Fit to Post Health4 ways to increase your energy levels
If you come home from work or school exhausted, you are not alone. Long days of work and studying are sure to leave just about anyone's energy levels low for the day. This article will discuss some useful tips you can follow to maintain and increase your energy levels throughout the day, so you will not come home running on an empty tank.
1. Eat regularly
Although you don't want to be munching on unhealthy, high-calorie foods all day, it is important to eat something healthy every three to four hours.
When you go without food for too long, your blood sugar can go down, causing your energy to be fall, as well. Try to keep some healthy snacks around to eat in between meals. Some good ideas are fresh fruit or veggies, pretzels or other lower-calorie snack foods, low-fat yogurt, nuts, dried fruit, low-fat cottage cheese, whole-grain granola bars and cereal.
Eating regularly can help maintain your energy so it doesn't decrease in the first place.
2. Get up and move
It may seem counterintuitive to exercise when your energy is low, but it actually helps.
Walking around the room, stretching, taking a 10-minute walk outside on your break, or even doing some pushups in your office can all help increase your energy.
Exercise gets your blood flowing, which helps to make you more alert and awake. It also helps you think clearer and regain focus. Try to take a mini-break every hour or so in order to break up your routine and keep your energy up.
Walking for 10 or 15 minutes outside with your co-workers or classmates right after lunch can alleviate some of the fatigue that sometimes occurs after eating a meal. Additionally, adding a routine walk to your day will help you stay in shape and active.
3. Take a breath of fresh air
Even when you're not out to take a walk at lunch, just stepping outside for a bit of fresh air can really increase your energy. Especially with jobs where you are sitting staring at a computer screen or reading books, getting out in the open just for a minute can be very refreshing.
4. Take some caffeine
When worst comes to worst, caffeine is always a short-term fix to increase your energy levels.
Although it's not recommended to become dependent on caffeine, having one or two cups of coffee or tea per day will likely do no harm. In fact, some research has actually shown that moderate coffee consumption can be beneficial to your health, and it is a rather widely held scientific belief that many teas (which can also contain caffeine) are good for the body.
Be aware, however, that coffee and teas are healthiest when they are not loaded up with extras, such as cream, sweeteners or flavorings.
Also, know that drinking coffee, cola or tea for caffeine is much better than drinking an energy drink. Energy drinks may have a stimulatory effect early on, but they also can backfire, leaving you with less energy than you started with. Additionally, many energy drinks contain extra ingredients that may not be healthy in the long run.
Increasing and maintaining your energy can be a difficult task when you are working all day long. Trying some of the tips mentioned in this article can help you stay energetic and focused throughout the day.
By registered dietitian Arielle Kamps, M.S., R.D, L.D. Via HealthMatters.sg, a Singapore Health and Fitness blog that aims to help you lose weight, keep fit, and live healthy. Click here to get our free guide "Eat Your Way to Health — Secrets of a Healthy Diet".
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