Sometimes I feel worn out and I have to stop and remind myself to implement one of the solutions below.  When my coaching clients tell me they feel run down, it’s often because they’ve depleted their energy through pushing themselves to produce results and not taken care of themselves along the way, so we look at one or more of these fitting solutions to get them back on track. 

These are helpful remedies, but not the only answer if yours is a medical problem. You have to know what’s causing your exhaustion to apply the right solution. If your tiredness is lingering, it could be a medical issue (thyroid; low blood sugar; heart problem); a substance abuse problem (too much sugar, alcohol, drugs); or a stress-related problem.  See a doctor and get  a complete physical, including a full blood panel test and thyroid test.

If it’s not medical, it could be soon if you don’t deal with it.  It may be mind overload, poor time management, or taking on too much.  Here are 21 tips that can help you regain your energy:

1.   Go to bed earlier in the evening. Don’t want to miss late shows?  Record them to view another time.
2.   Sleep in a half hour to an hour longer in the morning whenever possible, even if you’re awake, you’re still resting.
3.   Exercise 3x a week minimum, but don’t overdue it.  Seek out a professional who can fit your workout to you.
4.   Eat healthier foods, including daily fruits and vegetables with smaller portions of meat and carbohydrates.
5.   Stop eating and minimize liquids two hours before bed, so you’re sleeping and not digesting.
6.   Reduce or avoid all stimulants (alchohol, sugar, coffee, caffeinated tea, drugs).  Stop the up/down rollercoaster.
7.   Get rest more often and become a master of cat naps.  There are many sites online to earn how to do it effectively.
8.   Rate your priorities. Determine if all tasks need to get done and when, eliminating any that you can.
9.   Ask for help rather than feeling you have to do it all yourself.
10. Delegate tasks to others, even if you have to pay for it to be done.

11. Take more air breaks during the day. Breathe fresh air deep into your lungs.
12. Work at an even, rather than hurried pace, focus on tasks for limited periods of time, then take short breaks.
13. Keep multitasking to a minimum, yet break up your routine with varied tasks.
14. Walk it off.  It’s good for you to stretch your body out and 10 minutes in the sun is renewing.
15. Play with your children.  Breaking up more serious or important tasks with play, puts those tasks in perspective.
16. Take your daily natural vitamins that boost your energy and help compensate for losses due to poor nutrition.
17. Subscribe to a comic site online or have jokes sent to your cell phone to give you a hoot while taking a brain break.
18. Call a fun friend who you can rely on for updated positive news, which will distract you from any of your concerns.
19. Do something right brain.  Try drawing something or even make a sculpture with your paperclips.
20. Visit a museum during lunch, a new store, or watch a building being built.  Be curious and explore what’s new.
21. Stop to talk to a stranger, or even engage someone you know in an upbeat conversation about a mutual passion.

There are many more solutions than these, but this gives you some solutions you can depend on rather than getting bogged down by the same, ineffective pattern of dealing with tiredness.  Be kind to yourself and then you can expect clear actions and results back, with energy to enjoy them.  

Finally, be aware of beliefs around tiredness.  Just because you don’t feel pumped up or enthusiastic doesn’t mean you have no energy or even that you’re disinterested.  Paula Smith, A 1997 inductee into the National Golf Coaches Association Hall of Fame, once said of her golf team, “We hadn’t done 36 holes in one day since the fall so that was a little different. The team seemed a little tired but they proved me wrong and had lots of energy to focus on each shot.” 

Applying any of the above solutions, you too may find you have a surprising reservoir of liveliness and can restart your engines as needed.

Tags: career support, coach solutions, low energy, solutions for too tired, too tired

This entry was posted on Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010 at 8:28 pm and is filed under Personal and Professional Growth, Work/Life Balance. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.