What is going on?
Has the world got some kind of sleeping illness? I am tired. Really tired. No matter how much sleep I seem to get – and I mean I am on the full 8hours – I awake in the morning wondering how long it is till I next get into bed.
I do an overall check:
- Have I eaten – check
- Have I slept – check
- Am I busy – check
So I thought to myself – I should probably dig a little deeper into what the cause could be.
Good quality sleep?
Most people think because they shut their eyes this is good quality sleep, but there are a number of factors that can improve on this.
Phone and Laptop
Kick your phone and any blue light operated equipment out of your room. Constantly being available online right up to the moment you sleep may be affecting you in a far more serious way. Have you heard of the circadian rhythm? Bit of a mouthful I know but the circadian rhythm is our own natural rhythm which governs our attention and alertness but also when we switch off and down time.
A Harvard Study has suggested that over exposure to this blue light (the light we originally only had in the day) can lead “to several types of cancer (breast, prostate), diabetes, heart disease, and obesity”. Time to put your phone away, put on a low yellow lit lamp and enjoy a nice book before bed (rather than the latest on #brangelexit)
If you are a Netflix fiend (aren’t we all) try downloading this app Flux it adjusts the colours of your mac book in order that you receive less blue light and warmer tones in the evening
Are you eating Seasonally?
Now before you roll your eyes at me thinking I am suggesting another fad diet; I’m not. Each country has beautiful vegetables that are grown locally and guess what are perfectly full of those vital vitamins that your body needs for that time of year.
In the UK some of the best available are; Aubergine, Beef, Beetroot, Blackberry, Broccoli, Sprouts, Cabbage, Cavelo Nero, Celeriac, Chicken, Garlic, Fig, Kale, Lamb, Leek and the list goes on.
Source Locally
If you can source these from a local farmers market even better but most supermarkets will have them and at lower prices due to the abundance of in-season!
If you are stuck for ideas on what to cook – take a look at Wendy Rowe’s book Eat Beautiful. Makeup artist to the stars and famous for her nude skin look – she knows a trick or two about how to keep you glowing and feeling alive during the seasons.
The alternative is to take a multi-vitamin for all your needs. My favourite is VITL. They come delivered to your door in daily strips to provide you with all your vitamins. Make sure you have them with food as most vitamins are fat soluble. Use my coupon for a discount: VTAMCYN
Exercise: Get moving!
This is a bit of a no-brainer. We all know it, however – do we all do it? There is a difference between exercising and moving. Going to the gym for 45-60mins is great but not if you spend the rest of said day sat on one’s bottom not moving.
While the sun is shining and it’s brisk enough to wrap up… grab those sunnies and start walking to work. Get out at lunch-time. Just move.
Vitamin D
The extra sunlight will help boost those well-needed vitamin D reserves and the movement will get you feeling naturally more tired toward the end of the day in order you can get those high-quality ZZZzzz’s
Be careful about exercising at night. Light exercise like yoga and pilates can be great but weights or high intensity can leave you pumping full of endorphins and ready to go.
So breathe deep, stretch and ease into the evening.
De-Clutter that diary
Are you like me and your answer to most things is “I’m busy”? Well this is the month to clear your diary down to the bare minimum. Put dates in your diary for your own MOT days. Buy a book and have a date with you time. Having a full event calendar may look like a status symbol but the only one losing out is you.
If you feel bad letting people down; just use your famous excuse of I’m busy and leave it there. Or as I said post diary invites for nights in so it really does leave you with no excuse.
Fed up for feeling tired?
Try and apply these tried and tested tricks. I am not supplying you with anything you aren’t already aware of. It’s like losing weight – we all know how it’s done – but whether we do it is a different story.
So here is my homework for you. Kick your phone outta bed, Get those vital vitamins in from seasonal food, Get moving and schedule some well earned YOU TIME!
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