Easy And Efficient Tips To Recharge Yourself

A guide to get over the ‘dead’ feeling and recharge your personal batteries 

Feeling lethargic, unproductive and dull all day? Overstretched, overworked and sleep deprived? Can’t focus? Don’t worry, you’re are simply going through a personal energy crisis. When the blues set in, working becomes tedious. You feel guilty about not achieving enough which results in mental fatigue, further affecting your health. To shift from this low energy phase to being fully charged, recognise habits that deplete your energy and make positive changes:
1) Lack of sleep 
Following a 1am to 9pm sleep pattern isn’t as restorative as sleeping from 10pm to 6am. It is during this time that your hormone secretion, body temperature, digestion etc. follows a 24-hour cycle linked to the natural light exposure. If you fall asleep late, then you’ll wake up late and that would make you feel more out-of-sync.

2) Late-night work 
Do you always have that “one last email” to finish? And before you know it, there’s “something else” to take care of also, and soon you’ve spent an hour or longer working. All this overrides your body’s cues for rest and repair, leading to energy depletion
the next day.

3) Lack of proper nutrition 
Do you make these diet mistakes?
Excess sugar: Causes fluctuations in blood sugar resulting in low energy levels. Watch out for low-fat foods, many of which have forms of sugar like high fructose corn syrup to increase the taste.
Insufficient protein: Especially if you follow fad diets that lay stress on high-protein and low-carb.

4) Set a time limit 
Make a deadline and stick to it. Set an alarm to remind yourself, if you have to. When time is up, stop working. If you feel tired before the deadline, listen to your body and take rest.

5) Set affirmations 
Convert distress into ‘eustress’ or positive stress. Positive affirmations and auto-suggestions work best here. For instance, if your job is mundane or stressful, constantly tell yourself that you still love what you do.

6) Exercise at right intensity 
Don’t overdo exercises so much that you don’t have energy left when you reach office. Learn to hit the optimum intensity in your workout regime.

7) Posture 
If you slouch, you’ll look and feel tired. Give up unfriendly chairs at workplaces. Adopt an energetic posture – head held firmly, shoulders straight and spine erect.

8) Fix your diet 
Adopt these mantras: 
l The cliche about five small meals a day holds true. Try small, frequent meals as it ups your metabolic levels.
l Include alkaline forming foods, like figs, green leafy vegetables, almonds etc.
l Avoid refined sugar.
l Avoid coffee, have green tea.

9) Care for feet 
Do you tend to walk a lot, be it to the station, climbing stairs or running to catch the train? The result is tired feet, stressed back and shoulders. Go for a foot reflexology session to fix it.

10) Do-It-Yourself massage 
Massaging the body breaks blockages in it. And when blockages are dissolved, energy flows. When worn out, give yourself a quick massage. Feet is a good place to start, pressing the feet for a few minutes will make you feel fresh. Next, press the shoulders, neck and calf muscles. There are reflexology charts online, observe the pressure points and press those. Similarly, massaging along your eyebrows and forehead gives a renewed sense of energy. If opting for aromatherapy, choose flowery essences like lemon grass, orange etc.

11) Turn to yoga 
Yoga combined with breathing and meditation techniques is ideal to beat chronic fatigue syndrome. Practice bandhas (neuromuscular locks) that help you to balance the endocrine system to fight fatigue. Mool Bandha, Udyan Bandha and Jalandhar Bandha are three bandhas. Else, practice pranayams like Bharahmari, Shitkari, Anulom-Vilom, Shavasana to relax your mind. Devoting 30 minutes a day for yoga — 10 for Surya Namaskar, 10 minutes for deep breathing and 10 minutes of Shavasan — will set you on the right energy track.

(Inputs by Dr Dilip Nadkarni, Author Calm Sutra, Rajni Maker, Fitness Expert, Body Craft, and Omar Faroque, Spa Consultant, Rebirth Spa)