Battling the Energy Drain….And WINNING!
Work work work! In this day and age, we are all running at a very busy schedule. We rush off to work, rush home, rush to care for our families or rush along to classes. With all of this rushing, many of us are forgetting that we need to take time to recharge our batteries and take care of ourselves. It can be tough with all of the day to day responsibilities of work, family, school ect to keep your energy high and strong. It is vital that we take care of ourselves so we can continue to meet all of our responsibilities. You would not drive your car without ever having it maintained would you? Well YOU need care to keep your energy running at it’s peak performance as well. Here are a few ways to combat the rush rush rush energy drain.
1. Walk! During your lunch hour, are you like many people who eat their meal on the run? Or even worse….bolt it down while working at your desk? This is something that at times can be a necessity due to impending deadlines or intense projects and assignments, however it should not be an every day practice. Try taking a brisk walk during your lunch hour (or half hour!) and enjoy sipping some refreshing infused water or tea. Appreciate the fresh air around you. Remove yourself from your busy space, and get outside in the air for a spell of time. Sometimes for those who are home with children, this can be a near impossibility. Take the time while the children are napping to stretch your legs, breathe in some crisp air and have a little reset. Doing this will bring you back into your space with a brighter, and more focused energy.
2. Disengage from work when you can! When you are done for the day, if you are not in a position that requires you to be on call, disconnect from work or school entirely. Your time needs to be YOUR TIME! You need to disengage, and step away in order to be able to connect with yourself and your loved ones. Try not to check your smartphone for emails unless you are expecting something important. For those home with children, try to recruit someone to be on Kid Duty so you can have yourself a nice long bubble bath, or go out for a cup of coffee.
3. Embrace Meditation. Meditation can help you to clear away the stresses from the day, so that you are not carrying that baggage along into the next day. By clearing this energy away, you are in top form to meet all of the busy energy that will come along in the following day. Fear not if you are not a seasoned meditator! This is a practice anybody can embrace. I always suggest to people who are just embarking on the process of embracing meditation to go check out a few guided meditations and try a few out until you find one that works for you. YouTube is a fabulous resource for this.
4. Nutrition! Believe it or not, a healthy and balanced diet helps you to keep your energy balanced and fresh. When choosing foods for your meal, think about whether you are FEEDING your physical body, or FUELING it. When we just toss in things that are not healthy, or are convenience items, we are satisfying our hunger, however we are not fueling our body. To give your body optimal energy you need to choose things that are natural, and have a balanced diet. With summer coming, we will have a wealth of fresh local fruits and veggies to choose from. Take advantage of this! Check out which farms in your area offer Farm Share programs. Farm share programs are a great way to save on fresh local offerings, and it makes for a fun exciting surprise each week when you get your farm box.
5. Have a little fun! Fun is a vital part of keeping our energy strong. If all we do is work work work, and never get a chance to play, we can expect our batteries to run low really quick. Try finding time to read an amusing book, get out for coffee with a dear friend, or listen to some upbeat music. One of the best ways to reset after a rough day in the office is to blast some of your favorite tunes on your commute home. Even better is if you are singing along while you are doing it! Try holding onto a frown while you are belting out The Safety Dance during rush hour traffic! Fun can be found in many places. Simply having a little laughter in your life will serve to raise your energy and combat the drain.
These are just a few simple things you can add into your lives, but just adding one of them will make worlds of a difference. Spring is here, and it is the perfect time to set your intentions to keep your energy strong. The key thing with any of these is to try your hardest to make it a regular part of your routine. Remember, YOU need to take care of YOU in order to be able to take care of anything else. You DESERVE to recharge your energy and keep it charged up!
