Feel “Tired All the Time” (or Close to It)? The Body Ecology 12-Step Guide to Overcoming Low Energy Levels
Do you feel tired and sluggish all the time? Have you ever wanted to go right back to bed after you woke up?
If you feel exhausted, then your body is in crisis and telling you that it needs tender loving care. Your body depends on a balance of wholesome foods with quality nutrients, refreshing sleep, and good thoughts to keep you healthy.
But after years of sleep deprivation, stress, use of over-the-counter and prescription drugs, and a diet high in processed foods, refined fats and sugar, stress, your body begins to lose it’s natural, life force energy.
If you feel exhausted and wonder what you can do about it, then Body Ecology is your best all-natural solution.
It may have taken many years to feel chronic fatigue, so while changes you make may not be overnight, they go a long way toward creating lasting health and better moods.
Do you greet each new day with energy, or does the thought of getting out of bed make you want to yawn and roll over? You can create energy in your body and overcome low energy levels.
My Story
Thirty years ago I was tired all the time and had no energy. I felt spacey, took antibiotics for years, experienced food allergies, and knew that something was deeply wrong. After trying nearly everything from macrobiotics to raw foods, veganism to natural hygiene, I slowly discovered (often through trial and error) the principles that became the Body Ecology program for wellness.
It was during this time of trial and error that I learned how important energy is to healing. I believe that first and foremost we must create energy when we take our first step toward wellness.
So how do you create energy if you are already feeling fatigued and ill?
The key is to nourish your adrenals and your thyroid. These two precious organs are responsible for creating energy in your body, and they need a steady supply of minerals to work together efficiently. Unfortunately, our modern diets often lack minerals. And whether you know it or not, modern lifestyle choices also rob our bodies of minerals and other necessary nutrients.
Fast food and fast lifestyles are the norm today, but unfortunately, the end result is that your adrenals and thyroid no longer function well. To increase your energy, you need to nourish your adrenals and your thyroid!
While most people have heard about thyroid problems, less people (including doctors) understand adrenal fatigue. After years of research, I’ve learned some of the more important essential steps for healing your adrenals and thyroid naturally, so that you can recover your energy and your health!
12 Steps to Gaining New Energy
- Get to bed by 10 pm every night and sleep in a dark room. Your body does the most repair between the hours of 10 pm and 1 am every night,1 so try to get to bed early. Make sure you sleep in a dark room because even small amounts of light can disturb restful sleep.
- Cut out processed foods. Given our busy lifestyles, processed foods are the most common foods today. If you opened a can, box or bag for any of your meals today, chances are you were eating a processed food. Processed foods are devoid of nutrition, full of chemicals and rob your body of minerals. They clog your digestive tract and divert energy from healing to digestion.
- Avoid caffeine. Caffeine is fake energy that makes your blood more acidic. It gives you a temporary high and can dehydrate you, making you feel tired. If you need an energy boost, try a drink made with Vitality SuperGreen instead of a soda or cup of coffee. To learn more about all-natural, healing energy drink nutrition, read: Energy Drink Nutrition: The Dangers You Need to Know and the Best Choices Instead.
- Eliminate sugar. Sugar, like caffeine, sets your body up for an energy “crash,” and then you just crave more sugar. It also ages your body and feeds energy-robbing infections. Try Stevia, a no-calorie sugar replacement instead. Lakanto, a delicious sugar alternative, popular in Japan, will be available exclusively through Body Ecology soon … watch this newsletter for details!
- Include fermented foods and drinks. Young Coconut Kefir is a fermented drink full of minerals that also provides you with plenty of probiotics that help you digest food, assimilate nutrients, and boost your immunity. Probiotic liquids are a great choice to boost your energy naturally – and economically and conveniently.You can easily add fermented foods to your diet with cultured vegetables. Cultured vegetables are full of probiotics, vitamin C (important for adrenal and thyroid health) and nutrients. Since fermented foods and drinks aid your digestion and assimilation of foods, your body benefits from doing less work to get a bigger energy boost.
- Eat ocean vegetables. Ocean vegetables are critical for adrenal and thyroid health. Try adding dulse, wakame or nori to your diet to see how these small additions can boost your energy. Body Ecology created Ocean Plant Extract to give you an easy, convenient way to add the benefits of the healing, cleansing and detoxifying Lamonica Japonica ocean vegetable to your diet. It contains natural iodine, minerals, and vitamins that nourish your thyroid and your adrenals.
- Drink water. Fatigue (and even the inability to sleep deeply) happens because of dehydration. You need water for every cellular function in your body. Hydrate first thing in the morning by drinking two glasses of water upon waking, then slowly sip water throughout the day. About ½ hour before you eat lunch and dinner consume another large glass of water to “prime” your intestines for digestion. The beneficial microflora benefit as well. Notice how doing this affects your overall energy. Keep in mind that your adrenals control hydration and adrenal fatigue affects your body’s ability to hydrate. You could be drinking water and still be dehydrated if your adrenals are weak. Be patient with your body. As you incorporate Body Ecology principles into your life, your body will respond.
- Honor your body. Each day that you eat healthier than the day before, your body will cleanse and detoxify itself. During each cleanse you will feel tired and even experience cold and flu-like symptoms. Give your body rest and stick with your new habits. This is a very good time to visit a professional colon hydrotherapist or do home enemas with nourishing implants. Ask your holistically-trained MD or Naturopath for a referral or go to I-ACT.org to find a certified colon hydrotherapist near you. When symptoms of toxic die off pass, you will feel better than ever before.
- Eat your animal protein in the middle of the day (11 am – 2 pm). Digestion takes up a lot of energy in your body. If you eat beef, eggs, fish, chicken, lamb, etc , do so in the middle of the day when your digestive “fire” is at its peak.Prepare a Body Ecology grain-like seed dish for your evening meal. Body Ecology grain-like seeds make delicious and easy to digest evening meals that contribute to a calming feeling that helps you sleep soundly.
- Exercise. You need adequate exercise during the day to cleanse your blood, get more oxygen, stimulate your digestive tract, and sleep soundly. One of my favorite exercises is rebounding. Rebounding is fun, easy and takes little effort, so you may find you can rebound even if you have chronic fatigue.
- Get sunshine in the morning and also during the middle of the day. Your body needs the vitamin D that your skin manufactures when it’s exposed to the sun. Vitamin D deficiency is more common that you think and adversely impacts your health. If you are having problems falling asleep at night, I highly recommend at least 20-30 minutes of early morning sun to reset your internal body clock. Of course, do not check your emails or watch the late night news before retiring. Daily sun can help reset your internal clock so that you feel tired earlier in the evening, making it easier to go to bed around 10 pm.
- Smile and practice gratitude. Do what it takes to decrease stress in your life. Whether that means taking more time for yourself, switching jobs, avoiding toxic people in your life or developing small habits that help you feel relaxed, living a less stressful life is perhaps the most important change you can make to enhance your health. The Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT), created by Gary Craig, is a natural, highly effective way to handle stress and help give you the positive thoughts you need to heal your body. I always encourage my clients to try EFT as a way to support health in mind, body and spirit.
Donna Gates discusses the causes of and cures for adrenal fatigue in her audio presentation: Donna Gates Speaks about Adrenal Fatigue. Get your Adrenal Fatigue CD today and learn critical information for recovering your energy and your health!
You can overcome your exhaustion, and these steps can help you on your way. Remember the principle of “step by step.” Please don’t feel like you must do everything at once. Healing your body takes time and care, and it’s ok to take one day at a time. I am suggesting that you look back over this list and choose one step to do this week. Take another step or two as soon as it feels comfortable, but never stop stepping toward health. Remember the fable of the turtle and the hare, slow persistent steps win in the end.
It’s my hope that as you create more energy, you’ll be able to give back more the world around you. Because doing so brings so much joy.
Adrenal exhaustion is an underlying factor in all illnesses. However, most health care professionals are not aware of the diet’s vital role in damaging, as well as healing the adrenals. In this top-selling CD, Donna Gates explains the function of the adrenals, why they are in jeopardy, and how food and lifestyle choices strengthen and nourish the adrenals. This is powerful information! Learn More About Donna’s Adrenal Fatigue CD and Order Now.
If you’re experiencing exhaustion, you are not alone. Years of poor diet and lifestyle habits create exhaustion but the good news is, you have the power to change the course of your life by creating new diet and lifestyle choices that support your good health and great moods.
Listen to your body and let it guide you toward great health, trusting that you are a unique human being.
Over time, you may notice (as I and many other Body Ecology followers did) that your intuition gets stronger — becoming your best guide to great health!
Source:
“Adrenal Fatigue,” DrLam.com.
http://www.drlam.com/A3R_brief_in_doc_format/adrenal_fatigue.cfm