[readolog_dropcap ]K[/readolog_dropcap]eeping your natural energy levels high is really a balancing act between expending energy and cultivating energy.  To have high energy for activities that require us to expend energy such as work or exercise, we also need to allow for a fair amount of time to cultivate energy

How To Have High Energy Levels All Day

Many people seem to think that we grow stronger when we are working out at the gym, but this is not true, we actually break the body down and expel energy during exercise and activity, it is simply the stimulus that BEGINS the process; we grow stronger through our rest and recovery.  The same applies for any skill you are trying to learn.  It has been found that during the initial period we are learning a skill there is an increase in brain activity that requires us to recover and allow the changes to set in over a long period of time.  Just performing an activity to learn a skill is not enough, we need to sleep on it, literally, and let that skill sink into our subconscious and become a neurological pattern that we are one with.  This is accomplished through thousands of repetitions.

Keeping energy high means knowing when to expel energy to receive a stimulus to illicit a desired response from the body, and also knowing when to take it easy and rest.

Socializing at a party could be a form of expending energy that gives you a great “high” socially that I would consider a positive stimulus.

A good time to EXPEL energy through exercise would be when the following criteria are met:

• You got a full night of sleep and rest.
• Your body is truly craving the workout, or “turns-on” shortly after you get warmed up.
• You are not physically drained but just need a mental boost after or before work for example.

Some good examples to take time CULTIVATING energy could be:

• When you are too tired for a high intensity weight-training workout so you decide to just do a half hour walk.
• Doing some light yoga for 45 minutes before bed or when you wake up stiff.
• Taking a 20-minute power nap in the afternoon.
• Getting deep sleep.

Keeping high-energy means a balance between the yin and yang of expelling and cultivating energy, we cannot consistently maintain high energy levels without both physical/mental exercise, and complete physical/mental rest and play.  If you find that your energy levels are not consistent throughout the week look to where you can find ways to balance your work/rest cycle out harmoniously.  I have seen people who desperately need to work out MORE, but I also see many people here on the east coast who desperately need a two week vacation. And for people who need rest, the wrong form of exercise could actually be detrimental to their health.  So be open to both, as your body constantly changes and evolves.

1. A very simple and effective way I maintain high energy is by always staying well hydrated.

Staying hydrated is an incredibly easy and effective way to always make sure you are flowing well.  There is no reason not to always be drinking enough water, start carrying around a gallon of good mineral water if you need a lot like I do.  Always make sure to drink extra water before intense physical exercise, work, as well as driving.  Drink your water consciously and try not to just gulp it down, take the time to allow it to be absorbed effectively by drinking it slowly.  You should have to urinate about once every 1-2 hours when properly hydrated and it should be clear and non-foul smelling

2. Along with hydration, maintaining high energy means eating a well-balanced and clean diet.

During the week when we want our energy levels to be at their best it is imperative that we do not “cheat” at all, save your small vices for the weekend.  The week is a time where the yang energy and work is at its peak; this is when we need discipline and balance.

During the week I try to NEVER eat dirty because I know that even just a bit too much fruit sugar one night can throw my sleep and next morning off, when I need to have high energy.  There is a time to indulge, but be religious about eating healthy when you need to maintain your energy levels; this is imperative for high levels of focus.  So no cheat meals, alcoholic beverages, sweets, etc. during periods that require high energy.

High energy levels means eating in accordance to what the body requires from you during that period.  Each type of stress and period of growth in our lives can in fact require a different type of diet.  An example would be when I am training 30 plus hours a week, walking and cycling daily, and breaking down a lot of tissue I will often eat more meat.  I may eat fish, chicken, or red meat, every night of the week because that is what my body requires to repair itself and maintain its vitality.  But there are also periods in my life where I require more mental focus and my physical activity is not as demanding, so I will eat extremely “clean” which usually means eating mostly a vegan or vegetarian diet and fasting for longer periods of time.

So keeping high energy levels with diet means:

• No soft drinks ever
• No processed flours or sugar
• NO processed vegetable oils
• No excess anything, just what the body is craving.

3. Make super-food smoothies.

Superfood smoothies are the quickest source of balanced nutrition. I have a Vita-Mix and I use that baby whenever I do not have too much time to cook, it is a real life-saver because I can get as many calories as I need, but also get a load of micro-nutrients that keep energy levels high throughout the day.  Plus smoothies are already broken down quite a bit when you blend them and will be easier to digest during the day.  I like to make my smoothies with:

• Coconut oil or other healthy fats like an avocado
• Hemp/chia seeds
• Organic greens like kale or spinach
• High quality whey protein powder
• Frozen berries and other fruit.
• Spirulina/Chlorella
• High quality supplements such as Cod Liver Oil or Fish Oil

Being able to make food that takes under ten minutes to prepare and can provide a significant source of calories along with micronutrients is a great way to keep energy levels high.

4. I maintain high energy levels by consciously using caffeine.

Like most of us, I drink caffeine when I need it, but I try to always be conscious and listen to how much my body needs.  Drinking too much caffeine and becoming dependent on it can throw our hormones out of balance and cause us to crash mid-day if we do not drink more caffeine.  Drinking caffeine anytime in the late afternoon will often keep us up all night or disrupt sleep because of its half-life.  When drinking coffee try to:

• Drink only as much as you need and to drink it slowly.
• Try switching to a high quality espresso.
• Always drink your coffee with fat for better absorption and less impact on the body.
• Only drink coffee in the morning.

Try not to become dependent on caffeine and take days off from it, this will allow the caffeine to actually work and give you a real kick start when you really need it!

*Tip for higher energy: Fresh Pressed Juice.

Try replacing coffee, or that second and third cup, with some high quality fresh-pressed juice.  Buying a good quality juicer would be ideal because the live enzymes only stay alive for about 10 minutes (or less) if allowed to sit out.  Different cold-pressing techniques make different claims, but the best way would be to juice your own produce.  A shot or two of a high quality vegetable juice like kale or carrots with just a bit of sweet fruit in it can really feel almost electrical in nature to our bodies because it contains actual life force and living enzymes.  Try to use fresh squeezed juice as it is much less of a burden on the body than over-consuming caffeine can be, and often the energy I get from fresh-squeezed juice feels much more wholesome and lasting.

5. Another tip for high energy that I use frequently, would be taking time out of your day whenever and wherever you are to stop and take a few deep breaths.

Even when I am training on the floor with multiple clients for hours straight, I can always use the restroom and stop to take the time to breathe deeply for 5 deep breaths and cultivate some energy.  Being able to control our physiology consciously is a skill that takes time to learn but always involves being able to use the power of a slow and deeply controlled breath.  Next time you find yourself in a stressful situation make sure you breathe deeply.  A real deep breath should be slow and controlled and go all the way down to the belly and also lift the chest and engage the diaphragm muscles.

6. Tip for higher energy: Take cold showers.

Cold showers have a restorative quality that sends blood inward towards the organs and will stimulate good circulation and a recovery response from the lymphatic system.  Cold showers also will serve to cool the nervous and muscular systems and make them much more responsive again when the body is overheated.  A great way to kick coffee is to hop in a cold shower first thing in the morning, what will happen is that you will begin to breathe heavily to tolerate the cold water but you will also experience the physiological benefits described above.  A cold shower is a great chance to get inside your body through deep breathing and learn how to tolerate a healthy stimulus.

*Tip for higher energy. Meditate daily.

This goes hand in hand with heavy breathing, but for me keeping high energy levels means that I need to clear my head from all of my scattered thoughts and to clear other people’s negative energy out of my own body and space.  Sometimes people can be a handful, I’ve learned that one of the best times to meditate is before and after work, this ensures that you can cleanse yourself of any negative projections you may have picked up while being productive.  If you are feeling really stressed out and are having trouble quieting the mind try going for a short walk focusing on your breathing and then lay on your floor flat on your back, allow your legs to fall out to the side and lye with the palms facing up with the hands at your side or fold them over your chest.  Breathe deeply into the belly and take big exhales and just allow yourself to focus on your breath.  The point is to just breathe and not think, if you have thoughts this is normal at first just let them float by like passing clouds.

8. Tip for high energy levels: make sleep a true priority.

[readolog_blockquote ]Deep sleep allows us to digest all of the mental thoughts and patterns we have been working through during periods of growth.[/readolog_blockquote]

I know that for myself personally, I can easily distract myself late at night because I find it to be quiet and peaceful.  It is so easy to watch TV or stay up late browsing the Internet and eating snacks.  The bad thing about this however is that it usually comes at the price of sacrificing our natural sleep rhythms and cycles.  I would recommend that during the week or during periods of intense focus where you need high energy, that you make getting to bed on time a PRIORITY, if not the biggest priority on your list.  Getting to bed on time, which would be shortly after it gets dark, and then waking up early is ideal for maximum productivity.  Deep sleep allows us to digest all of the mental thoughts and patterns we have been working through during periods of growth.  Without this deep restorative rest we do not subconsciously process and learn new skills, as effectively as we could have, and if we are breaking the body down physically we will not repair as well without good rest.  Save staying up a bit later for the weekends and take time to appreciate and look forward to your TOTAL REST to cultivate high energy.

9. Tip for higher energy: Focus on the positive.

This has been a huge one for me because I have a very analytical mind and can tend to focus on how much work I have to do or the negative aspects of a project or workday. But focusing on the positive allows us to start opening doors for more positive experiences and keeps our energy levels high and open to love.  A good practice whenever you are frustrated is to extend gratitude for everything in your life that you are truly grateful for.  This would be a form of praying or meditating I suppose, but it allows us to become more open to positive experiences and focus on the good instead of the bad.  I often thank god/universe/whatever you decide to call life, for my functioning legs, the great food I have access to, the amazing people in my life, and the knowledge I have gained.  This helps me always focus on my upsides instead of constantly stressing about things like: the sports car I do not yet have, the job I have to work at when I might want to just stay home, the long project ahead of me etc.

So there you have it, those are my tips for maintaining high energy levels, put into practice, these techniques will definitely provide a full spectrum of physiological benefit for your energy levels.

So to summarize we learned that:

Keeping high-energy levels consistently means balancing expelling energy and rest.  Keeping consistently high-energy means flowing well, and this means we must stay well hydrated and eat clean foods that agree with our physiology for whatever our period of growth may be at the time.  Keeping high energy for projects, work, and relationships means always being appreciative of the positive and taking time to be grateful for the good things you have in your life, even if it is just a cup of water.

So go out in life and cultivate consistently high energy for productive endeavors, exercise, eat well, and take time to especially appreciate the relationships with our loved ones.  Remember that any deviation from normally high energy levels means you just need to strive for more balance.  The funny thing about balance is that there is never a point that we hit and are all of a sudden perfectly balanced!  Being balanced for high energy means adjusting your needs on a daily and weekly basis, which means that one week you may be taking more time off and sleeping, while at another time you may find that you feel as if nothing could ever stop you.  Strive for balance and enjoy the benefits and tips listed here for higher energy levels.