Like most other women, you are probably in search of how to gain more energy so that you can keep up with the demands of your life.
However, in today’s busy world, unhealthy diet patterns are extremely common and make energy and vitality something that few have. In order to do so, there’s many steps you can take, but very seldom will only one of them completely replenish your energy. It usually takes many to do so. Please find below, some common sense steps you can take to begin re-establishing your energy levels.
To start with, we have some most-basic starters which need to happen to gain more energy: caffeine, sugar and other foods which provide a short term energy rush also provide a crash which does not help you to get more energy when you need it most. In fact, these chemicals can actually work against you causing a crash when you need energy the most. Therefore, if you want to get your energy back, they need to be replaced with healthier options.
The key is to find natural ways to increase your energy that are not only going to help you get through the demands of your day but will also help your body to burn more fat and can aid in your weight loss goals as well. Sugary foods cause a vicious cycle which leads to cravings and blood sugar crashes which will not only leave you feeling tired, they can also lead to health problems such as diabetes and premature aging as well.
Sugar and carbs (since they are converted to sugar by your body) lead to an imbalance in your hormones. The old days of counting calories is a thing of the past because regardless of how many calories are in that candy bar or ice cream you consume, it will still cause a disruption to both insulin and cortisol levels within your body. These swinging hormone levels deplete energy, as well as leaving a constant craving for more of the same unhealthy foods.
Foods Which Will NOT Provide Lasting Energy (in fact, they actually deplete it):
Sugar
Corn Syrup
Carbohydrates
Caffeine
Artificial sweeteners (NutraSweet, Splenda, Aspartame, etc.)
Grains (both whole and refined)
Trans fats
Basically, the consumption of these sugary, artificial, and blood-sugar-spiking foods causes hormone disruption and in turn causes us to continue craving more of the same. This is a counterproductive method to increasing energy levels which may also lead to obesity, and other ensuing health problems.
Many women feel as if they do not have the time to make healthy changes to their diet and lifestyle as ways to improve energy. However, it’s not as hard as you may think. There are many changes which you can make which do not take much time at all. Although it may seem tedious at first you will quickly become accustomed to the changes and should see a dramatic boost in your energy levels in a relatively short period of time:
Replace Soda With Water
Natural coconut/whey protein/almond milk smoothie in place of morning donuts or cereal
Packaged foods replaced with unprocessed foods (mainly vegetables, a little fruit, and a little meat)
Replace any sugar or sugar substitutes with Stevia
Replace flour used for baking with almond flour and/or coconut flour
There are a few good diet programs that work with the scientifically-validated method of removing sugar, grains, breads and processed foods from your diet can increase your energy and improve your health as well as help you to reach your weight loss goals.
One of these programs is the Ideal Body Blueprint by Sue Heintze. By following this link you will find lots of great information for women such as yourself that are struggling with finding ways to improve energy, and eliminate hunger cravings forever.
Although it may seem like a lot of work at first, I promise you that you will see the increase in energy that you are after if you stick to the dietary guidelines of these low carb/high plant-based diet programs.
I know that you have probably heard that low carb diets only allow you to eat things such as meat and cheese; this is simply not true. There are a variety of healthy alternatives which you can use to supplement in order to create a meal plan with variety and flavor. In turn, there are few meal options that can’t be substituted into a much healthier version of an original unhealthy meal.
Flour Alternatives
• Coconut Flour
• Flax meal
• Almond Flour
Fat Alternatives (Substitute hydrogenated oils with these much healthier alternatives)
• Avocado
• Nuts
• Walnut Oil
• Flaxseed Oil
• Coconut Oil
• Pure Butter from grass fed cattle
• Olive Oil
Please don’t give in to the common misconceptions that glucose and carbohydrates are the primary fuel source for the body and learn a new and healthier approach to increase your energy by using good fats as a fuel for the body. Not only will you feel more energized and ready to tackle your day, you will also feel better and are more likely to achieve your weight loss goals as well.