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1 Get Active Contents 3 Walking4 Cycling5 Lunchtime swim 5 Yoga6 Downward Facing Dog 7 Forward Bend 8 Child’s Pose 9 Eat Better Food 10 11 12 12 Spinach Smoothie Recipe Drink Less Alcohol Always Eat Breakfast Breathe13 Practice Breathing from your Diaphragm (Belly Breaths) 14 Improve Your Sleep Quality How Can You Calm Your Thoughts? —Mindfulness for Sleeping 2 15 16 Get Active Exercise increases your metabolism, improves glucose uptake and insulin resistance. It balances hormones and releases endorphins. With all of these benefits, it’s no surprise that exercise does wonders for your energy. At least 30 minutes of exercise a day is optimal. Exercise increases blood flow which in turn helps to increase energy. Not only does exercise give you a quick energy boost, but it will help you to sleep better that night. Just avoid working out close to bed time, as your body needs time to slow down again before going to sleep. For an even better result, do your workouts in the sunshine. This will help to balance serotonin and melatonin, and stabilise your circadian rhythm. So what are the best workouts for combating fatigue? For increased energy, the key is to aim for a low to moderate intensity - don’t push yourself too hard or you’ll just end up depleting your energy stores. 3 Walking You will see benefits from as little as a leisurely 10 minute walk. Walking has been found to promote mental health, boost energy, combat anxiety and depression, improve your sleep quality and relieve stress. “Find some hills as you progress to challenge your muscles and increase your heart rate. Rain keeping you in? Find a step around your house or work and do some step ups for 5 minutes leading with the right leg then swap. No step? Make your way to the closest shopping centre and go from one end to the other, then repeat. If the sun is shining, simply head out in any direction for half the amount of time you want to walk for & then turn around and retrace your steps.” —Sandy Duxbury (Personal Trainer) Take the stairs instead of the elevator Park in a car park further away Get off the bus a stop early Try somewhere new to eat that is further away from your office Use the bathroom one level above or below you in your workplace and use the stairs to get there Suggest having lunchtime walking meetings with your colleagues 4 Cycling A great low impact fun exercise that gets you outdoors and even saves your hip pocket on travel expenses whilst looking after the environment. Combine your cycling with walking or public transport to get to your next event on the weekend. Lunchtime swim Check out your local pool for their lunchtime swim rates. It’s a great way to sneak exercise into your day. The cardiovascular benefits that come with aerobic exercise helps your lungs work more effectively and can lower your blood pressure. Give your afternoon a lift off with more oxygen to the brain and a more productive afternoon. 5 Yoga “Recent studies reveal the effects that yoga has, not only your physical body, but highlight the mental, intellectual and spiritual health effects when doing this low–moderate form of exercise. It is proving to be an effective method to reduce anxiety, depression and stress. Either done in a structured class or from your computer or phone, it may be the only hour of your day where you are encouraged to do deep abdominal breathing, slowing your heartbeat and lowering your blood pressure.” —Sandy Duxbury (Personal Trainer) Practicing inversions (poses where your head is positioned below your heart) are great for a quick energy boost as they encourage blood flow to your brain. 6 Downward Facing Dog 1 2 3 4 5 Start on your hands and knees. Align your wrists so that they’re directly under your shoulders and your knees directly under your hips. Make sure that the folds of your wrists are parallel with the top edge of your mat. Straighten your elbows, back relaxed. Spread your fingers wide, pressing firmly through your fingers and palms, distributing your weight evenly. Pay close attention to your index finger which may tend to rise. Exhale as your tuck your toes and lift your knees off the floor. Reach your pelvis up and draw your sit bones back, gently straightening your legs. Keep your upper back straight by pulling the shoulder blades together, broadening your collarbones. Focus on lengthening your spine, drawing your chest towards your thighs while pressing the mat away from you. Engage your quadriceps and sink you heels towards the floor. Take a number of slow, deep breaths. Downward Facing Dog Added Benefits relieves headaches, insomnia & stress, improves digestion 7 Forward Bend 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Start standing straight with your feet hip distance apart. Exhale as you bend forward, gently lengthening your spine, letting the crown of your head hang down. Lift your sit bones toward the ceiling. Keep your legs as straight as you can, without locking your knees. If you can keep the front of your torso long and your knees straight, place your palms or fingertips on the floor beside your feet, or grip the back of your ankles. Ensure your quadriceps are engaged by drawing them up to the ceiling. Relax as you lift your hips high, moving your weight slightly more onto the balls of your feet. Let your head hang and breathe, deep and slow. Forward Bend Added Benefits relieves tension in the spine, neck, and back, stimulates the kidneys, liver, spleen 8 Child’s Pose 1 2 3 4 5 6 Start on your hands and knees. Spread your knees wide, keeping your big toes still touching and sit down on your toes. Lengthen your spine as you lean forward, stretching your arms out in front of you on the ground. Allow your forehead to rest on the floor. Keep your arms long and extended, palms facing down. Sit your hips back down as far as they can go. Broaden your upper back and relax your shoulders, lengthening from your hips to your armpits. Breathe, slowly and deeply. Child’s Pose Added Benefits calming, improves digestion, decompresses lower back 9 Eat Better Food If you’re low in energy, you need to look at both what you’re eating and how regularly you’re eating. “In order to maximise energy it is important to take pressure off the adrenal system. To do this, you need to reduce stressors or demands on your system. We all know about emotional and mental stressors but do we consider physical ones like going too long without eating, eating too much sugar or drinking caffeine, eating foods we are intolerant or sensitive to? These are important factors to reduce to get the most of your energy system. Taking out allergens can be a good start along with eating more regularly.” —Vicki Witt (Nutritionist) Dehydration is another common cause of fatigue to look out for. The cure? Drink more water! Rather than going for big gulps a few times a day, water is best off sipped frequently throughout. Add a squeeze of lemon to your glass for an extra dose of potassium and vitamin C —both of which have energy boosting powers. Ditch processed food, simple or refined sugar and carbohydrates. Sure, they’ll give you short term satisfaction… but that will be followed by a giant energy crash. For optimal energy, go for unprocessed, complex carbohydrates with lots of fiber: wholegrains, fruit and vegetables. Fiber’s time-releasing effects on carbohydrates will ensure that the energy is steadily released into your bloodstream so that it’s maintained for longer. Ensure that you’re getting enough iron in your diet. Iron is responsible for supplying oxygen to the brain so is essential for feeling energetic. Spinach is a great source of iron and is also packed full of many other nutrients including vitamins A, B2, C and K. 10 Spinach Smoothie Recipe Not only is this smoothie super healthy, but it’s amazingly tasty. Especially if you’re not normally a fan of spinach, this is a great way to get more into your diet. Combined with the banana’s sweetness and the peanut butter’s creaminess, it could almost pass as a dessert. It’s hydrating, high in iron, potassium, magnesium, fiber and healthy fats. Method er and blend d n le b a in e Plac (serves 1) until smooth. Ingredients 1 big handful of spinach leaves 1 teaspoon of natural, low salt peanut butter 1/2 banana 1 cup coconut water (or water) ice cubes 11 Drink Less Alcohol This one should be obvious. Alcohol is a depressant, which means it will make you tired. Not only this, but alcohol also ruins the quality of your sleep, meaning you’ll be less refreshed the next day. Aim for no more than two standard drinks on any one night and make sure you get as many alcohol free days in as possible. Always Eat Breakfast Breakfast starts your metabolism for the day so it’s very important you eat breakfast to set yourself up right. A good breakfast should be low in fat, combining complex carbohydrates, fibre and protein. 12 Breathe Concentrate on breathing all the way down to your belly - when we’re tired we often take short, shallow chest breaths which don’t bring as much oxygen into the lungs. Deep breaths better deliver oxygen to your body’s cells and nutrients into your blood stream. Increased oxygen can contribute to greater mental capabilities, healthier muscles and organs, leaving you feeling more energetic and focused. Stress uses up a lot of energy. By practicing slow, deep, belly breaths you can calm your nervous system, reducing stress & anxiety. Less stress means your body can then use the energy you have on other tasks. 13 Practice Breathing from your Diaphragm (Belly Breaths) 1 2 3 4 5 Sit or stand up right, shoulders down and back. Place your hands on your belly to feel for movement as you breathe. Inhale deeply through your nose, feeling your stomach moving outwards as you do. Exhale through your nose (or mouth), pushing your stomach back in and up as you do. Repeat. 14 Improve Your Sleep Quality A better night’s sleep means more energy for the day ahead. If you’re taking a long time to fall asleep or waking up in the night, here are a few things that you can do to get some better zzzs. 1 Aim to stick to a regular schedule of going to bed and waking up at the same time. This should allow for 8 hours of sleep each night and you should try not to change this schedule much on the weekends. 2 If you must nap during the day, only let yourself snooze for a short 20 - 30 minutes. 3 4 5 Avoid blue-light exposure before bed. This includes staring at the TV, computer or your phone screen. Pay attention to what you eat and aim to eat dinner a few hours before bed time. Don’t go to bed uncomfortably full or hungry. Avoid caffeine after mid day and you’ll find yourself falling to sleep much faster. If you’re lying there wide awake, unable to calm your thoughts. Put all your focus on your breath, concentrating on practicing those deep belly breaths, in and out, nice and slow. 15 How Can You Calm Your Thoughts? —Mindfulness for Sleeping Even when you’re practicing your deep belly breaths, it is easy to let your mind wander onto things that you can’t control or change. Here is an exercise you can do to help soothe your mind and help you drift off to sleep. 1 Become aware and accepting of your thoughts. Become non-judgemental of both your good and bad thoughts.This will help you stop stressing about the fact that you may be struggling to fall asleep. 2 As you’re doing your belly breaths start to become more aware of how you feel. How does your breath feel going in and out of your nose or mouth? Is it cold or warm? 3 Become aware of your body, all the way from the tips of your toes to the end of your fingers. Feel yourself sinking into your mattress as you let go of any tension you might discover. 16 This eBook was produced by Self eHealth Pty Ltd. © 2016 Self eHealth is a software platform that orchestrates health and well-being and is available to download from both the Apple and Google Play App stores. www.selfehealth.co [email protected] Self eHealth @selfehealth Interested in Getting the Free Self eHealth App? 17