Priority Pyramid for Increased Energy

There are many things we can do to increase our energy, but here are the 5 major things you can do to boost your energy to get three times as much done in a day.

5. Boost

4. Conserve

3. Increase Eustress

2. Use Proper Fuel

1. Decrease Distress

Starting from number 1

Decreasing distress will have the biggest effect on your energy levels. Examples are losing weight and smoking. Heavier people require more energy to move their weight about. Obese people usually tire easily as they use their energy quicker then lean people. Smoking also causes distress as your body requires energy to deal with the poisons that are taken into the body. There are two ways you can prevent distress, they are Avoidance: Stay away from smoking of foods that are going to make you gain weight; and Recovery: When you stop smoikng and eating junk food, give your body adequate recovery time. Your body recovers while you are asleep, so make sure you have adequate undisturbed sleep.

2. Use proper fuel: The body requires 5 sources of fuel. They are:

Macronutrients- carbohydrates for energy, proteins for building blocks, fat and oils which are essential for running of body systems.

Sunlight- Too much can cause cancer, but your body needs sunlight and the vitamin D that it gets from it.

Oxygen- essential for breathing but is also the product that is needed to release energy and convert ATP to ADP

Micronutrients- vitamins and minerals and phytonutrients

Water- 70% of the non fat body weight is composed of water. Those with a higher percentage of fat will also have a higher percentage of water.

All these things are needed to produce ENERGY.

3. Increase Eustress: Exercise is eustress which is positive stress. Your body upgrades itself when put under this stress. This makes your body grow and increase the capacity for work. Although eutress takes energy away initially, in the long term it provides you with more energy. Caution: Exercising too much, too long or improperly could cause distress.

If you look at top earners in any company, you will find the vast majority of them are fighting fit. This is so they can have the energy to work their business properly and do what needs to be done to be successful.

4. Conserve: Avoid wasting Energy in non-useful ways.

Turn off email and cell phones when possible and avoid distractions. Set targets each day and focus your energy on hitting those targets.

Don't worry about the things you can't control and avoid energy leeches such as the guy in your office who wants to talk for half an hour about the ball game the night before, or maybe it is your wife  and kids continually interrupting your flow. Tell them that you are busy, but you will be happy to talk to them once you have hit all your goals for the day. Try and isolate yourself as much as possible from all distractions.

5. Boost: There are some things out there that can boost your performance, like certain vitamin and minerals, but we tend to go overboard and fill our bodies with mass quantities of these things that can sometimes cause more harm than good. I am no doctor or health expert so I wont go into all the possibilities here.

What I do know however is that most Americans go straight to the boost stage to try and increase their energy and consume coffee and energy drinks which have an adverse effect and cause a rush of energy for 30 minutes or so, but then the body crashes again as it tries to recover from the change in balance.

There is no supplemental substitute for the steps of the pyramid. If you can control these things in order from 1 to 5 you will find there is no need for constantly boosting your system with artificial energy boosters.

A good rule of thumb for people working in an office or any desk job is to work for 50 minutes, then go and have a 5-10 minute walk outside in the sun if possible and make sure you get some water. This will regenerate your mind and body and make you much more effective in your work.