Food as Fuel to Stop Being Slugish and Tired During the Day

Do you have a tuff time making it through the day without getting sluggish and sleepy? Does it ever happen to you that once you sit down it is so hard to get back up as your energy is zapped? If so it is more common than you might think, and you are not alone. Most likely the reason for your lack of energy is the food you give your body as fuel.

Your diet plays a vital role in your relationship with your feeling of being tired or full of energy. As most people always think they eat too much, it may actually be that you are not getting enough energy which causes your problems. More metabolisms are slowing down due to a lack of food as fuel throughout the day than overeating.

If you fall into the one of following categories you are probably not fueling your body to its adequate demands: cutting carbs and meals to lose weight, eat high amounts of fast food, eat from convenience stores and vending machines, or use caffeine like coffee to make it through the day. Each one of these habits creates a lack of energy for your body which either stores the food into your fat cells or burns muscle tissue for energy.

The problem lies in that once we start eating with these destructive habits, it creates a harmful cycle. Once you go to fast food for lunch for example, your blood sugar will spike and store you food into your fat cells. Now, around 2-3 pm you start to feel sluggish and starving so you go on a Starbucks run to get a "pick me up." Though because you didn't get your body proper fuel, when you get home you are completely starving and you over eat dinner (especially when you count all the snacking because you are starving before you get to dinner). For many people the cycle starts over again tomorrow. This same cycle happens with people who cut calories and carbs to lose weight.

Most people if you ask them know what to eat, so why don't we do it? It is just a matter of will power right? The answer lies deeper than that. Once you have a bad choice for the day your body will force you to make poor choices because of the negative physiologically going on inside.

The biggest key to getting your energy and metabolism back on track is breakfast. I know you have probably heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, though it is the truth. If you eat a sensible breakfast low in saturated fats and low in simple sugars, you can get your energy burning off on the right track. You will know it is the right track because you will feel hungry in 2-3 hours which is good. This means your metabolism is working and wants more energy to keep burning. When you fuel your metabolism you will train your body to burn fat as its major source of fuel.

Prepare ahead of time is the only way to ensure success. Pick items at the grocery store that you know will be something you can eat in your lifestyle for healthy snacks. You may need to bring your meals and snacks with you to work. Believing that you will be able to just make good choices at spur of a moment is false thinking.

Pick foods high in antioxidants. Antioxidants found in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains remove harmful toxins out of your body which can cause cellular damage and affect your health and energy. With greater stress comes greater build up of toxins in your body. I recommend taking an antioxidant supplement on a daily basis. It may keep you from creating metabolic syndrome from too many toxins in the body. Metabolic syndrome is the leading cause of heart disease, cancer, and strokes in this country.

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Food and Diet for More Energy

Do you find that you get fatigued during the afternoon? There are better choices than reaching for that candy bar, soda, or the latest energy drink. Food and diet is essential to giving your body more energy during the day which an online personal fitness training program can help with. With making some easy diet choices you can have more energy and feel alive during those once sluggish hours.

The fatigue and lack of energy you feel is associated with how you fuel your metabolism. Another way of looking at it is the food you eat or not eat is causing you have low energy and want to take a nap at work. If you are having any lack of energy throughout the day, now is a great time to start making better dietary choices which a dietician online can support you with.

The common diet programs that create this lack of energy are low calorie diets or eating 3 meals a day or less. Also, if your diet habits consist of fast food, candy, or soft drinks then your body is simply not getting the energy it needs and how it wants it was balanced energy levels. Another aspect that affects your energy with poor food choices is a lack of essential vitamins, minerals, complex carbs, and amino acids. All of these are building blocks for proper metabolism functioning.

The major issue with the ineffective diet programs of Americans is bad habits actually create more bad habits. Many people think that if they just had will power they won't succumb to food cravings that crush their diets. The reality is that poor choices create times when your body is in low blood sugar and that period is what causes your cravings. It is physiology that causes them not a lack of mental strength. Did you know that once you start eating 5 small meals during the day your cravings for sugar go away? Follow me on this person's day. We are starting with breakfast though they don't eat breakfast because they have noticed that if they skip breakfast they don't feel hungry till lunch. So at lunch they go out to dinner with their coworkers. Now, from a lack of energy they over eat more food than they should at any one meal. The problem is this doesn't feel or looks like too much food because this is what they are used to. How do I know this is too much food because at around 2 or 3 pm they are crashing. Their energy is low and they have become exceptionally irritable. Does this sound familiar?

So what are we supposed to eat? The goal is to eat 5 small meals throughout the day. For the average American this is cutting their normal meal in half and eating the other half as a snack. Breakfast starts the day either burning fat or storing fat. You know you had a proper breakfast because you are hungry 2-3 hours later, and it is time for another snack. You want to keep having small meals every two to three hours throughout the day. The reason this is good is because your body is burning calories and wants more fuel to keep burning. I know it seems logical if you don't eat you will lose weight. The problem is when you don't eat your body stores the food you eat as fat. When you fuel your body every 2-3 hours your body starts to burn more energy and will stop storing energy. This is the key to healthy losing weight.

Another key aspect to controlling your energy levels is the use of caffeine. Caffeine is a stimulant that supports your body to release adrenaline into your system. Caffeine in moderation, as in one cup of coffee doesn't throw your body out of balance. Having a multiple cups or some of the energy drinks and your body is running on artificial energy and then you crash. Once you crash you want that good feeling again, and so you are off on another Starbucks run. I know people who go to Starbucks every 2-3 hours or after each time their body crashes. One thing on energy drinks, Red Bull has less caffeine than a cup of coffee though I can't guarantee what is in the rest of the energy drinks.

Do you need more protein or more carbs in your meals? If you find that your meals are made of mostly carbs or simple sugars than eating protein with your meals with balance you out. Most Americans are over eating protein. If you are not getting a small amount of complex carbs in each meal, this is another reason why you are low on energy. Carbs are you body's fuel. Protein is designed to rebuild your muscle tissue and your body doesn't want to use it as energy.

Adding proper supplementation can make easy healthy and throughout the day easier. For most people getting that mid morning or mid afternoon snack can be a challenge. Having a meal replacement bar or shake can give you the healthy fuel you need. Also, most meal replacement supplements are fortified with vitamins and minerals which is a far cry from the candy bar. Supplements allow you to get exactly the right amount of calories in your meal as well. Especially, if you are going after a weight loss goal you don't need to eat any extra calories. What should I eat for my 5 small meals? The first answer is the same things you are eating now only cut them in half. You will find that the sugar cravings go away so we automatically start eating less sugar. The goal is to go to the super market thinking about what you want to eat for your meals. If you buy it at the grocery store than you will have it ready when it is time to eat? Liveleantoday.com's diet program creates weekly menus that print out grocery lists to make this process easy. Start eating every 2-3 hours and turn your metabolism into a fat burning machine. I know you might be laughing, not your metabolism. Today if you start eating 5 small meals your body will start to turn over. You will know this is working because you will have more energy than you have ever had before.

Chuck Carter, BS Exercise Science is President of Personal Training website LiveLeanToday.com. For over 20 years, Mr. Carter has trained people to achieve their fitness goals. Go to for more information on online personal training program and other health and fitness information.