When you ask people how they are, a typical response would be something like, "Oh yeah, you know, I'm all right, just a little tired, I guess."

But how and when did this become the norm?

Why is being tired a default setting to how we go about our days?

And more importantly, how can we go about fixing that?

I was really curious about this, so I started researching into all the evidence based strategies to help combat chronic tiredness.

And honestly, guys, when I applied these strategies to my life, it could completely changed everything.

I can do more things now during the day, my mood and my happiness overall has improved and I just feel better in general.

So in this video, I'm going to spill all the secrets to how I never run out of energy and how you can apply these tips to your life too.

Number one, eat better foods.

This one was a complete game changer for me and I think was the number one contributor to my improved energy levels.

So not many people know this, but I became vegan in December of 2022.

And with that change came a whole host of other changes.

I decided to go through the healthy vegan route, which means no processed foods, no artificial sweeteners or sugar, no additives, preservatives or E numbers.

And recently, no gluten, and this honestly made all the difference.

Several studies have shown that packaged and processed foods will tend to make people feel more heavy and sluggish.

And the reason being is that they're often loaded with a lot of refined and added sugars.

And this essentially floods the brain with too much glucose.

This sugar flood actually leads to inflammation within the brain and therefore results in fatigue.

And interestingly, it's also been linked to depression.

So the tip here really is to eat less processed foods and eat more whole foods.

A simple definition to distinguish between processed and whole foods is processed foods are basically foods where you take the whole food and modify it.

So let's take the humble potato as an example.

The potato itself is the whole food in its original form.

And then when you process it, it's essentially where you're slicing it, frying it and then adding a whole bunch of other things to it, like preservatives and salt and what have you to then make it into a potato chip.

And that potato chip is the processed version of the whole food, which is the potato.

It's also been proven that eating foods with a lower glycemic index actually helps to boost energy levels.

This is because with low glycemic foods, the sugars are absorbed more slowly into the body and that means you have less energy spikes and crashes throughout the day.

Examples of foods with low glycemic indexes are things like whole grain, high fiber veggies, nuts and healthy oils like olive oil.

On the other hand, you want to avoid foods with a higher glycemic index.

This includes white bread, sugary drinks and white rice, for example.

And this is because the sugars are more quickly absorbed into the bloodstream and this causes your blood sugars to spike throughout the day.

And those energy spikes and crashes are what ultimately lead to fatigue in the body.

Studies have also shown that it takes a lot longer and a lot more energy in order to digest animal product foods, especially red meat.

I'm not saying you need to go vegan, but maybe what you could do is just eat all these animal products in moderation.

Because by slowly cutting down on these things, I promise you you will immediately feel the difference in your body.

And honestly, I think this is where I felt the most change for me.

Once I cut out all these things like dairy poultry products, me, I instantly felt a lot lighter.

I felt like I had more energy and I just felt stronger in general.

In fact, I remember back in 2020, my friend and I decided to run the half marathon at UNI.

And for like a couple of months before that run, we decided to go vegetarian.

And honestly, the reason was because both of us watched this documentary called "The Game Changers."

If you haven't seen it, you should go check it out. It's incredible.

And it basically talks about how being plant-based or being vegetarian actually improves your performance as an athlete.

So we decided to try it out.

And honestly, what we found was that our energy levels improved and we also managed to achieve our PBs or rather our personal bests when we actually ran the marathon.

Honestly, guys, like it does really make a difference.

And if you haven't seen that Netflix documentary, you should definitely go check it out.

Tip number two, hydrate yourself properly.

In fact, go take this as your cue to get some water right now.

When you're dehydrated, this tends to manifest as low energy or fatigue.

In fact, water helps to energize your muscles.

Cells that don't maintain their balance of fluids and electrolytes will eventually shrivel up.

And this is what causes muscle fatigue, which is why your body will feel tired overall if it doesn't get enough water.

And you know what, when I'm working throughout the day, and I find myself feeling sleepy often times.

It's just because I haven't had enough water.

And as soon as I drink some water, I immediately feel more awake.

Just try it out. The next time you feel sleepy at work or whatever it is, then just drink a glass of water and that could be the solution to the sleepiness.

There isn't an exact number for exactly how many liters everyone should be drinking in a day.

But the recommended amount that people always say is should follow the eight by eight rule.

And what this means is eight glasses of eight ounces of water.

But honestly, how much water you should be drinking really depends on a lot of factors such as your gender, your age, your body mass, and also your activity levels.

So let's say if you're an athlete and you are training like six days a week, then obviously you should be drinking more.

But honestly, the eight-by-eight rule is a pretty good rule of thumb because that amount is kind of similar to what the Institute of Medicine recommends.

For men, they recommend that you drink 3 liters a day and for women, 2.2 liters a day.

As long as you're kind of about there, then I don't think you should worry too much about the exact amount in liters.

Just make sure that you're hydrated. That's the most important thing.

Tip number three, move your body regularly.

So I've always been into exercise. Growing up, I used to either go swimming or running a few times in a week.

And in the past year, I started going to the gym and lifting weights.

And occasionally, I will go for a run or do a quick HIIT session on the days that I don't go to the gym.

Exercise and regular movement have multiple benefits to improving your energy levels.

Firstly, it tires you out.

So naturally that makes you want to go to bed earlier and sleep more.

And as we all know, more sleep equals more energy.

One of the less obvious things is that exercise actually stimulates mitochondria production in your muscle cells.

And mitochondria are basically known as the powerhouses of cells.

They create fuel out of the glucose from the food that we eat and from the oxygen that we breathe in.

So having more of them actually increases your energy supply to your muscles.

Lastly, exercise increases the efficiency of your heart and your lungs,

which means that they become more efficient at transporting oxygen into your blood and then transporting that oxygenated blood to the rest of your muscles and your organs and whatnot.

And as we've already established more oxygen to the muscles, means that you have less fatigued muscles and hence, you will have a reduced feeling of tiredness over within your body.

In fact, a 2008 study by the University of Georgia showed that previously sedentary people who complained about fatigue saw their energy levels jump up about 20% and their fatigue levels drop around 65% after being introduced to a regular exercise program.

So honestly guys, if you don't already do this, get your body moving and trust me, you will feel the difference in your energy.

Tip number four, sunlight equals serotonin.

So sunlight helps to increase a chemical in your brain called serotonin.

And so to can help you to give you more energy, feel calmer and feel more positive and focused.

And honestly, sometimes doctors will treat SAD or seasonal affective disorders and other conditions related to things like depression with more sunlight.

And this is because sunlight equates to more serotonin in the brain.

Essentially, the serotonin release will help to give your brain that high, which then makes you feel like you have more energy.

And honestly, I think this is so true when I am working throughout the day and it's lunch time, sometimes I'll take a 20 or 30 minute walk outside just to clear my head and to get some sunlight.

And what I notice is that when I come back to do work again, I just feel a lot more energized and my mood is a lot better.

So then I feel like I can focus better at work

And there you go. Those are my four simple tips for how you can improve your energy levels throughout the day that you can immediately take action with right now.

So if you found the contents of this video valuable or helpful, feel free to check out my other videos as well.

I post stuff on productivity, self improvement and help.