The majority of my clients and students have one thing in common: FATIGUE.

 

Sluggishness.

Feeling like life is passing you by.

Lack of energy, to be able to make healthier choices.

(Not to mention the lack of energy for sex, fitness, playing with your children, laughing with your friends, etc.).

When you begin a new lifestyle on a sloppy foundation, then you are almost doomed to fail.

A change of lifestyle takes a lot of energy.

You won't change your habits while lying on your sofa (no matter how many bestseller books on health, you read)

 

You must have energy to complete a workout.

Energy to prepare healthier food.

Energy just to remember the new choices you want to make.

 

You can’t force a change of lifestyle.

 

Are you drained of energy, then you need to ”fuel” your body and mind again - before you start the battle of changing for the better.

 

That’s why we always start with an "energy-cure" on my online course: The Hormone Diet. So we get mentally focused and plenty of drive to follow the individual diets, each participant go through afterwards.

 

The first step is to find the cause of fatigue.

 

The most common causes of severe fatigue:

  • Low cortisol (adrenal fatigue/burnout).
  • High cortisol (stress).
  • Low metabolism or subclinical hypothyroidism.
  • Poor sleep - you need 8-9 hours of sleep in a dark room.
  • Iron deficiency (get measured ferritin level to the doctor. 40% of women of childbearing age lack iron (Monsen ER. Hallberg L et al. Estimation of available dietary iron. Am J Clin Nutr. 1978; 31: 134-141).
  • Impaired mitochondrial energy production due to a lack of secondary nutrients, which are included in the production of ATP (energy): B1, B2, B3, B5, B6 (in its active form: pyridoxal-5-phosphate), Q10.
  • B12 deficiency. Some people have a greater need for B12 (and other so-called methylation factors) or problems with converting B12 into its active form - methylcobalamin. B12 deficiency can cause great fatigue because B12 is essential in the production of red blood cells that carries oxygen around to all cells in the body. B12 deficiency is not always discovered at a normal blood test.
  • Vitamin D deficiency (should be at 80-100 nmol / L)
  • Magnesium deficiency
  • Not drinking enough water
  • Not enough exercise
  • Fatigue can also be a sequela, which reduces oxygen delivery to cells such as atherosclerosis, poor circulation, etc.
  • Unstable blood sugar, metabolic syndrome, diabetes and the like, insulin imbalances
  • After infection, for example, influenza or pneumonia (which is related to cortisol)
  • Daily intake of sugar, alcohol, energy drinks or coffee.
  • Overweight

Once you have found the underlying cause or causes of your fatigue - THEN you can start the energy diet.

THE ENERGY DIET

SLEEP:

Remember to have between 7-9 hours of continuous sleep in a dark room in order to be well rested the next day. Go to bed at 10 pm.

Start with getting control of your circadian rhythm.

Stress relief. Practice relaxing forms of exercise, such as yoga. Listen to an evening visualization before bed.

On The Hormone Diet we do an evening visualization that quite effectively lulls the participants to sleep and remove stress.

WATER & OXYGEN:

We get energy from the breakdown of macronutrients (carbohydrates, protein, fat) and capture the energy of this process in a molecule called ATP. This whole process requires a daily intake of carbohydrates, protein, and fats, as well as the micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) However, this entire process also depends on water and air.

People mainly create energy by aerobic metabolism of carbohydrates, fat, and protein - aerobic means "require oxygen". If the power plants of the cells (mitochondria) get insufficient amounts of oxygen during this process, then they switch to a process of anaerobic combustion, which over time can cause inflammation, increased oxidative stress, etc. One of the best ways to increase the flow of oxygen to your cells is exercise and deep breathing exercises (in fresh air).

Water gets tied to proteins, carbohydrates, and nucleic acids in order to maintain their function. Dehydration can cause muscle cramps, fatigue, headaches, dizziness, constipation and lack of concentration. Drink 1,0-2 litres a day.

Move every day to oxygenate the body cells and brain. Train rather short and intensive. Do not train hard or long, if you are stressed and burned out.

Fresh air and daylight every day is just as important to maintain a good energy level. The brain and all cells of your body need sunlight and oxygen. Go for walks and do your exercise in the open air whenever possible.

NUTRIENTS:

Increase your intake of fruits and vegetables. Drink smoothies and juice with greens daily, salads and freshly squeezed juice of greens. Eat big salads for every meal. Eat proteins with each meal (e.g. hemp seeds, fish, poultry, wild meat, bee pollen, lentils, protein powder, etc.). Eat carbohydrates every day (fruit, nature rice, corn, root vegetables, potatoes etc.). Eat healthy fats daily (coconut oil, butter, olive oil, hemp seed oil, fish oil, algal oil) All steroidal hormones, such as cortisol, are formed by cholesterol, therefore it is important to get good fats in the diet.

Test if you have deficiencies in these minerals and vitamins, and consider to take a supplement. Preferably with so-called "activated" (methylated) B-vitamins.

CORTISOL BALANCE:

The right supplements and adaptogenic herbs, for example Glycyrrhiza glabra (licorice), Astragalus membranaceus - (membranous astragalus), Eleutheroccocus senticosus (Russian root), Rhodiola rosea (rose root) etc., all of which have a documented effect on stress and burnout. Never take herbal remedies if you are pregnant. Do not combine herbal remedies with prescription drugs. Consult qualified practitioners, if you are in doubt about the use of herbal remedies. Relax more often. Enjoy more. Love more. Hug more. Kiss more. Laugh more.

AVOID COFFEE:

Avoid stimulants such as coffee. The caffeine in coffee is similar to the neurotransmitter adenosine and ties to the adenosine receptor in the brain. Some researchers call adenosine a kind of toxin, which accumulates in the brain during the day (and which degrades again when we sleep). Adenosine accumulation makes us more and more tired and almost forces us to sleep when we reach a certain stage. However, when caffeine ties to this receptor, then there is suddenly no room for the brain's natural "sleep stimulant" - adenosine.

Adenosine is needed for a good night's sleep and recovery. When the caffeine steals the site then the brain will not get the dampening effect of adenosine, which ties to the receptor and finally, the receptor can not recognize adenosine - only caffeine. Caffeine also stimulates the production of dopamine, adrenaline and the stress hormone cortisol, which gives you a brief sense of pleasure and focused energy, but when the effect wears off, then your blood sugar decreases too - and you get even more tired than before.

Daily use of caffeine is a downward spiral that destroys the quality of your sleep, giving unstable blood sugar, fatigue, anxiety and stress.

There are a lot of delicious and healthy energy drinks, which we use for coffee-rehab e.g. matcha, maca, and chocolate ;) One of them is this Macao-Latte.

 

The very FIRST thing to do when you want balance in your body again - is, to look at cortisol levels, sleep and your stress tolerance. Did you know that during the sleep, you regenerate including your endocrine system and nervous system?

Good luck with the energy diet!

 

Photo: Camilla Hey