Last updated on July 17th, 2023 at 06:36 pm
You don’t need to do a green juice detox and meditate, but try to implement these 7 tiny healthy habits for more energy and focus.
Did you ever wake up thinking:
“Today I wanna feel like crap, let everything overwhelm me and then go to sleep.”
Well, I bet there are some people who actually might say this, but me and you are not among them.
Because we, we want to have more energy throughout the day. To be productive, and have the capacity to live and enjoy life even after work. Then when the day is done, you’re proud of the things you’ve accomplished and
To be honest with you, lately, I’ve been none of the above. For a few weeks, I felt lethargic and somewhat overwhelmed with everything I “have” to do. Sleep? What is sleep? Food? Do lattes count? Exercise? Well, I did take the stairs this one time.
I needed to get back to my basics. To the things that I know make me feel more alive when I actually do them.
So, last week I finally had enough of feeling like I don’t even have a physical body and like I’m drained. I wrote down my little list of habits for more energy and focus and started working on it right away (which is also something I’ve struggled with for the longest time).
And tada – magic. Within a day, I started feeling more clear-headed, energetic and overall better.
I even lost a pound (which hasn’t happened in a while, not for the lack of trying). So even if you want to lose some weight and you just can’t do it – these healthy habits for more energy and focus might help you as well.
7 Healthy Habits For More Energy & Focus
So if you’ve been feeling stuck, lazy and foggy – these healthy habits are a great place to start. Sometimes you just need to start with something small and stay consistent with it, then the clarity and energy for bigger things will come as well.
1. Eat A Clean Diet & More Raw Plants
You won’t have a ton of energy if you don’t eat a healthy diet. Mainly because you need the nutrients to feed your brain, your muscles, your skin, your heart…your entire body.
Raw plants like fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds are shown to reduce inflammation and are among the nutrient-densest foods in the world.
Therefore if you eat them more often you’ll be less fatigued and you’ll be giving your body what it needs to perform better & be healthier. To keep a clean, nourishing diet, I highly recommend cooking more often and enjoying more salads and smoothies. They’re quick and easy to prepare and are packed with nutrition!
2. Wake up at the same time, even on the weekend
I love how most health and weight loss articles out there include:
“Get some sleep and reduce stress.”
“Mkay…how?” (this is you)
“I don’t know…Why do you ask? I’m only telling you what to do.” (that’s the person who wrote the article)
Great, thanks.
Now I’m gonna take a chance and tell you, not only to get the 7.5 hours of sleep you need every night but also to wake up at the same time.
Why? Well, because it makes it easier to get into a routine and start getting better sleep. Which means you’ll have more energy and be able to stay focused and think clearly.
If you wake up one day at 6, and the other at 8, you’ll either feel tired throughout the day or won’t be able to sleep in the evening. Stay consistent. There’s something so admirable about consistency. It’s like a tree that stays tall even in the biggest storms. Consistency builds strength. So stay consistent in the good things. Like these healthy habits for more energy and focus.
Another important tip here is to do something realistic, according to the season. For example, during summer, I have no problem getting up at 5 am. During winter, when it’s dark and cold – you can’t move me with an excavator until 7 am.
3. Fix Your Posture
Now this will also boost your mood, improve your posture and even your confidence. We don’t realize it most of the time, but posture has a major impact on the chemistry of our bodies. So be aware of it – it really does change things. Rumor has it, sitting up straight might even help with depression and anxiety.
4. Do 5-10 minutes of exercise every morning, right after you wake up
Morning workouts are among my favorite things and something I think everyone should do. It has truly changed my days for the better.
Exercise in the morning is an amazing energy booster, it will help clear your mind and get your body ready for the day. You can do yoga, Pilates, go for a run or even do some push-ups. It’s a great habit that will wake up your body and make you feel ready for a great day.
5. Disconnect
I don’t know about you, but one of my biggest energy vampires is being on my phone and checking messages and status updates. It truly is an addiction and consumes so much of your mental energy. Without even realizing it. Even if you’re just looking at photos or reading something, your brain registers this information and processes it. It uses energy to do so. Energy that you then do not have for other things, the things that matter. We were not made for this much information and, honestly, entertainment. We were created to be outside, to be connecting with others and to be working with our hands as well as our minds.
So, just disconnect.
I did this years ago with Facebook, WhatsApp and my emails (the three things I used most often at the time). In the beginning, it was the hardest thing ever – I was used to checking these things probably every hour, if not more often. After a couple of days, I didn’t miss it at all and was way more focused and a lot happier. Plus I was able to do so many things that were important to me. Which really boosted my mood and my confidence.
I’ve now deleted most of my social media profiles, not only personal, but even for this blog. It’s one of the best things I’ve ever done.
6. Fast
I honestly feel like I should’ve started the list of healthy habits for more energy and focus with this one first. It is life-changing.
We are surrounded by comfort and excess. And we are distracting and numbing our true selves with them. Because when you remove those things, you’re left with the really good stuff, with the real things. The things that matter. And the more you remove the less you’ll find you need. Fasting is basically a way to remove distractions, in order to make space for better things.
Fasting has both spiritual and at this point, many proven physical benefits. It can actually change your brain and your gut microbiome and helps to build your self-discipline and inner strength too.
So if you’re feeling confused, lethargic, overwhelmed, all over the place, lazy, it might be time to fast.
You can do a fast for 24 hours, fast intermittently for 16 hours every day or go for longer periods of time. And fast from both – food and entertainment. Or whatever else you need to let go of. Make sure to ask your doctor before you start, as fasting is definitely not for everyone (especially if you have diabetes).
7. Have a plan
If you’re an overthinker like me, this is one of the must-do healthy habits for more energy and focus. You’ve probably heard about decision fatigue and well, making a plan will get rid of this thing.
A simple plan for the week or the day will take so much stress off of you. And stress as you might know is not good for your health + it wastes A LOT of energy. Not to mention that it’s harder to think clearly and stay focused when you’re stressed out and don’t know what you’re doing.
Have a plan, make a decision upfront. Spend 10-15 minutes either in the morning or after work and plan the next day. I usually plan in weeks. So every Friday afternoon, I’d make a plan – what do I do for work, for fun, even exercise.
Whether it’s deciding what you’re gonna wear tomorrow, what you’re gonna eat, which workout you’ll do & when you’ll do it – when you decide upfront – you’ll be more focused and won’t waste your energy on decisions that aren’t that important.
I know for me when I had this workout plan I stuck to it. I did my workouts at the same time every morning. I didn’t spend a second overthinking whether this is the right workout to do or not. Which otherwise I do often. I simply made a decision upfront and followed through.
But here’s the key: I was willing to try and I didn’t have regrets. If I didn’t enjoy a workout – I’d make a note and not repeat it.
Things won’t always go as planned, but to me even if 50% go as planned it’s still worth it.
More Healthy Living Tips
There. These were the 7 healthy habits for more energy and focus that usually help me! For more tips and ideas, check out these articles as well:
- 7-Day Intermittent Fasting Meal Plan
- 7 Healthy Habits For Your Mental And Physical Health
- 18 Simple Tips To Live A Healthy Lifestyle
