Tired of Being Tired?

Fatigue is one of the top three symptoms that patients mention to their doctor. Remember when we were little kids and were full of energy, never wanted to rest, and made every adult tired by the end of the day. Then came the teenage years and many of us started to get a little tired. Soon after that came work and we struggled through by drinking coffee, and other caffeine filled drinks. As we felt more tired it became difficult to function as well and parts of our bodies started to ache and even brake down. Eventually we check off the box, fatigue, when we visit our doctor. We smile less and swear we’ll catch up on sleep the next night. Unfortunately, many of us have a challenging time sleeping in the first place.Let me start by saying, it’s not your fault. We have been continuously marketed to and misinformed by good intentioned people that are less knowledgeable about how are bodies actually function.What can we do? Is there some way to turn this around and increase our energy without resorting to medications? Is there a natural way that really helps?There are four major factors that will help almost everyone feel better and less fatigued.The first is change the food that we eat. I suggest something very different than most people have ever thought about. Any type of food that we eat is turned into fuel for our bodies and if you break it down it eventually becomes energy. So we need to start thinking about food from an energy point of view. No more fads just basic principles of nature and we’ll all feel less tired, have more energy and enjoy life more. Before you put a food in your mouth, think about whether it will give you energy or take it away.Nutritionists, chiropractors, holistic health counselors and functional medicine health practicioners can usually help with this one.The foods that will give energy are live, raw foods that have all of their nutrients, as well as their vital enzymes still intact. These types of foods will take much less effort from your body to break down and turn into energy and building blocks for you. I know that many people hear raw and they are confused by it but it’s just a natural state for us to eat foods in. What about meat, chicken and fish? Now you know one of the reasons we are so tired. We eat animal proteins , which are very difficult for us to break down. Whether they are cooked or not, animal protein has been researched countless times and is one of the leading culprits in disease. That does not mean I am saying you should never have animal protein but now you will make a more educated decision when meal time comes along.The second thing we need to increase our energy and get rid of fatigue is more clean water. Good old water, which is used in all of our chemical reactions in the body and makes up 70-80% of our bodies. It is a major source of energy and yet we continue to ignore it and drink flavored and colored sugar water and expect the same results. Try washing your car with some of the drinks that you use and see what happens. Fooling ourselves into thinking that our beverages are ok because they contain water is draining us more every day. Increase your water intake for 30 days and see how many of your complaints go away. It is one of the easiest changes we can make, but remember that clean spring water is the most natural for us to consume. Water from most taps contains chlorine, fluoride and possibly other chemicals which are not health for us in any quantity. So increase your clean water and let me know how you feel. I know as a chiropractor, my practice members feel different when they are drinking water regularly.The third factor for increasing our energy levels is even more basic and really easy to get. It’s all around us but sometimes we feel like we can’t get enough. It’s oxygen or air which we breathe in every minute of the day. Our hearts pump about 100,000 times per day and this pumps blood with oxygen to every cell in the body. How long could we live without oxygen? Beside some miracle case, the average person would have severe brain damage after 5-8 minutes without oxygen, so now you understand why not having the right amount could slow us down. We take it for granted but increasing our oxygen consumption can really increase many of our body functions and help us out in the energy department. It’s used in every reaction in our bodies and not having the correct amount could slow down the engine dramatically. Seems kind of obvious but what should we do about it. There are a couple of way we can affect it. One is to increase our aerobic exercise which most people are aware of. This will increase oxygen during the exercise as well as the capacity of the lungs, heart and cells after the exercise. Spinning (cycling), running, walking, swimming, some forms of yoga as well as dancing and many other activites will increase your aerobic capacity. There are guided breathing exercises that are less intense and still increase you oxygen. There are even machines that will pump oxygen into your system. Bottom line is that we need to increase our consumption of oxygen as well as our capacity to absorb and use it in our bodies. As a Chiropractor I can help practice members with this, but personal trainers, physical therapists, exercise physiologists, acupuncturists and some other health providers focus on this factor.Often we feel too tired to do these activities but shortly after we make them habit we notice how much more energy we have.The fourth and most important way to increase our energy and defeat fatigue is keeping our nervous system free of interference. Wellness experts have finally recognized that the brain, spinal cord and all of the nerves are the energy and communication system of the body. Researchers now understand the link between all other functions of the human body and this super highway of information and any loss of messaging will lead to dysfunction in countless ways. One of the first signs may be through fatigue of the body. It’s like having a toy when you were a child and as the batteries started to lose their power the toy worked slower and sometimes lasted for a while. This concept has been around in many other cultures and healing arts for thousands of years. I believe because the brain and entire nervous system is so complex and difficult to see and study, it has been mostly ignored. In the past few decades, advancements in understanding how it works and how we can keep it health are finally upon us. Eliminating toxic information that we subconsciously repeat, increasing positive peaceful messages and continuing to become aware of emotions and thoughts that we think or say become vital. From mind exercises, removing toxins, meditation, active life-long learning, clearing the mind as well as health disciplines like chiropractors, acupuncturists, yoga instructors, and mind-body healers that focus on the nervous system, we can finally take care of our nervous systems and be healthy, live longer and truly enjoy the new quality of life that we all deserve.Now make a plan to incorporate these four factors into your daily lives and see your energy soar. Take baby steps if you need to and remember that you it’s not your fault if this is new to you. Now that you are becoming more aware of how you can increase your energy, it’s time to start living life like you always new you could.If you need more specific information on any of these four factors for energy please feel free to sign up for my newsletter on my website or contact me.
Dr. Edward Beck
http://www.healingpotential.com/
Advanced Chiropractic Center