LONDON (Parliament Politics Magazine)- You have to get the children to school on time, cook tasty and preferably healthy, keep your boss happy, and exercise enough. Tiring, isn’t it, having to do all that? If at the end of the day you no longer have the energy to enjoy yourself, then it is high time to work on a fitter and more vital life. Here’s how.
1. A good night’s sleep
Five more minutes! Everyone stays in bed longer, but that is not a good idea. It is important to go to bed and get up at the same time every day. It doesn’t really matter whether you sleep seven hours or nine, but how deeply you sleep. Darkening your room, a temperature of about sixteen degrees and complete silence, that’s what you need to dream away.
Coffee, alcohol and screens are harmful to your sleep. Go to bed relaxed, and the next day you will get out of bed with a fresh head.
2. A genuine smile
Laughter is healthy, it is said. And that’s absolutely right. When you laugh, your body produces less cortisol – also called the stress hormone – and the feel-good hormones are released. So let the endorphins, serotonin and dopamine flow through your body.
3. A sip of water
A glass every half hour, that is the norm. Your body is one big chunk of cells that mainly consists of water. So you mainly feed your body by hydrating well. Our tip: drink before you get thirsty.
4. Complete silence
Every day you are inundated with messages, emails, words, images and that is usually accompanied by sound. That’s a lot to process day in, day out. So seek out the silence. Only then can you really reflect on what you feel deep inside.
5. Chew, Chew, Chew
A large portion of chips, mussels and a delicious barbecue. Everyone overeats every now and then, and that consumes tons of energy. The solution? Chew more. It makes you eat less and you get more nutrients. A good rule to determine the amount of food is the 80% rule. Eat until your stomach is about 80% full. That’s enough and won’t make you feel bad afterwards.
6. An empty head
One of the biggest culprits of fatigue? stress. All those wandering thoughts, all those to-do’s, your problems and your worries, you’d be exhausted for less. Therefore, write off all your worries, try to make your problems as concrete as possible and write down your to do’s to clear your head completely. The stress slides off you and gives way to energy. A good tip: meditate every now and then !
7. The most important meal: breakfast
Do you leave the house without breakfast? Not a good idea. If you skip breakfast, you deprive your body of valuable fuels. You may simply not be able to eat three sandwiches, try to eat at least a piece of fruit or some yogurt.
8. In the sun
When the sun shines, you are happy. And that’s no coincidence: the sunlight makes your body produce serotonin and vitamin D, which gives you more energy. That is also the reason why you are a bit more lethargic in the fall than in the summer.
9. A Touch of Gratitude
You are only truly happy when you are grateful for the things you have. It gives you a good dose of inner peace. Write down at least one thing every day for which you were grateful. That could be a simple hug from your daughter, an unexpected visit from your mother, a nice compliment from your boss or a nice lunch with colleagues.
