Author: Selina Rose

What comes to mind when you think about having more energy?

For me, when I close my eyes and think about having more energy I see myself feeling up-beat, positive and ready for anything that comes up.

Like a lot of us, I don’t envision what it takes to get to that place where I’m energized and ready to take on the day. I just see the final product.

The truth is, there are a number of factors that contribute to how energized or run down you feel. Too many to go into detail with in one blog post, so I’m going to give you a high-level overview of what to consider when you’re looking to improve your energy level.

Sneaky Energy Drains

Here are some sneaky ways your energy level might be depleting without you realizing it.

Misusing your energy – Consider where you are spending your energy. Sometimes it’s not that there’s anything wrong with your energy level, but that you’re spending your energy on things other than your main priorities. Can you do less? Can you delegate some of your tasks? Ask yourself these questions to look for places where you can conserve energy.

Energy drains – low vibe people or experiences can drain your energy. Keep an eye out for times when you feel your body contract, or your mind go into negativity. These are signs that you’re slipping into a lower vibration where your energy is more dense, so you’ll feel tired a lot easier.

Not enough joy in your life – this goes hand in hand with energy drains. If you have things to look forward to and enriching relationships, you’ll have more energy. Consider whether you have enough joy in your life. Lack of joy could be a cause of low energy.

Eating too many carbs – can make you feel tired, especially if you’re choosing refined grains or simple sugars. If you’re not eating an abundance of carbohydrates, it could be that you’re not getting through protein and healthy fats to balance the amount of carbs you’re eating.

Nutrient deficiencies – these can come about from eating the same foods all the time. Variety in your diet is key to getting the range of nutrients your body needs. See your doctor for a blood test annually to check your nutrient levels.

Underlying health conditions – what a lot of major health conditions have in common is fatigue as a symptom. Whether it’s cardiovascular disease, cancer, or autoimmune conditions, fatigue is a symptom. That’s not helpful if you’re trying to narrow down a condition you’re affected by, but it can point you to an underlying problem if you haven’t considered one before.

Poor sleep – if you’re not getting proper rest at night you’re more likely to feel fatigued during the day. This is an easy one to point to for lack of energy.

Poor recovery from exercise – you might be working out to stay healthy, but is it working against you? If your body isn’t able to properly recover (with rest, nutrients and sleep) from your workouts, they could be making you more tired. Pay attention to how you feel on your workout days (especially after your workout) and if you’re drained, it’s a good sign to scale back on the length or intensity of your activity.

Emotional fatigue – big emotions like grief, anger and sadness can take up a lot of energy. Especially if you don’t have the tools to process them. If you’re going through a difficult time, you’ll need more rest to catch up.

Thought loops – thinking can drain your energy just as much as movement can. Negative thoughts in particular (and especially if you’re stuck ruminating on them) can take up a lot of energy and make you feel sluggish and tired.

Stress – there are so many ways stress shows up in the body. Feeling extra tired is one of them. Pay attention to how your body responds to difficult situations. You might notice a correlation between work pressure and feeling fatigue. Double up on your rest and relaxation to help you manage your stress.

How to Have More Energy

Now that we’ve looked at possible reasons you’re feeling depleted, here are some ways to boost your energy level.

1. Drink more water – it’s amazing how much energy we get from being properly hydrated. Aim for 60+ oz of water each day. Even better if it’s filtered. Space your water intake throughout the day for best results.
2. Manage stress – this might go without saying but being proactive about managing your stress level will help your body have more energy long term. Mindfulness practices, meditation, going for a walk, and talk therapy are all great ways to manage stress and preserve your energy level.
   
3. Rethink your movement – your body’s movement requirements change in different seasons of your life. Moderate gentle movement like walking, a light jog, yoga or tai chi are all great ways to keep your body moving without burning yourself out. Slow and steady might be exactly what you need when you’re feeling more tired than usual. It’s important to listen to your body though. You might benefit from taking a few days off from movement if you’re really wrung out.
4. Get enough sleep – aim for 7-9 hours per night and a consistent bedtime. Your body likes routine, so support yourself in having a great night’s sleep by creating an evening routine to wind down before bed. This should include time away from your screens and direct sources of light.
5. Eat complex carbohydrates – foods like brown rice, beans, squash and sweet potatoes are all complex or “slow burning” carbohydrates. These won’t raise your blood sugar as quickly as simple sugars, so they’ll keep your energy level stable for a longer period of time.
6. Add more joy to your days – probably the most underestimated source of energy is joy. Look for things you love and do more of them, often.
7. Drink less alcohol and coffee – stimulants mess with your body’s natural rhythm. Avoid caffeine and alcohol as much as possible, especially in the evening.
8. Revamp your relaxation – if you’re used to “relaxing” in front of your computer or watching Netflix, it’s time to rethink this strategy. When you’re watching a screen your brain is highly stimulated. Ideally your down time activities take you away from screens and allow your body to wind down. Try reading a book, meditating, or doing gentle yoga in low light as a relaxation technique instead.

There is no one size fits all approach to improving energy. It’s multiple factors that work together to make you feel energized and ready to take on the day, or depleted.

Want to pinpoint the cause of your energy drain and turn your lifestyle around to support your energy level? The Eats & Asana method has stress management and eating for energy built-in so you can feel your best every day. Find out more here.

One day you’re able to slide your jeans on easily. The next, you’re wrestling with the button. What the heck? It’s not that you’ve gained weight magically overnight, more likely that you’re bloated. 

Bloating is what happens when your intestinal tract is filled with gas. It causes your gut to stick out, feel tight, and be uncomfortable. In order to know how to get rid of bloating, we have to first look at what causes bloating in the first place.

There are many reasons why you might be feeling bloated. Some common ones include:

• Incomplete digestion – you might lack the enzymes or proper acid balance to digest food completely.
• Eating too fast – usually means you’re not chewing properly which makes it harder on your body to break down food.
• Drinking carbonated drinks – puts gas into your system. Best to avoid these for optimal gut health.
• Food sensitivities – these can be sneaky because they can go undetected. Certain foods might irritate your gut and this irritation can cause bloating, among other symptoms.
• Eating too much sugar- the bacteria and yeast in your gut feed on sugar. When they’re well fed, they produce gas which results in bloating.
• Dysbiosis- a fancy word for an imbalance in your gut bacteria. 
• Drinking cold water with meals – cold water will halt digestion and make the whole process slower.
• Eating cold food – some bodies don’t process cold food well because it can be difficult to digest.
• Eating too much – larger quantities of food are harder for your body to break down.
• Stress (mental/emotional) – slows down digestion, making it harder for the body to process your food.
• Hormone changes – influence digestion and can cause inflammation in your gut. This is particularly common in women.
• Being too busy – when your mind is racing, your body can’t slow down. Digestion is compromised leading to bloating.
• Too little exercise – body movement encourages your GI tract to move as well, releasing gas and waste that can cause bloating.

As you can see there are so many different reasons why you might be feeling bloated. This list is only scratching the surface. There’s no one size fits all approach to get rid of bloating for good, because there are so many factors that contribute to it.

If you deal with chronic bloating, you’ve likely experienced with your diet to try and find a solution. Have you considered that there’s more to solving the problem than diet alone?

The best solution to bloating is to take a holistic approach. The digestive system is sensitive to what’s going on in the rest of your body. For example, stress at work will set off a stress response in your body, releasing hormones that slow down digestion. Suddenly your ability to  digest and process food is compromised because of a bad conversation with your boss. 

Too often we forget that our mind and body are interconnected, and that what happens mentally/emotionally will affect our physiology.

Keeping this in mind, here’s a formula for a holistic approach to dealing with bloating:

Food and Digestion

What you eat, and how well your body processes it are important to consider when you’re trying to get rid of bloating. Some tips to optimize your body’s experience with food are:

• Eat slowly
• Avoid drinking a lot of liquid with your meals. Drinks should be room temperature or warmer.
• Reduce your sugar intake to give the bacteria in your gut less to feed on, and to lower inflammation.
• Chew, chew, chew. Ideally until each bite is a paste before swallowing. Digestion begins in your mouth.
• Watch your portion sizes. Smaller quantities are easier to digest.
• Eliminate food sensitivities. This can be tricky to do on your own, but a nutritionist or health coach can help.
• Avoid carbonated drinks.
• Eat in a relaxed state. Don’t rush. Allow yourself to sit and digest after eating.
• Use digestive enzymes if you suspect your digestion is compromised.
• Ensure you fast 12 hours overnight to give your digestive system a break.

Mental / Emotional

The gut is often referred to as our “second brain” and for good reason. The nerves that run through your gut connect directly to your brain. This means that your thoughts and the feelings they produce will have a direct effect on your gut. 

Managing your mental stress and processing your feelings will have a big impact on your gut. This is often overlooked. Here are some tips to get started:

• Practice deep breathing daily. This will calm your nervous system and put your body (and gut) at ease. Aim for 5 minutes a few times per day.
• Feel your feelings. Allow yourself to feel and process the emotions that are coming up for you. Use a technique that works for you – journal, talk it out, or do physical activity that allows you to get your emotions out.
• Reduce stress. This is a big one on it’s own. Stress hormones directly impact your gut microbiome. Try yoga, meditation, and fun activities to bring your stress level down.
• Sleep 7-9 hours per night. This is time for your body to rest and recover. It also helps your body deal with stress.
• Connect with loved ones. We underestimate the power of social connection on our health. Feeling connection and joy will put your body at ease, your gut included.

Movement

When you keep your body moving, all of your systems function more efficiently. Here are some tips for movement to reduce bloating:

• Walk for 15-30 minutes each day to encourage your bowels to move.
• Practice yoga. Postures like twists to encourage the release of gas in your intestines. Yoga will also help relax your mind and bring you into the present moment, great things for your gut health.
• Avoid long periods of strenuous exercise. If your gut is off, chances are your body is already under stress. Intense exercise can add more stress to your system which is counterproductive. Choose moderate exercise instead.

Other Remedies

As you’re working on your diet and lifestyle, here are a few things that might help you manage bloating when it comes on:

• Cool your gut. Bloating is a sign of inflammation. Use an ice pack to cool your gut (ideally through a towel to avoid direct contact with your skin) to help the inflammation settle. 
• Peppermint oil. You can use peppermint essential oil directly on your stomach when you’re bloated. Apply it to your skin and let it absorb. The peppermint oil will help break up the gas in your gut and reduce bloating.
• Magnesium spray. This works especially well if you’re constipated since magnesium will relax your muscles and allow your bowels to move.
• Digestive tea. There are dozens of different formulas in the tea aisle. Look for a combination of peppermint, fennel, and ginger to soothe your gut from the inside out.

As you can see, there’s no quick fix to resolving chronic bloating. There really is no replacement for a healthy diet and lifestyle factors that reduce stress and keep you connected to your body. 

It can be difficult to know where to start on your own. The Eats & Asana program is an 8-week step-by-step process that walks you through creating the foundation for a healthy holistic life. 

It includes a food framework to help you figure out what’s best for your body, as well as yoga and mindfulness practices to get you connected to your body. Want to know if Eats & Asana is a fit for you? Book your Body-Love Breakthrough Call here to find out more.

Stress eating or emotional eating are terms used interchangeably. Both refer to the same pattern of eating where people use food as a coping mechanism to be able to deal with stressful situations.

We all use emotional eating at one time or another in our lives. It becomes a problem when emotional eating is the go-to coping mechanism for difficult feelings, as opposed to building the tools to deal with the emotions that are coming up.

Emotional Connection to Food

Our relationship with food is emotional at its core. Access to food is part of our survival. When we were young we emotionally bonded with our mothers who were our primary source of food. 

Food is also a big part of our cultures and families. It makes sense that we feel nostalgic about food from our childhood, family recipes, or meals we have on certain holidays.

Not all food decisions are driven by positive emotions. If you’ve ever been through a significant break up (or suffered a loss) you know that your appetite is affected. This shows up in different ways. One day you might feel overwhelmed with emotion and not want to eat. The next you might be drawn to comfort food.

Negative emotions often create a feeling of emptiness or an emotional void. Often we turn to food as a way to fill that void and create a feeling of fullness so we can temporarily feel whole.

The danger here is that the physical fullness can’t fully replace the emotional void, which is why you might never quite feel satisfied when you’re eating out of emotion. 

One way to get past stress eating is to determine whether your hunger is being driven emotionally or from real physical sensations of hunger.

Emotional Hunger vs Physical Hunger

Emotional hunger can be powerful. It’s easy to mistake it for physical hunger if you don’t know what to pay attention to. Here are some ways you can tell the two apart:

Emotional hunger happens suddenly. It comes on quickly and feels urgent. Whereas physical hunger comes on gradually and doesn’t feel urgent (unless you haven’t eaten in a long time).

Emotional hunger isn’t located in the stomach. It comes from your head and is more of an anxious thought or craving than a growling belly or a sensation in your stomach. One way to notice this is if you’re focused on specific textures, tastes, and smells as opposed to how hungry you feel.

Emotional hunger focuses on specific foods. You pass by a billboard for a fast food restaurant and suddenly have a craving. Or you scroll past a dessert picture on social media and suddenly you want to leave your house to go get chocolate. These are emotional cravings because they come on fast and specific. Physical hunger usually isn’t for anything specific, and your desire will be for real food as opposed to sweets and treats. 

Emotional hunger isn’t fulfilled, even once you’re full. When you keep eating past the point of being full, or you keep wanting to snack even after you’ve eaten these are signs that the hunger you’re responding to is emotional. Physical hunger doesn’t need to be stuffed to feel satisfied. You’ll get the sensation that you’re stomach is full and feel like you’ve had enough.

Emotional hunger often happens mindlessly. You sit down with a bag of chips and before you know it, it’s gone. Mindless eating is a sign that you’re trying to numb your emotions. When you eat to fulfill physical hunger, you’re more aware and intentional with what you’re doing.

Emotional hunger often leads to “eaters remorse.” When you feel guilty, ashamed, or regret after eating it’s a sign that you weren’t eating for nutritional reasons. When you eat to satisfy physical hunger, you’re unlikely to feel guilty or ashamed because you’re giving your body what it needs. 

Reasons Behind Stress Eating

Stress eating is a way to suppress or soothe negative emotions that you otherwise don’t know how to deal with. Common emotions that lead to stress eating are: overwhelm, anger, fear, boredom, sadness, and loneliness. 

These emotions can be triggered by major life events or brought on by the hassles of daily life. The emotions are just the trigger. The challenge is to respond in a different way. 

The physical changes that go along with stress can also cause a person to overeat. Initially, stress will decrease your appetite but over time, high cortisol levels will increase your appetite which can lead to overeating. Elevated cortisol levels will also increase cravings for high-sugar and high-fat foods which the body uses more of when it’s under duress.

Tips to Stop Emotionally Eating

The approach you use will depend on the reason for your emotional cravings. Here are some approaches to help you stop emotional eating:

• Identify the feeling and respond to what it’s asking for. Our emotions are signs from the body that there’s a need to be filled. For example, if you’re lonely call a friend, if you’re angry write out your feelings or talk to someone so you feel heard. Learning to respond in these ways will help you deal with your feelings, as opposed to stuffing them down with food.
• Take a time-out before giving in to a craving. When a craving strikes take 10 minutes to see if it will dissipate. Distract yourself by having a shower, cleaning the house, or going for a walk to take your mind off the craving. It might disappear or become less urgent.
• Slow down. Eat mindfully. Being present with your food and paying attention to the flavour, texture, and sensation of the food in your mouth will help you slow down and enjoy the experience as opposed to mindlessly eating. A simple way to avoid shame after eating is to eat slowly and mindfully and be present in the process. When you respect your body in this way you’ll have a healthier outcome.
• Adopt healthy stress management habits. Dealing with stress is a lifestyle approach. Ensure you’re getting proper rest, drinking enough water, relaxing regularly, and making time for fun and personal connection are good strategies to keep your stress levels down so you don’t end up with emotional cravings.
• Be gentle with yourself. Learn from your setbacks. There’s no expectation for you to get it right every time. Learning to pay attention to your body and respond to your needs in a loving way is a process. Take it one day at a time.
• Accept your emotions. Often difficult emotions are met with our own judgment or shame. The more you can accept and allow yourself to feel your emotions, the easier it will be to move through them without responding with food.

Want help with emotional eating?

For some of us, dealing with emotions can feel confronting. It can feel like a daunting task to overcome emotional eating without tools or support. If you find yourself turning to food as a coping mechanism, it might help to have support in changing your habits.

In the Eats & Asana program, we touch on mindful eating, making healthy food choices, and understanding cravings so you can break the cycle of emotional eating. 

You’ll also discover tools to manage stress and deal with emotions so you’ll be less inclined toward stress eating in the first place. 

Book your Body Love Breakthrough Call to learn more about the Eats & Asana program and how it can help you create a healthier relationship with your body and food.

References:

1. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/320935#triggers
2. https://www.healthline.com/health/emotional-eating
3. https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/weight-loss/in-depth/weight-loss/art-20047342