Quick boost of energy

10 Ways to Boost Your Energy in 10 Minutes

Written by WebMD Editorial Contributors

Are your eyelids sagging as the afternoon wears on? When low energy drags you down, don't look to a candy bar, cup of coffee, or energy drink for a lift. The sugar and caffeine might give you an immediate pick-me-up, but after that quick high wears off, you'll crash and feel even more drained

What you need: a lasting solution to keep sluggishness at bay. Here are 10 fatigue fighters that can leave you feeling refreshed and revitalized.

1. Eat your breakfast. People who eat breakfast every morning report less fatigue and stress than people who skip it. High-fiber foods, like hot oatmeal, stick with you longer than a sweet roll or pastry. As the day wears on, they'll prevent you from getting hungry (hunger can lead to low energy).

2. Do a downward dog. Some studies have found that yoga, which uses various postures and deep breathing for exercise and meditation, can be an excellent fatigue fighter.

3. Belt out your favorite tune. Singing gives you a kind of emotional high while it reduces levels of stress hormones in your body. So grab a hairbrush, put on your favorite song, and sing away. If you're at work and don't want to face your co-workers' puzzled stares, you might want to save your vocal stylings for the car.

4. Have a drink of water. Dehydration can leave you feeling drained and fatigued. You don't necessarily have to follow the "eight glasses a day" rule, but you do want to drink enough water to keep your body well hydrated. You can tell you're well hydrated when you don't feel thirsty and your urine is light-colored. Try to get to the fridge or water cooler for a refill every few hours. The walk there will also help you wake up.

5. Go nuts. Eat a handful of almonds or peanuts, which are high in magnesium and folate (folic acid). These nutrients are essential for energy and cell production. A lack of these nutrients in your system can leave you feeling weary.

6. Grab a cinnamon stick. Some people say that just a whiff of this scented spice can reduce fatigue and make them feel more alert. No cinnamon handy? Grab a mint from your bag. Peppermint's sweet aroma is another fatigue fighter for some people. More research is needed to see if and how these aromas actually affect a person's energy level.

7. Get moving. Exercise is a natural energy booster, because whenever you do it, oxygen-rich blood surges through your body to your heart, muscles, and brain. Regularly squeezing a workout into your day -- even if you can spare only 10 minutes at a time -- will help keep your energy levels at their peak. Move around every chance you get, even if it's just to pace in circles while you're on the phone.

8. Let the sunshine in. Research suggests that just a few minutes of walking outside on a warm, clear day may enhance mood, memory, and the ability to absorb new information. Going outside can even improve your self-esteem. If you absolutely can't get out, at least open the shades.

9. Have a bite. Your brain needs fuel to function at its best. When your blood sugar level drops, your mind will start running on fumes and will feel fuzzy as a result. So if your head is starting to droop, eat a snack that will give you enough energy to take you through the rest of the afternoon. Snacks that combine protein with slow-burning carbs -- like banana slices with peanut butter, or granola with fresh berries -- are best for maintaining your blood sugar levels over the long term.

10. Hang out with upbeat friends. Emotions are surprisingly contagious. People who are constantly negative and down can sap your energy, while those who are always up and excited can give you a real lift.

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9 tips to boost your energy — naturally

Go to the store, and you'll see a multitude of vitamins, herbs, and other supplements touted as energy boosters. Some are even added to soft drinks and other foods. But there's little or no scientific evidence that energy boosters like ginseng, guarana, and chromium picolinate actually work. Thankfully, there are things you can do to enhance your own natural energy levels. Here are nine tips:

1. Control stress

Stress-induced emotions consume huge amounts of energy. Talking with a friend or relative, joining a support group, or seeing a psychotherapist can all help diffuse stress. Relaxation therapies like meditation, self-hypnosis, yoga, and tai chi are also effective tools for reducing stress.

2. Lighten your load

One of the main reasons for fatigue is overwork. Overwork can include professional, family, and social obligations. Try to streamline your list of "must-do" activities. Set your priorities in terms of the most important tasks. Pare down those that are less important. Consider asking for extra help at work, if necessary.

3. Exercise

Exercise almost guarantees that you'll sleep more soundly. It also gives your cells more energy to burn and circulates oxygen. And exercising can lead to higher brain dopamine levels, which helps elevate mood. When walking, pick up the pace periodically to get extra health benefits.

4. Avoid smoking

You know smoking threatens your health. But you may not know that smoking actually siphons off your energy by causing insomnia. The nicotine in tobacco is a stimulant, so it speeds the heart rate, raises blood pressure, and stimulates brain-wave activity associated with wakefulness, making it harder to fall asleep. And once you do fall asleep, its addictive power can kick in and awaken you with cravings.

5. Restrict your sleep

If you think you may be sleep-deprived, try getting less sleep. This advice may sound odd but determining how much sleep you actually need can reduce the time you spend in bed not sleeping. This process makes it easier to fall asleep and promotes more restful sleep in the long run. Here's how to do it:

Avoid napping during the day.
The first night, go to bed later than normal and get just four hours of sleep.
If you feel that you slept well during that four-hour period, add another 15–30 minutes of sleep the next night.
As long as you're sleeping soundly the entire time you're in bed, slowly keep adding sleep on successive nights.

6. Eat for energy

Eating foods with a low glycemic index — whose sugars are absorbed slowly — may help you avoid the lag in energy that typically occurs after eating quickly absorbed sugars or refined starches. Foods with a low glycemic index include whole grains, high-fiber vegetables, nuts, and healthy oils such as olive oil. In general, high-carbohydrate foods have the highest glycemic indexes. Proteins and fats have glycemic indexes that are close to zero.

7. Use caffeine to your advantage

Caffeine does help increase alertness, so having a cup of coffee can help sharpen your mind. But to get the energizing effects of caffeine, you have to use it judiciously. It can cause insomnia, especially when consumed in large amounts or after 2 p.m.

8. Limit alcohol

One of the best hedges against the midafternoon slump is to avoid drinking alcohol at lunch. The sedative effect of alcohol is especially strong at midday. Similarly, avoid a five o'clock cocktail if you want to have energy in the evening. If you're going to drink, do so in moderation at a time when you don't mind having your energy wind down.

9. Drink water

What's the only nutrient that has been shown to enhance performance for all but the most demanding endurance activities? It's not some pricey sports drink. It's water. If your body is short of fluids, one of the first signs is a feeling of fatigue.

For more information on the many things you can do to increase your natural energy, order our Special Health Report, Boosting Your Energy.

Image: ©Gilaxia | GettyImages

8 unbeaten ways to recharge your batteries

June 10 Productivity

Active recreation, the right goals and other sources of strength in case the internal batteries are completely dead.

You can listen to the article. If it's more convenient for you, turn on the podcast.

1. Remember the three axioms

Sorry, we promised new and unhackneyed ways, but first we have to remind you of something banal. You already know that you need to sleep well, eat and exercise. We will not decipher, anyway, few people follow this. Let's say a few words about the introduction of healthy lifestyle into the daily routine. nine0003

How to get energized through exercise

Work out during your lunch break or at least go for a walk. In 2004, researchers from the University of Leeds found that employees who attend a corporate gym show better results and cope with stress more easily. In addition, they like work more, they experience less stress, they do not feel tired in the afternoon, despite the energy expended during training.

How to get more sleep

Rearrange the alarm. Let it ring not in the morning, when it's time to get up, but in the evening, when it's time to go to bed.

As John Duran says in Paleomanifesto, the technique of setting an alarm for the evening is a very useful technique to remind yourself that it's time for bed. The signal should sound one hour before lights out. After a reminder, you need to complete all the work, turn off the TV and extra lights, gradually get ready for bed.

How to Eat Healthy

Ask yourself, "What would Batman eat?" This advice comes from Cornell University professor Brian Wansink. nine0003

When deciding whether or not to eat dessert, consider what your childhood idol would do. If it doesn't work the first time, ask yourself the question three times. It will be easier to make a sound decision.

The boring and the obvious have been dealt with. To get energy at the right time, there is no need to mock your body. It's better to change the schedule.

2. Find out when you are cooler

Do you know how much the change of time zones affects a person? When, for example, a football team crosses three time zones to play, its chances of winning are halved, even if the opponent is weaker. nine0003

But we're not talking about athletes now. It’s just that if you are a pronounced owl, then it’s stupid to plan important tasks for eight in the morning.

Pay attention to your circadian rhythms and stay in the black: Athletes win and break records when they adjust race times to match their internal clocks.

One of the studies highlighted in David Randall's book "The Science of Sleep" showed that records in running, powerlifting, swimming were more often set by athletes whose competition schedule coincided with the second period of daily activity. In the long jump, for example, athletes at the peak of energy showed a result that was 4% better than average. nine0003

Did you set up synchronization with the internal clock? Super. Now we are learning to let go.

3. Set the right goals and don't tell anyone about them

Maybe you have relative goals: "I want to be better than Sasha." Or maybe objective: “I want to get the highest score on testing.”

But if you want to increase the level of energy, then one goal should remain in your head: to become better.

Research by American psychologist Heidi Grant Halvorson shows that a focus on improvement increases the desire to work. We work with interest and passion when we think about progress, and not just about the task. Interest does not make you work with all your might, but fills you with energy. nine0003

It's not that hard. Just think about how to make everything you do better.

And now the second part: keep quiet. Research has shown that you shouldn't talk about your goals if you don't want to unleash the energy needed to achieve them. Scientists have concluded that pleasant fantasies do not come true because they do not provide energy to move towards the desired future.

So, we tuned in for the best and remembered that happiness loves silence. Where to get energy? nine0003

4. Be optimistic

Fully armed soldiers need to march 40 km. But some were told that the distance was 30 km. Others say that they will have to walk 60 km.

After completing the forced march, the researchers measured the levels of stress hormones in the blood of both groups. What happened? It turned out that stress does not correspond to reality, but to expectations.

What do we conclude? Everyone gets what they expect.

The brain does not like to force the body to waste resources until it sees a real chance to win. Physical strength is not available as long as there is no faith in success, because there is no worse situation for the human body than to waste all resources and fail. At the moment when confidence appears, the gates open through which the flow of energy flows. Hope or despair is what we program ourselves for, say the authors of the book Maximum Brain Power. nine0003

Optimists have more energy. Pessimists have more stress. Everything depends not on objective circumstances, but on the point of view on them.

Charged with positive? Okay. But maybe it's time to redo a bunch of things? What is needed for this?

5. Do what you know how to do

What projects are you involved in at work? What household duties do you have? If you stick to what you're good at, you'll see the difference.

Research has shown that using strengths at work makes people happier. And at the same time it increases energy levels. nine0003

The longer a person works on what he can do, the more cheerful, happier he is, and the more he respects himself. Using your strengths makes you smile, learn interesting things.

According to the Gallup Institute, positive assessments of the past day, depending on the number of hours spent on favorite activities, as a percentage of the number of respondents, are distributed as follows:

900

3

Daniel Pink, author of the bestselling book Drive and an expert on motivation, explains the secret of "small wins": tasks that seem insignificant can have a significant impact on our condition. Science only confirms this.

Internal energy increases or decreases depending on how far projects have progressed, even small ones. Modest wins have an unexpectedly large positive effect, while small losses, on the contrary, have a negative effect.

Maybe you can do whatever you want. But you will still find yourself in a state where the tanks are empty. How to make decisions when a tired brain refuses to work? nine0003

7. Listen to your inner voice if you are tired

Research results say: when there is a lot of energy, you need to listen to the voice of reason. And when your head is porridge from fatigue, rely on intuition.

Executive functioning depends on the amount of energy that glucose provides. And many cognitive processes deteriorate when there is not enough energy. When making decisions with low blood glucose, you need to trust the unconscious more, although when the level of glucose rises, it is worth returning to conscious decision making. nine0003

So, you are already making progress. Congratulations. But what is the best way to spend a vacation in order to accumulate energy for tomorrow?

8. Recover proactively

Doesn't sound very logical. But if today you are exhausted, and tomorrow you don’t want to get tired, have an active rest: go to a workout or chat with friends. No sitting in front of the TV or at the computer.

Kelly McGonigal

Excerpt from the book "Willpower".

The American Psychological Association found that the best recovery strategies are exercise, sports, reading, prayer, music, relaxing with family or friends, massage, walking, yoga, creative hobbies. nine0003

Rest is worst when gambling, shopping, smoking, playing video games, surfing the Internet, watching TV shows or movies (more than two hours).

Things to remember

So you know how to recharge. Now let's sum up: how best to extract energy.

Apply three axioms: exercise at lunchtime, an alarm clock before going to bed and the question: “What would Dobrynya Nikitich eat?”
Determine your peak activity: owls should do important work in the evening, and larks in the morning. nine0223
Set the right goals, focus on improvements and don't tell anyone about your plans.
Be optimistic. Remember: what we expect is what we get.
Do the work that you know how to do. Using your strengths brings happiness and energy.
Finish things. Small victories lead to big goals.
Remember: the inner voice is the best adviser for a weary mind.
Have an active rest. Friendly communication is great. Midnight on Netflix isn't great. nine0223

And finally. What charges batteries and warms the heart? Help others. Sounds illogical again? These efforts will not de-energize you. On the contrary, help is a tonic. It can even save a life.

Lawrence Gonzalez's research focuses on survivors of a dangerous situation where lack of energy meant death. Those who gave support to others were more likely to be saved.

Helping someone is the best way to save yourself from death. It helps to rise above fears, to conquer oneself. You are no longer a victim, but a savior. When your leadership job becomes a lifeline for others, you get a boost of energy and can stay afloat longer. You help those in need, their reaction energizes you. Many people who managed to survive alone say that they got out for the sake of someone else (wife, lover, mother, children). nine0003

If you are already tired of reading, offer your help to your loved ones. Not for the sake of a selfish desire to get energy, but to make both yourself and the other person happier.

Instead of coffee: 8 products that charge you with energy

Health

Author Irina Rudevich

January 31, 2020

A cup of strong coffee is the first thing that comes to mind when you need to quickly cheer up. Pink talks about other products available and how to use them to help you wake up and stay active throughout the day. nine0003

The body converts carbohydrates into energy. Simple sugars are quickly destroyed, give a boost of energy for a short time and contribute to the accumulation of fats. In contrast, whole grains provide a long lasting boost of energy. Oatmeal, rye, barley porridge, whole grain bread, barley and brown rice will help you get through the day energetically and not get better. In addition, cereals contain many important and useful nutrients that contribute to the health of the gastrointestinal tract, the acceleration of digestion and the beauty of the skin. nine0003

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Protein provides the body with sustainable energy that is used up more slowly. In addition, it is a source of tyrosine, an amino acid that supports mental alertness. It is found in meat, fish, eggs and dairy products. Proteins are necessary for muscles, besides they give a long feeling of satiety. Greek yogurt and other fermented milk products speed up metabolism and are rich in vitamins B2 and B12, which stimulate the brain. For a vegetarian diet, tofu and legumes are suitable, they can be added to breakfast for vivacity and energy. nine0003

Sweet fruits contain carbohydrates, which help the brain to wake up and start working faster. So, one large apple contains up to 13 g of sugar, and in terms of its effect on the body, it can replace a cup of coffee. Cardiac surgeon Mehmet Cengiz recommends eating fruits that are high in vitamin C, such as pineapple and grapefruit, more often. By the way, the aroma of citrus fruits invigorates and uplifts, even if you do not eat them. Another powerful source of energy is bananas; they contain a lot of fiber, which helps to optimally expend the energy of carbohydrates. nine0003

Hazelnuts, almonds and pistachios are real energy accumulators. Nuts are well satiated, they are convenient to take with you for a snack and add to dishes for a variety of diets. Hazelnuts lower levels of "bad" cholesterol and contain biotin, a vitamin that allows the body to produce energy. Almonds contain a lot of protein, magnesium and vitamin B2, which ensures the smooth functioning of internal organs. Pistachios are high in fiber and important amino acids. Give preference to dried (rather than roasted) and unsalted nuts: an excess of sodium slows down the metabolism and leads to swelling. nine0003

Leaf vegetable is low in calories and contains a lot of iron. It is worse absorbed from plant foods, so you should add a few drops of lemon juice to a spinach salad. In addition, the succulent leaves are high in lutein, beta-carotene and zeaxanthin, phytochemicals that have anti-inflammatory properties and help maintain good vision.

A piece of dark chocolate is an easy alternative to strong coffee. Cocoa improves concentration and tones. It contains caffeine and theobromine; these substances give a mild effect of cheerfulness without a sharp rise in pressure and heart rate. And cocoa is also known for the presence of anandamide, which increases the level of the happy hormone endorphin, so it will not only help you wake up, but also give you a great mood for a cheerful start to the day. nine0003

Warming spices such as cinnamon, cardamom, ginger and paprika boost metabolism. The blood circulates faster, warms the body and provides a burst of energy. If there are no problems with the gastrointestinal tract, you can complete breakfast with tomato juice with a pinch of red pepper or tea with warming spices. Keep in mind that most of them irritate the mucous membranes, so it is not advised to eat dishes with hot spices on an empty stomach.

Surprisingly, no additional ingredients are needed to restore vigor. The fact is that dehydration often causes drowsiness and fatigue. To maintain energy at the proper level, it is enough to drink several glasses of clean water a day.

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