Fighting Fatigue Guide

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Almost everyday, everyone struggles from fatigue. It is a process that slows the body down and prepares us to sleep to protect overworked muscles from possible injuries. Fatigue is not only a physical exhaustion but mental too. It is a negative force in our lives and at worst it is completely debilitating.
There are some simple changes we can make to help keep fatigue from getting us down. The most common and often overlooked cause of fatigue is dehydration. Drinking a lot of water has been told to us a thousand times, but still we don’t get enough of it during the day. Dehydration can reduce blood volume and diminish blood flow to organs and slowing down your brain. Drink at least 8 glasses of water a day and not wait until you’re thirsty.

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The 3 proven fatigue-fighting strategies. Some of these strategies offer an instant energy boost - just in time to shine for the 4 o’clock meeting. They require a bit more patience, but they’ll pay off big-time in the long run. Once you’ve mastered these energy-boosting strategies, any one of them can make you feel like you’ve just had a tune-up.

Energy Boost #1: Reach for energy food
You may be thinking “candy bar!” but a sugar boost will just leave you lagging again in an hour. For a nearly instant energy boost that lasts, eat a healthy snack containing protein and a complex carbohydrate.

Energy Boost #2: Get moving
For an instant energy boost, drop out of your busy life for 10 minutes and hit the road - or the hallways of your office. Walking is an energizer. Even a 10-minute walk can help you overcome feelings of fatigue.

Energy Boost #3: Take 5 and Meditate
Numerous studies have demonstrated the fatigue-fighting effects of meditation, but there’s no need to light candles, sit cross-legged, or learn a mantra. Mini-meditation can work wonders. A three-minute meditation is a way to calm you down and stop rushing.

So you think alcohol can help you catch some z�s? Not really, even if alcohol acts as a sedative. It does depress the central nervous system but that is also why instead feeling refreshed after waking up from a night of drinking, you get hell. Try a glass of warm milk instead. Milk contains tryptophan which is an amino acid that the body converts to melatonin and serotonin which in turn induce sleep, without a hangover the next day! What more is that milk can easily give you a burst of energy when you wake-up. If I were you, I�d trade that whiskey bottle to the real deal � milk.

Source: Medicine Plus

Yep. That�s right. To avoid fatigue, limit your caffeine intake. Sure, coffee gets you going through the long working days. But seriously, have you ever thought that perhaps you�re drinking more than you should? Remember that caffeine is not solely present coffee. It can also be found in tea and other beverages (Mountain Dew is more-ore-less liquefied caffeine). Perhaps that is why you complain of getting tired easily and that you have very few hours of sleep. Perhaps it�s the caffeine in your system that keeps you from getting those much needed Z�s. Ahh� now you�re seeing the light. Lighten the caffeine and stay on top of everything.

One other way of fighting fatigue is by getting balanced nourishment. Iron in foods such as spinach, raisins, liver, etc., can enable easy transport of oxygen in the blood to the different tissues. One cause of fatigue is lack of oxygen in the body. B complex vitamins such as pantothenic acid, folic acid, thiamine, and vitamin B12 can be found in fortified cereals, beef, chicken, turkey, fish, egg, milk, and shellfish such as clams and crab. Deficiency in these vitamins and minerals can result to fatigue and other problems. And of course, control your food intake. An overstuffed stomach can also cause short-term fatigue.

Source: Psychology Today