“I wish I had more energy”. I hear this from (almost) literally every client I work with. These days there just doesn’t seem to be enough of it to go around. And as a leader in business, you might feel you need more of it than the average person to keep up with all of the demands put on you, both personally and professionally.
I know, you think you’re not “stressed” and that you handle your stress “just fine”. But do you? Is your body telling you that you’re stressed but you’re not seeing the signals? Let’s consider some stats:
77% of the US population experience symptoms of stress on a daily basis
51% feel chronic fatigue due to stress
45% of people feel low energy due to stress.
Therefore, it’s likely impacting you, and a lot more than you may realize.
The obvious answer to more energy might seem as simple as getting better sleep — if only it were that easy (and is getting better sleep that easy?).
When it comes to improving energy levels, we often overlook stress and the role that it plays in our ability to feel energized throughout the day. There are five key areas of stress that impact every single person.
Nutritional Stress
Physical Stress
Stress from blood sugar and insulin dysregulation
Stress from poor gut health
Mental and Emotional Stress
Let’s take a quick look at a few of these stressors and one key change you can make in each area to decrease stress on your body to improve your overall energy levels.
Most people say that breakfast is the “most important meal”. However, do you know why? It impacts the entire day in terms of energy, mental clarity, and metabolism.
Eating a breakfast made up of cereals, or oatmeal paired freshly squeezed juice and a coffee to go may seem harmless, but, it’s actually causing a spike and crash in your blood sugar. Additionally, items like cereal or oatmeal are pretty processed and packed with added sugars. Instead, prioritize foods that contain protein like eggs or even protein-packed beverages like smoothies.
Next, did you know that movement simulates your brain? Recent research supports that dividing up your work cycle every 90 minutes with movement, helps your brain work as productively as possible. We are all guilty of sitting far too much. Lack of movement can be very stressful on the body. Set a timer during the day to get up and move every 90 minutes and watch your productivity and energy improve dramatically!
Lastly, as you finish this article. Take a big breath. We are going to tackle mental and emotional stress. Let’s face it, we all have some. One way to check how you are truly handling this is by assessing our breath. If you are breathing with your belly, good news! You are stimulating your vagus nerve which is the biggest nerve in your body. It helps to simulate and sending your body into a parasympathetic nervous system to all rest and recovery. If you are breathing out of your chest it might be time for you to practice some deep breaths and look into diaphragmatic breathing. If any of these key changes resonate with you and you’d like to learn how to better optimize your health, energy or wellness in any way. I’d love to chat with you and offer you a free month of coaching!
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Nichole Bates is a guest blogger for Onpoint and one of our great team members. Contact her to enroll in virtual health coaching. She is a certified Health and Wellness Coach and Certified Personal Trainer with a Bachelors Degree in Exercise Science from the University of Wisconsin, River Falls. Certifications: Wellcoaches, an ICF accredited coaching education firm, NASM and Precision Nutrition. Contact Nichole at www.esquaredhealth.com or on Instagram coach.nichole.bates
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