Low energy can affect all aspects of your life and make the day seem impossibly long. Although there may be underlying medical reasons for low energy, there are ways you can try to boost your energy on your own.

Consider Your Diet

Different aspects of your diet can make or break your energy throughout the day. If you notice many peaks and valleys in your energy level, you should pay attention to how often you eat and determine if your energy levels correlate with meals. Eating the traditional three meals per day or less can stifle your energy levels. Your body needs food to sustain energy and long gaps between meals can make you feel sluggish. Another consideration is the size of your meals. Eating a large meal will often make you tired for several hours afterwards.

Try smaller meals more often. Incorporating snacks is one way to increase the frequency of your meals while keeping hunger at bay. Aim to eat a combination of protein and complex carbohydrates at each meal and snack. Limiting the amount of simple carbohydrates you eat throughout the day can also reduce the sluggish feeling.

Develop Good Sleep Habits

Getting enough sleep each night is often easier said than done, but adequate rest can drastically improve your energy levels. Part of developing a good sleep schedule is being consistent. Whenever possible, schedule your bedtime so you are getting six to eight hours of sleep per night. It is also important to know how much sleep your body actually needs because everyone is different. In order to gauge the amount of sleep you need, choose a day when you do not have any obligations and do not set your alarm. Your goal is to allow yourself to awaken naturally. If you are able to achieve a full night's sleep without any interruptions, you will have an idea of how much your body needs. Use this amount of time as a guide to schedule your sleep.

If you are frequently tired even when you sleep six to eight hours, you need to identify the problem. There are many conditions that may inhibit your ability to achieve deep, restful sleep and you may not know there is a problem. Obvious problems can include frequent nighttime urination, but more subtle problems are sleep apnea, acid reflux, or pain. If you sleep alone, you may not have anyone to point out sleep disturbances. You may even want to consider video/audio recording yourself as you sleep. Some people do not realize they toss and turn throughout the night, sleepwalk, or sleep talk.

Pay Attention To Nutrition

The food you eat is only one component when considering how diet can affect your energy. Nutrient deficiencies can occur no matter how healthy and balanced your diet. The simple addition of a multivitamin might make a significant difference in your energy levels, especially if you have anemia or have deficiencies in vitamins B and D. Many of these nutrient deficiencies are not obvious unless they are critically low and you may only find out there is a problem through a blood test.

If you have significant dietary restrictions, such as being vegan, you are more prone to deficiencies in vitamin B12 and iron. Since these nutrients are most often found in animal products, they can be difficult to acquire through a purely vegan diet. If you are vegan or have other dietary restrictions, try finding acceptable foods that are fortified in addition to taking supplements. Many nutrients are better absorbed when they are combined with food. Whenever you take a supplement, you should also have a meal or light snack.

Integrate Herbal Supplements

As long as you do not have an medical conditions or take medications that could cause an interaction with herbal supplements, trying an herbal supplement is a useful tool for increasing your energy. A popular choice is ginseng. Although there are several types of ginseng and each is associated with increased energy, red panax ginseng is considered to be more potent than other types of ginseng. Choosing a good quality ginseng supplement is difficult there is no consistency between manufacturers. It is difficult to determine if any one supplement has any of the active ingredient or contains the stated concentration. If you do not notice any benefits after taking ginseng for a few weeks, try switching brands. Check out a brand like Rise-N-Shine to get started.

There are several changes you can incorporate into your lifestyle to help boost your energy. Although there is no quick fix, you should notice improvements with consistent changes.

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