How to reclaim your energy

Don’t turn to caffeine. Use what nature gave us to feel energised.

We’ve all had those days where we wake up and feel like a train had hit us. Eyes struggling to stay open, movements in slow-motion, energy levels are in the negative. Your first instinct? Coffee. A ritual. Slamming two teaspoons of ground coffee into a cup, top it off with two teaspoons of sugar, boiling water and a splash of creamer. Mmm, a recipe to an addiction, or ,maybe even diabetes, depends on how sweet you like your energy shot.

Don’t get me wrong, the taste of it is phenomenal, but is it really worth it?

Fun fact, recent studies show that coffee has some health benefits. Drinking a few cups a day, can keep the doctors away, right? Coffee reduces the likelihood of: type 2 diabetes, heart disease, liver cancer, endometrial cancer, Parkinson’s disease, depression and risk of early death.

But, it is recommended to brew it through a paper filter and not go bananas with cream and sugar. AHA!

Choose your way

Consuming too many cups can lead to addiction, though. Too much of anything can be bad for you. Weigh the pros and cons, decide. If you decided to look for another way to stay energised without using caffeine as a tool, let’s dig in.

Our body is biologically designed to keep us moving. It breaks down the food to glucose, which is used for energy, or our cells synthesise Adenosine triphosphate - ATP, known as energy. Back to school biology, baby.

When we fuel our body with the right nutrients and habits, it will do its job creating energy that’ll keep you moving.

Let’s get into the said right nutrients and habits to support your energy synthesis.

First half

Starting with the easiest: hydration. Everyone and their mother knows that hydration is key to almost everything. It is repeated to us at least a thousand times a year from the early stages of childhood. On a serious note, dehydration can lead to fatigue and sluggishness. Water is a major component in the plasma of our blood. And as you should know, blood streams through every crevice of our body. Losing just 1% of your body’s water can affect you mentally and physically. Sometimes just a cup of water can fix your fatigue. Drink water.

Next we have a balanced diet. Proteins, healthy fats and carbohydrates are the main sources of energy. Carbohydrates are the body's primary, go-to source of energy because they break down quickly into glucose, which is used immediately by your cells. Fats, on the other hand, provide a steady, long-term energy supply. Think of them as the backup generator, kicking in when the carbs run out during long periods of exercise or activity. Finally, proteins are primarily used to build and repair tissues like muscles, but if necessary, they can be converted into energy. However, your body prefers to use protein for structural purposes rather than as a quick energy fix.

The second half

Deficiency in vitamins. The 3 main ones. Iron, B12, and vitamin D are crucial for maintaining your energy levels.

• Iron deficiency weakens the muscles. General weakness, rapid fatigue, loss of stamina may be felt. With a lack of iron, the cells of the human body regenerate slowly. This can actually affect your hair and nail growth. Hair grows slowly, dries out, lacks shine, breaks, and for the nails it’s the same. Unstable emotions and even tendency to depression. So, not only a lack of energy, but could I say lack of “beauty” too?

• Cobalamin, known as vitamin B12. Guess what? Symptoms are almost the same. Weakness and loss of strength. Also hair, nails, skin and a few others.

• The vitamin of sun, vitamin D. Not only is it important for getting rid of fatigue, but it plays a role in your nervous and immune systems. So could we agree, that you should see a doctor, get your blood drawn and find out if you need any of these. Do your research, eat foods that have mention vitamins or if the deficiency is so bad, hop to the nearest pharmacy and buy some damn vitamins.

Little bit more

A few more tips: getting a 7-9 hour sleep is crucial for energy. For the love of i don’t know who, please get a good night sleep. It restores energy, brain processes the information we’ve learned throughout the day, cells regenerate, muscles repair and grow, and tissues heal. Sleep deprivation is linked to mood swings, anxiety and again, depression.

A quick workout. Exercising boosts oxygen circulation inside your body. Oxygen is used in the mitochondria for energy production. Plus, exercise increases your hormone levels that make you feel more energised.

Start movin’ and groovin’. Go outside, enjoy the sunshine, feel the air flowing. It’s not only what we put inside our body that matters, what we do and where we take it, is important too.

To conclude

Your lifestyle is what matters. How you eat, how you move, how you react. If you will support your body the way it needs to be supported, trust me, that same body will take you to the moon and back.

Good night sleep, hydration, balanced diet, supplements and finally exercise- is where to start. In today’s century, it is not really “popular” to take care of our body. Be different, make change. You only get one chance, one body and infinite possibilities, so choose wisely. And tomorrow when you reach for your ground coffee, think if you did anything in your way to feel energised without it. If you choose to drink it, that’s okay—just remember to enjoy it responsibly.

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

P.S. if you want to read more about recent coffee research click here : https://hsph.harvard.edu/news/is-coffee-good-or-bad-for-your-health/