Many people cope with constant fatigue and believe that their diminished state won’t negatively affect their body. Unfortunately, fatigue can lead to many serious conditions, such as adrenal failure, chronic fatigue syndrome, and infections.
There are several techniques you can use to avoid succumbing to fatigue, and rejuvenate your mind, and energize your body. Use these simple tips every day to help you stay alert and fully functional.
You may think that working out is counterintuitive when your body needs rest—doesn’t expending more energy contribute to more fatigue? In fact, the energy expended by exercise is balanced by the hormones released by your brain.
In addition to releasing mood stabilizing hormones like serotonin, exercise also reduces the production of stress hormones, including cortisol and adrenaline. These are hormones that prevent you from sleeping at night, as they agitate other chemicals in your body and throw your circadian rhythm out of balance. By decreasing the levels of these hormones, you’ll fall asleep quickly and wake up refreshed.
Working out consistently is important when trying to regulate your health. Not only does exercise reduce stress and help your body operate more efficiently, it also helps to combat depression and stimulate positive behaviors.
Drink Lots of Water
Though hydration is an important part of life, many people are substituting water with unhealthy substitutes like soda, juice, and coffee, preventing the body from thriving. Dehydration not only drains you of energy, it also impairs physical performance. Additionally, many drink substitutes are full of sugar, which overloads your liver, raises your blood pressure, and stimulates hormonal imbalances in your brain.
In contrast, water helps flush toxins out of your body, contributing to the efficiency of the body’s operations. Without enough water, your body spends more energy on basic functions, inducing concentration issues, confusion, and lethargy.
Go to Bed Earlier
Lack of sleep is an obvious cause of fatigue, so going to sleep earlier promotes better brain function and concentration. Creating a schedule also helps your body recognize when it’s time to sleep, so you can relax naturally without the necessity for external sleeping aids. While stress and fatigue cause an increase in hormones that keep you awake, countering them with an effort to exercise and hydrate yourself will diminish constant fatigue.
Try an Adaptogen
Adoptogens are a revolutionary new discovery in the natural medical community. Any botanical supplement that helps your body adjust to the effects of stress can be beneficial towards eliminating fatigue. Taking an herbal supplement such as ashwagandha, ginseng, or holy basil will help treat both physical and mental exhaustion.
In fact, a study conducted by the Swedish Herbal Institute Research and Development found that adaptogens increased mental and physical performance in participants that were experiencing fatigue and weakness. The herbal supplement regulated hormone producing glands—like the adrenals and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis—that control the body’s stress response. By creating a resistance to stress and lowering stress hormone levels, adaptogen supplements should become a regular part of your lifestyle.
Have Smaller Meals Often
Proper nutrition has always been a part of a healthy lifestyle. One of the negative side effects of large meals that are full of carbohydrates and sugar is that they cause an instant drop in energy levels. Since your body tries to balance the sudden influx of sugars, it creates excessive insulin that triggers tryptophan in the brain. As the brain metabolizes the tryptophan, it has a calming effect on the body.
To combat fatigue, especially after meals, eat smaller portions of fiber and protein-rich foods. Not only will smaller meals control the flow of calming hormones, frequent meals will keep your blood sugar at a constant level, preventing fatigue. Aim for six small meals each day; one every two to three hours.
Small Changes, Large Benefits
While several of these tips are lifestyle changes that can take weeks to integrate into your daily routine, they are not insurmountable obstacles. Work out for 30 minutes every day, make small changes to your diet, and go to bed an hour earlier to control stress and stay refreshed.