I seem to have really low energy most of the time and its getting worse. What are some of the best things for boosting energy and stamina?
I recently read somewhere that 75% of all instances of low energy are directly related to dehydration. While I doubt these studies were done on the T-Mag type, it might not be a bad place to start. Drink a liter or so of water and if you don’t have to take a leak within a half-hour, you’re dehydrated. If that isn’t what is causing your low energy levels, I would look at the rest of your diet. Are you eating low glycemic carbs? Are you eating at least six meals per day? Also look at training-are you overtraining? Are you getting 7-8 hours sleep minimum each night? Tyr to listen to your body and remember that you need to replentish what you take out.
I have the same problem sometimes, regardless of a very healthy lifestyle (workouts and diet). But I keep a very irregular schedule as a nightclub dj on the weekends, and a personal trainer (early mornings) during the week. In a sense, I’m constantly going through jet lag, and I never quite “catch up”.
So, I got to reading a bit, and found that a regular schedule (if possible) of going to sleep and wakeing up is very important for mental and physical energy and health. And I also picked up some helpful tips for those of us who don’t have that luxury. Maybe your schedule is irregular? Maybe you don’t sleep enough? Or you sleep too much? The only way to know if you sleep too much or too little, since every person has different needs, is to wake up at the same time without fail day after day, and gradually manipulate the time you go to sleep until you wake up without an alarm, and feeling refreshed (very uncommon for most people unfortunately).
Or it’s possible your diet’s off. I’ve found my energy levels to be much higher on reduced carb diets (not no carbs), so you might take a look at that also.
Finally, the obvious answer might be youir workouts. You may very well be overtrained. Do you always train to failure? How many days a week do you train, and for how long?
Make sure you have got the basics covered.
-First and foremost good,regular sleep.I am glad the previous post mentions this because a lot of people just don’t realise how important sleep is.You can be eating right,training on the latest wizz-bang routine,and taking all sorts of hi-tech supps,but if your sleep sucks so will your energy,training and health.
-Are you eating every 2-3 hours every day?This will keep your blood sugar levels stable,and keep a constant stream of nutrients flowing to your muscles.
-Are you eating meat?It has been fashionable to dump on meat for years,but that is starting to change.Red meat is the most nutrient dense food around,it contains high levels of B vitamins,carnitine,creatine,carnosine,iron,zinc, as well as high quality protein-all essential for energy production.I recommend lean free-range sources of wild meat if you can get your hands on them.
-I would strongly recommend you investigate a low carb diet,as also suggested above.I am not talking about an Atkins style zero-carb diet,but rather a paleo style diet where you eat meals that consist of high quality protein,healthy fats and relatively low amounts of carbs(from sources such as fresh fruits and vegetables),save the big carb feedings for immediately post workout.Diets that feature predominantly low carb meals,but feature hi-carb intake at strategic times are known as`carb cycling’ diets.I,and others,have noticed huge improvements following this sort of diet,including increased and more stable energy levels.Neanderthin is a great book on paleo eating,Natural Hormonal Enhancement is a pretty good book(except for the dopey negative comments on post workout carb intake)that explains the carb cycling concept pretty well.beyondveg.com also has tons of info on paleo eating.High carb diets suck,they really screw with your insulin metabolism and bounce your energy and mood around too much.
-Make sure you are eating adequate fat.Mainly monounsaturates,but make sure you get your omega 3’s,Fish oil is a great source.
-Get a decent supplementation routine going.I am talking about the basics-a good multi-vitamin mineral that includes hi-potencies of the B vitamins,Antioxidants,Fish oil,zinc,magnesium etc.(Life Extension mix is great stuff).
I found the best hing to do for more energy is to try to eat as often as possible and of course healthy. It raises your metabolism and at least makes me feel better. I notice whever I start eating fewer times during the day I get tired more often.
If you’ve got the rest of the aforementioned stuff in order, you might want to have some bloodwork done. Could be anemia, mono…lots of things. It never hurts.
How old are you? Do you do physical labor during the day. I’m 24 and a construction worker. I’ve noticed decreased energy levels since my teen years. If you live an active lifestyle you may be low in zinc and magnesium. My wife and I have both recently started supplementing w/ZMA. We have a 12wk old baby & the vixen is breast feeding and working out. We’ve both been feeling more energetic and rested since ZMA.
-LW
Thanks for all the help!!!