Supercharge Your Day- Energy Boosting Tips!

Supercharge your day

In 1915, a man by the name of Thomas Stearns was working as a full time bank teller. This same year T.S. Eliot’s infamous work, The love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock was released in the collection Poetry. Thomas Stearns was T.S Eliot. Despite working a full time job, Eliot was able to create an infamous poem. To Eliot,  bank telling was a day job, leaving his nights for his writing. I am not saying this to make you feel bad about the way you’ve been spending your afternoons/ evenings after work. I am sharing this story to contradict the popular belief that there is never enough time. Because the reality is that it IS in fact possible to pursue and accomplish your wildest dreams even if you work full time. There IS, enough time in a day to do all you want. You CAN in fact, do it all. The question becomes how to have the energy to fulfill all your tasks, responsibilities, family, AND still have time to pursue a side project, a dream, a passion. Here are some common statements we make throughout the day and how to counteract these blocks:

  1. “I’m tired!”
      1. In the morning:
        1. Eat breakfast within an hour of waking up- you’ve been in starvation all night your body needs fuel right away!
        2. Getting up and out of bed as soon as the alarm goes off
        3. Let in natural light
        4. Set your alarm 15 minute earlier then you have to wake up or do anything. Take these minutes for yourself. Meditating, doing some stretches. It can be anything but by taking this time for yourself you set up the pace for your day so it can be done with ease and grace
        5. Do something active. Whether its simply doing one sun salutation or doing some squats or a plank, getting your body moving first thing gets the blood pumping and gets you ready for this fresh new day!
      2. Throughout the day
        1. Eating fresh, light nutritious foods.
        2. The average North American sits 13 hours a day, make sure to space all that sitting out! Get up every 30 minutes for a quick lap around the office or block. It may seem excessive but it will increase your productivity and helps reduce chances of high blood pressure and high cholesterol.
        3. Plan a midday snack- between 2-4pm people tend to get a lull in energy regardless of what time of work they do. Plan to have a small snack with protein and fresh fruits or veggies. This will keep your hormones balanced and your blood sugar leveled for the afternoon so you arrive at home happy and with energy to spend time with your family… and work on your project!
        4. Midday is also a wonderful time to do a few stretches
        5. Drink lots water throughout the day
        6. Use your time getting from work to home efficiently. I had teacher tell me that she always parks her car when she arrives at home and sits in it for a few moments before transitioning into her home. She takes a few breaths to reconnect with herself and repeats a positive mantra to herself a few times. This allows her to leave anything negative or stressful or hurtful that happened throughout the day away from her family instead of unleashing her anger or stress onto the people she loves the most. This doesn’t mean suppressing your emotions but rather learning to let go of the things you have no control over. Remembering Buddha’s quote, ‘you will not be punished FOR your anger you will be punished BY your anger”
      3. Night
        1. Understand late night cravings; if you find yourself pecking and eating anything and everything by late evening it simply means one of two things; you are extremely tired or you are bored.
        2. Similarly to the morning, it is important to set up a nightly routine. This cues your body into knowing its time for rest. This may include a cd or song that you listen to you as get ready for bed, a type of tea or drink that you have as a cue to wind down, setting time to read, take a bath or shower, meditate or perhaps doing one or two yoga poses.
  1. Tips for immediate increase of energy:
      1. Place a few drops of essential peppermint oil in your palms. Rub your palms together and then bring your palms up to your open mouth. Breath in deeply then spread the access oil on the back of your neck.
      2. Hydrate your body; drink water or coconut water
      3. Sit in rock pose and do the breath of fire
      4. Yawn; cools down the brain wakes it up
      5. Take a 10 minute walk- studies have shown it revs you up for 2 hours after
      6. Read something inspiring
      7. Dance to your favorite song
      8. See red; makes muscles move faster
      9. Stretch arms up over ahead
    1. Possible causes of the energy drop:
      1. Dehydration
      2. Eating heavy foods
      3. Eating too much unnatural, processed sugar
      4. You’re giving too much to others
  1. “There’s not enough time”
    1. Structuring/ planning your day
    2. Taking time to figure out what you NEED to accomplish that week and then fit it into your set, unchangeable schedule
    3. Remember the most important thing on any to do list should be to take care of yourself that may mean taking a yoga class, making time for a run or meditation, having enough food in the house, or having a relaxing massage or bath. If you’re not healthy, centered and relaxed it is impossible to get anything done
  2. “I don’t know what my passion/ side project should be!”
    1. It doesn’t have to be writing the next greatest poem or novel. It doesn’t even have to be productive in some external way. This is about making more time for you and what YOU love to do. So start by writing a list of things you used to do as a child, the things you loved to do; drawing, building forts, swimming, dancing, karate, organized sports, whatever it was jot it down.
    2. Start doing some of those things you loved to do- see if you still love it now or what ideas come to you as you do it.
    3. Ask yourself following questions
      1. What would you do if you had a billion dollars?
      2. What would you do if you had no time limits or restraints?
      3. What are three activities, events, ways of spending time that bring you joy to the very core of your being?

Now that the excuses are gone.. how will you choose to supercharge your day?

 

Written by: Sophie Trottier, 500-RYT

 

Resources:

Ackroyd, Peter. TS Eliot: a life. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1984.

Gloria Latham Kundalini Yoga https://glorialatham.com/

Pomposelli, James J., et al. “Early postoperative glucose control predicts nosocomial infection rate in diabetic patients.” Journal of Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition 22.2 (1998): 77-81.