Six More Tips for Boosting Your Energy

Inspired by the Living magazine article, 10 Tips for Boosting Your Energy, we have put together even more tips to help you maximize your time and make living life joyful again. Below, we’ve outlined a few problems that may be holding you back, and then how to fix them.
 

1. You’re mostly sedentary. The bad news here is that even your hour-long workout doesn’t matter much if you’re sitting the rest of the day. As human beings, we create energy for ourselves by moving around. (Just think about how much more awake you feel after going for even a brief walk.)
   How to fix: Every 90 minutes, get up and do two minutes of exercises like jumping jacks, or walk around for a few minutes.
    
2. Your sleep cycles are out of balance. Lying in bed for seven to eight hours won’t always fix the problem if you’re tired all the time. Sleep cycles are typically 75 to 90 minutes each, and they correlate with specific regeneration or detoxification of cells and organs throughout your body. Elevated stress or unstable blood sugar levels can throw off your sleep cycles. Disrupted REM sleep has been associated with mild psychological problems like having a hard time concentrating and irritability.
   How to fix: Let in more sunlight in the morning to decrease stress or cortisol levels at night. As hard as it is, don’t hit the snooze button: by falling asleep again you could be interrupting your hormone cycle that makes it even harder to get going. Instead, set your alarm for 15 minutes later if you can spare the time.
    
3. You need a new breakfast. Eating coffee and a bagel or pastry isn’t going to get you far into your day—not enough unrefined carbs, healthy fats, or protein. The addage that breakfast is the most important meal of the day is true, but sometimes it also seems like a colossal challenge so we go with anything easy. 
   How to fix: A breakfast that will keep you satisfied longer doesn't have to be complicated. Instead of refined carbs, go for high-fiber (whole-grain toast with peanut butter), protein (eggs and a whole-grain tortilla), or both (oatmeal with nuts).
    
4. You don’t get the other nutrients you need. This goes with the above step, but applies to your diet overall. Our cells receive energy from adenosine triphosphate, or ATP. While it helps run your body, it has to be bound to magnesium to work, to make sure the processes in your body are functioning. Without magnesium, it can’t do anything.
   How to fix: Eat magnesium-rich foods like spinach, pumpkin seeds, and almonds each and every day. Add in a magnesium supplement. Eat a well-balanced diet that avoids processed foods. Get more potassium and Vitamin D. Add in a supplement like doTERRA Lifelong Vitality^® to ensure you’re getting all the essential nutrients your body needs.
    
5. You’re dehydrated. Your brain and nervous system take even a minimal amount of dehydration very seriously, causing headaches and fatigue. Every organ, cell, and tissue in your body operates using water in some way.
   How to fix: Make sure to drink a full glass of water in the morning when you wake up, and then continue to drink at least half your body weight in ounces throughout the day. Change up the taste of your water by adding in citrus oils like Lemon, Lime, Grapefruit, or Wild Orange.
    
6. You’re stressing. Constantly being in fight-or-flight mode for whatever reason (bills, traffic, etc.) means that you crash when your body has had enough. Unfortunately, your energy reserves cannot consistenly hold up in the face of relentless stress.
   How to fix: Use essential oils like Frankincense, Vetiver, AromaTouch^®, or Roman Chamomile, whether on your skin or diffused into the air. For more tips on what to do about stress, read up on Nine Ways to De-stress or Aromatherapy and Meditation to Reduce Stress.