If the body is an engine, then food is its fuel. Food gives the body the energy it needs to function. If we don’t make sure the fuel we pump through our system is the right quality and quantity, we’re going to run ourselves right onto a scrap heap. The foods we eat affect our weight, mood, energy level, brain function, sex drive and sleeping patterns.
Kris Carr, Hungry for Change
I’m a person who has struggled with energy all my life. I’ve suffered from adrenal fatigue, and just low energy, likely due to my lifestyle choices. Even now, I notice that when I crave indulge in something considered ‘junk food’ or processed food, I face the consequences of those choices. The next morning have less energy and feel more lethargic.
If this is something you experience too, ask yourself these questions:
- Are you feeling truly alive?
- Do you feel vibrant and invigorated?
- Does your energy level remain consistent throughout the day?
If your answers aren’t quite so positive and you’re experiencing low energy and fighting off fatigue, then I have these suggestions to help:
Eating for Better Energy
Once you learn how your body reacts to certain foods, you’ve taken the very first step toward awareness.
Now, you’re empowered. You can make more informed choices.
When you’re eating the right foods for your body, you’ll experience:
- Better digestion
- Less belly bloat
- Reduce the saggy bags under your eyes
- Have fewer wrinkles
- Enjoy clearer skin
- Enjoy a boost in your energy levels
So, let’s cover the basics:
It’s true that you are what you eat. So consider carefully what you’re ingesting. Every bite you take can be packed with wholesome nutrition, or full of empty calories that won’t help you instead. Consider what you’re eating and how it’s serving you.
Here’s the truth: If you don’t want to feel like junk, then simply stop eating junk!
What Happens When We Don’t Eat Well?
When we’re not eating to support our health, our bodies respond accordingly. We begin to feel unwell.
When we aren’t eating the optimal foods for our body, we don’t metabolize foods properly.
Of course, each body is different and responds with any or all of the following:
• Difficulty getting restful sleep at night
• Low energy throughout the day
• Trouble staying focused on simple tasks
• Weight gain ~ belly bloat
Over time, you may suffer from migraines, develop food allergies, irritable bowel syndrome or constipation, suffer from low libido – the list is long. Eating poorly can even cause our mental health will suffer too – anxiety, depression, mood changes result.
Energy Thieves
Here are the main culprits to avoid:
- Caffeine. This sneaky trickster gives your body a jolt of energy, but it’s short-lived and causes you to crash once the false energy from the caffeine is used up.
- Foods you’re allergic or sensitive to will wreak havoc on your body and steal your energy.
- Toxicity in the body and unwanted pathogens, such as yeast, bacteria, and parasites, will all steal energy.
- Lack of restful, good quality sleep obviously takes a toll.
- Holding onto negative emotions will rob your body of the energy it deserves.
How to reduce or eliminate energy robbers & solutions for creating vibrant health
Forget the foods that promise you a miracle in a box or jar and eliminate processed foods from your menu. Choose whole foods instead and prepare them yourself. Now you can control the ingredients, the salt, the fat content and make sure the final product you’re consuming is as full of good nutrition as possible
True energy and true health come from real, whole foods – the kind you find in the produce section of grocery store – that don’t have additives.
Pro Tip:
Become a label detective. Become more adept at understanding what’s in your foods and choose those whose ingredients you can pronounce. If you can’t pronounce it, you likely shouldn’t be consuming it as your liver can’t process it.
What Types of Foods Increase Energy?
- Whenever possible, focus on the highest quality foods you can. Local and organic are ideal (check out co-ops, farmer’s markets or produce stands to find more affordable options).
- Foods that are “real” and not manufactured. These are foods that will spoil in a matter of days and don’t have a long shelf life.
- Whole foods including grains, vegetables, and beans are foods that have no’t been processed. They contain precious vitamins, minerals, fiber and other naturally occurring nutrients that your body recognize and can absorb and utilize quickly.
- Quality animal protein sources. Eat organic, grass fed, wild and free-range when possible.
- Superfoods have very high levels of nutrients. Leafy greens, many fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds are considered superfoods.
- Sea plants such as green algae and seaweed are powerful sources of nutrition and energy. (You can also get these in powder form to add to smoothies).
- Healthy greens will energize you and are full of helpful fiber to make you feel fuller for longer – and have the added benefit of keeping you regular
What we eat has a significant impact on our energy.
Avoid the extremes of ‘Starving and Stuffed’
If you tend to eat large meals that take a lot of effort to digest, you end up feeling weighed down and sluggish afterward. Lighten things up by eating a lighter lunch and breaking your meals up throughout the day to keep you feeling sustained and satisfied.
Obviously, it’s not just about food, so here are my
Top 5 tips to help you find even more ways to increase your natural energy:
- Hydrate: Drink more water or coconut water. Your body will thank you for it!
- Get active. Sweating is great to detox the body and rid the toxins through our sweat glands.
- Reduce sugar. This toxin creates inflammation and saps away valuable minerals your body needs.
- Relax. Even if this means just taking 5 minutes to meditate or breathe deeply. I actually do a one-minute meditation daily and practice breathing deeply to stay calm, centered, and relaxed. It totally works.
- Good Quality Sleep. Make sure you’re getting an adequate amount of sleep each night.
If super charged energy is what you to experience, right?
Energy can be restored when you eat the right foods and add in some healthy habits along the way.
If super-charged, sustained energy is what you’re after, adding more of it to your daily life is as simple as 1~2~3 and I’d love to chat.
Contact me via email at lwadsworth@verizon.net to schedule your FREE Energy Breakthrough Clarity Call.
By the end of the call, you’ll have:
- A customized Action Plan
- Simple steps to move forward confidently, with a better understanding of what’s right for your body plus
- Some free resources to help.
