We live in overwhelmingly stressful times. We’ve just been through a world wide pandemic which has left a significant imprint on our mental and physical health. Cost of living has sky rocketed which means we need to work more to make ends meet. Then to top it all off, we are constantly being bombarded with negative news throughout the day over online platforms. Oh and I almost forgot— most of us on this side of the world are living off the standard American diet. All of these things directly impact our mood and energy levels.

It doesn’t matter whether you’re apart of the population that works Monday to Friday or a stay at home parent. I think it’s safe to say that a lot of us, if not most of us, struggle with having adequate energy levels throughout the day.

We are all different and what may work for some people, may not work for others. However, there are some universal daily practices that we can incorporate into our routines to not only help boost our energy, but help with our stress levels and gain better mental clarity.

Some of you may think you don’t have time for these practices because life is just too hectic, or they just seem too hard. Don’t limit yourself to this type of thinking or belief! We may not have as much time as others, but we can always carve out a few minutes a day to do something good for ourselves.

The list below is going to give you 5 things you can do daily to increase energy and boost mood!

Hydration

It’s no surprise that water is important to our health. Keeping ourselves properly hydrated allows nutrients to be delivered to cells, helps regulate our body temperature, removes toxins, and helps keep our joints lubricated.

Excess intake of coffee, alcohol, juices and sodas (yes this means diet sodas too) are high in processed sugar and harmful chemicals. They are proven to cause nutrient depletion, effect cellular integrity, and cause severe inflammation. These products are very harmful to our health.

Tip:

  • Filter your water! As lucky as we are to live in a country where we can drink the tap water— water testing throughout Canada has shown significant amounts of antibiotics, arsenic, pesticides, herbicides, lead, iron and much more. You don’t need to drop hundreds of dollars on a water filtration system, there are plenty of cost effective one’s out there that will do a fine job.
  • Jazz up your water by adding lemon or fresh/frozen berries!

Nutrient Dense foods

Diets high in processed foods, refined sugar, and saturated fats can cause inflammation all over and are harmful to our cells and digestive tracts. Processed meats are actually classified as class 1 carcinogens by the World Health Organization. This type of diet can cause brain fog, lethargy, irritability, fatigue, diabetes, leaky gut, autoimmune diseases, cancer and even anxiety & depression. The list is actually much longer.

Eating whole foods will decrease inflammation, detoxify the body and nourish our tissues and cells by providing them with the vitamins and minerals they need. When you make the switch from processed foods to whole foods, you’ll see an increase in energy levels, better mood and a decrease in overall pain.

Tips:

  • If it comes from a box, ditch it.
  • If it comes from a can, say no.
  • If you can’t pronounce the ingredients, NOPE!
  • Stay away from anything with high fructose corn syrup.

Exercise/Movement

When I talk about exercise or movement, I don’t necessarily mean going to the gym for two hours to pump weights. This can mean 20 minutes of yoga in your living room, ecstatic dance, jumping rope, calisthenics in your back yard, going for a walk, etc. Movement is important for building strength, detoxing the lymphatic system, relieving stress and improving circulation.

Did you know that the lymphatic system doesn’t have it’s own pump to get rid of waste? The only way to move toxins out of the lymphatic system is through movement!

People now more than ever before are leading sedentary lives due to the large shift to working from home. A sedentary lifestyle has been shown to increase risk of cardiovascular disease, weight gain, back & joint pain, diabetes, osteoporosis and depression.

Meditation

Numerous studies have shown that practicing mindfulness meditation daily can actually cause structural and functional brain changes, playing a large role in reducing stress and anxiety. Practicing mindfulness meditation for 25 minutes a day has been shown to improve energy levels.

This is simply the practice of bringing your attention to the present moment, being aware of what you are sensing and feeling in the very moment without trying to evaluate it in anyway.

There are so may ways to incorporate this into your daily routine and you can do it pretty much anywhere. You can do it for as little or as long as you’d like and even during your morning train commute to work!

Tips:

  • if you’re a beginner, guided mediation from an app is very useful. Calm or headspace are great tools.

Sleep

Getting a good night’s rest and practicing proper sleep hygiene is one of, if not the most, important thing we can do for our overall health. Sleep helps detoxify the brain and body, repairs cells and tissues, and get this—you even burn fat while you sleep.

If you find yourself tossing and turning or waking up in the middle of the night unable to fall back asleep, try shaking up your nightly routine. Do things that are calming and relaxing to the nervous system. This is called practicing good “sleep hygiene”

Tips:

  • Avoid any screen time at least 30 minutes before bedtime
  • Put your phone on the other side of the room, or in a different room altogether to avoid reaching for it when you wake up at 4am!
  • Take a hot bath before bed to calm the body and mind
  • If you suffer from restless legs while trying to fall asleep, this could be a sign of a magnesium deficiency. Magnesium bisglycinate an hour before bed is a game changer!

We may not be able to control what is happening in the world around us, but we can control our lifestyle habits and daily rituals.