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Do you ever feel like you run short on energy? Ever wish you had a more consistent supply of it? With the plethora of “energy-enhancing” products in today’s marketplace, many people are trying to generate more power to go-the-distance of their day or workout. But is that really the best way to have and manage our energy?
We may learn some answers about harnessing energy from early electricity pioneers (and competitors) Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla. Edison introduced Direct Current (DC), which carried electrical current in one continuous push along a wire over distance. The current, however, would lose some of its power in the transit, thus requiring webs of power lines and power poles to support its method.
Tesla believed that the planet and the cosmos had plenty of renewable energy available to power our lives, depending upon how we harnessed it. He harnessed energy in an alternative way. With his Alternating Current (AC), energy would alternate between flowing along the wire first forward, then backward a bit, then further forward again, then back, etc. This method generated more consistent and efficient energy transmission over longer distances.
When we try to run our bodies like Edison’s DC in one long push to the finish line, our bodies slow up, break down and need more short-distance props to support their energy transmission. Some pop pills or drink high-caffeine stimulant beverages. Some athletes even try illegal steroids to boost them to the finish line (see article on page 26). In Tesla’s manner, if we harness our energy aligned with the ways our bodies were designed to regenerate energy, we’ll find a better alternative.
All Things Considered – Eliminate Drag
First, what’s driving us? When our motivations aren’t aligned with what’s important to us, it interrupts or saps our energy flow. What else is draining our reserves? Clutter? Negative relationships? Debt? Unfinished business? Shoulds vs. wants? Lack of boundaries on these things? No matter how we try to increase our energy, these energy sappers will create “drag on our sails” if not addressed.
Skip the Artificial Boosters
I knew a young woman who dated someone who started using steroids in body-building. It created some rather scary unnatural side effects to his otherwise healthy body, his personality and their relationship.
Many commercial energy drinks are loaded with sugar, caffeine and other stimulants that boost energy in the short term, but lead to a big drop later and disrupt the body’s blood sugar, sleep cycles, etc. Withdrawal symptoms from these mega-caffeine doses, even after three-to-four days use, can include headaches, mood swings and trouble concentrating, according to Roland Griffiths, professor of behavioral biology at Johns Hopkins University (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6720000).
Not to be confused with sports drinks that replace electrolytes, energy drinks dehydrate the body and should not be consumed during exercise or with alcohol. Ill effects have caused some high school athletic programs to ban energy drink use. In my next issue’s column, look for a more in-depth story on energy drinks. Meanwhile, see our archives at http://www.cedarvalleyathlete.com/pages/iss2_vol1/wellness.php for information on healthy hydration.
What Goes In and Goes Out
Just as gas-powered engines can’t run on water, our bodies can’t run far on filler (nutrient-deficient diets) instead of fuel (good nutrition with the emphasis on whole, close-to-nature food). See our archives at http://www.cedarvalleyathlete.com/pages/iss3_vol1/wellness.php for more information on healthy eating.
Not only is what we put in our bodies important to our energy. Our bodies filter and remove waste every day and sometimes they need help “taking out the trash”. Our liver has a hefty detoxification role, breaking apart toxins so they can be eliminated through the lungs, urine, skin, and colon. Here are daily ways to love your liver. Think about it: Live-r. Be a consumer of organic foods and non-toxic body care and home care products. Choose low-fat over high-fat foods to hasten your liver’s processing and to decrease their favorite storage sites – fatty tissues. Dark leafy greens, cruciferous veggies, green tea, daily-detox herbal tea blends, and good pure water also help to remove toxins.
Movement
Bodies are meant to move, lest they become like stagnant pools. Exercise helps energy generation, strength building, and detoxification through lymphatic drainage and sweating. Deep breathing also stimulates lymphatic flow and digestive enzymes.
Recovery
Sleep and rest are like the backward flow in Tesla’s AC current or transformers along power’s journey. They allow our energy to recoup and recharge, getting ready for the next distance. Proper sleep can help transform stress and energy levels, moods, relationships, grades and work! Dr. Jack Groppel, in The Corporate Athlete, says, “Stress won’t kill you, but lack of recovery will!”
Bottom line – keep things away from your body that don’t add to its long-distance power. Give it consistent doses of the things that do, and you’ll have plenty of go-the-distance energy and short-term bursts as well, like the pulsating flow of Alternating Current.
Jean Vaux is a Whole-Life HealthCoach and community wellness advocate. For more information or speaking requests, call 319-277-7444.
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