"Every one has a doctor in him; we just have to help him in his work. The natural healing force within each one of us is the greatest force in getting well. To eat when you are sick, is to feed your sickness" - Hippocrates
As sleep and food sometimes go on the back burner for me, especially sleep here are some things that I took away from some reading I recently did.
The food we eat and the energy we feel are inextricably linked: food is the fuel that powers every process in our bodies.
The studies on this are just absolutely mind blowing. Do you resort to energy drinks, sugar and processed food to get you through your day? Is 6 cups of coffee or a monster not doing anything for you any more? This is a sure sign that you’re not getting a nourishing mix of food. No big deal but the energy drink sales are expected to hit $84 billion by 2025.... as sales skyrocket so have reported every drink related emergency room visits.
During studies Researchers found people who consumed the most sugar felt more tired and less alert and that sugar had no positive effects on mood. Food is not the enemy, it is so important to remember that we are all unique and that includes the way that our bodies work and the nutrition that it needs to perform optimally. There is definitely not one plan fits all for nutrition. One of the things I was relying the most on was protein bars and energy drinks, I worked a full time job 8-5 and then worked in the evenings at a gym taking clients and got my work outs in in the evening usually around 11pm. I would leave the gym worked at around 10 because they closed then and I would go to a 24hr gym and get my work out in. Sometimes lifting weights for about an hour followed by an hour of cardio. Obviously taking pre work out t 11pm did not help when I got home around 1am and couldn't fall asleep right away. I would wake up feeling so exhausted... duh... go get a coffee and followed by the same cycle of energy drinks, protein bars and usually a salad for lunch or something. Now looking back at these patterns, my sleep, work outs, nutrition and all, I just makes me see how truly resilient our bodies are.
I remember seeing a friends post about how she kept having everything say she looks so much more fit and lean and asking what she was doing and she's like "I hate to tell you guys but honestly... its because I have been getting more sleep".
Well ya HELLOOOOO!!! Our bodies need rest and sleep, to the people that say they can function on 3hrs of sleep.... I mean yes you're awake but functioning may be a stretch.
Pumped up with caffeine and sugar, we rally until the next dip, which comes. We ignore the need for a break, and we continue the cycle throughout the day. By afternoon, we’re not dealing with a little energy dip anymore. We’ve dug a major trench and our cells need a double or triple rest period to fully replenish their energy supply. But they rarely get it.
To understand this energy crisis, we must learn how to maintain the life force within our bodies, and how it escapes from us, draining us of our health and wellbeing. Raising consciousness is important, as it leads to amplified states of energy and increases the size of the energy body surrounding our physical form. Our body rhythms are designed to oscillate between activity and rest, in synchrony with the 24-hour natural cycles of light and dark each day. So as long we are grounded in this human body, we all have legitimate limits that warrant respect: eat when hungry, rest when tired, say “no” when too busy.
In 2014, World Health Organization researchers labeled the rise in energy-drink consumption a “danger to public health.”
The Effects
74%: The average percentage increase of the fight-or-flight stress hormone norepinephrine in study participants’ blood levels.
6.2%: The average percentage increase in study participants’ systolic blood pressure.
The Ingredients
Researchers observed that the effects could be the results of the following stimulants in Rockstar Punched.
Caffeine: 240 mg (by comparison, a shot of espresso has about 64 mg)
Sugar: 62 grams (15½ teaspoons)
B vitamins and ginkgo biloba (additional stimulants)
Energy is your capacity to do work, to think, to create, to contribute, to enjoy, to live. Energy is what gives you physical strength and muscular endurance for physical activity. It’s also what gives you mental alertness for noticing, thinking and problem solving. That’s why good energy management is one of the most essential requirements for a rich, productive and satisfying life, perhaps even more so than time management.
Doing lasting damage to our valuable energy machinery merely to gain a few brief, temporary bursts of speed, clearly makes no sense. So many of us do this everyday and then wonder why we feel so exhausted.
Unfortunately, acknowledging and accepting our limits can be seen as a sign of weakness, especially in a culture that tells us to "hustle" and work and work and work. Heres energy drinks, caffeine pills, and coffee on coffee on coffee.
However, when we work within our limits we are practising self-responsibility, setting ourselves up for a sustainable way of working, rather than a state of constant exhaustion.
Here are some personal sustainability principles below. Are you practicing these or ignoring the signs your body is trying to tell you?
Listen to your body when it’s talking to you rather than waiting until it screams.
Reduce reliance on non-renewable energy (especially caffeine and sugar) and increase reliance on renewable sources of energy for the human body, such as movement, meditation, good food, healthy breathing patterns, and sleep.
Respect your bodies limits and listen to when it is telling you it needs a break
Be mindful of what you are putting into your body and if it is nourishing and providing your body with the energy it needs
Are you moving enough? Your body wants and craves to move
“And I said to my body softly, ‘I want to be your friend.’ It took a long breath and replied, ‘I’ve been waiting my whole life for this.’” ~Nayyirah Waheed
I challenge you to look at how you are fuelling your body and how much you are relying on caffeine to get you through the day. Start making small changes to naturally energize yourself. There are so many resources out there with so many ideas on how to get more energy throughout your day without supplementing.
I will be posting about an upcoming challenge that I will hosting in relation to this topic and some others!! I am so excited to to share some insight that I hope can help with getting you feeling 100%. Most of us are running on auto pilot, are you ready to take back control of your life and feel more energized and alive? Get ready!
Sending much love, good vibes and health your way,
Jess
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