make your mental and physical health your priority, if you give yourself enough love and self-care, you can get your energy back.
Take a closer look at your lifestyle to see which healthy changes you can make to boost your energy levels. Eating healthily, getting enough sleep, drinking enough water, and exercise can boost your energy levels and improve your health.