Is Your Diet Draining Your Energy?
There are lots of potential reasons that you might not have the amount of energy you want in your life. For this month, I want to take a look at how your diet specifically might be one contributing factor. An important note: When I use the term “diet” I’m referring to the food that you’re eating. I’m not talking a specific diet like keto, paleo, vegan etc. "Diet” doesn’t need to be a dirty word; it’s just describing your food…that’s it.
Step 1: You Are Here
Where is “here” exactly? The land of tired, of dragging through the day, of the afternoon slump? How do you take the first step towards energy, playing with the kids, or quality time with your spouse? One of the foundational beliefs in my coaching practice is that all behavior change must start with an awareness of your current situation. You can’t track your progress if you don’t know where you’re starting from.
When we’re looking at how our diet is impacting our energy it’s incredibly helpful to pay attention to how certain foods make you feel. Creating this awareness is huge and will help you figure out what your next steps need to be. If it helps, you can keep a food journal, make notes on your phone, or grab your best friend to help you—but really, you don’t have to do anything special, just notice.
As you’re noticing what you eat, how you eat, where you eat, and when you eat, you’ll start to learn a few things. I guarantee that even one day of paying attention to this part of your life will yield some helpful insights.
The most important piece of this awareness though is this: do it all from a place of non-judgement. You are being curious. That’s it. There is no shaming, no blaming, no “I shouldn’t have done that”. Nada. You are practicing holy curiosity about your body and how you feed it. Don’t try to change anything just yet. Simply notice.
Step 2: Back to Biology Class
Remember the Scientific Method we learned somewhere between elementary school and middle school? After you’ve made your observation (i.e. created awareness), you ask a question (i.e. what foods are going to give me more energy instead of drain it?). Then you form a hypothesis, take guess at what will happen, and test it. Once you’ve experimented, you use what you learned to try again.
Your body is unique. What works for your sister or your best friend may or may not work for you. Experimenting with what you eat is an important piece of figuring out what YOUR body needs to thrive.
Here’s a simple experiment you can do to start figuring out what foods might be draining your energy:
Choose ONE meal of the day (it can also be a snack)
For that meal, write down several different foods to try. Aim for at least 3 days, 5 if you can.
Follow the plan you created and notice how your energy is on each day. Jot down what you eat and how you feel, both right after eating and again two hours later. Note how your energy levels, mood, and physical symptoms are affected by the food in your body. You may discover from this exercise that you’re unusually sensitive to certain foods. A food sensitivity or allergy may be your body’s way of telling you to start eating foods more appropriate for your individual makeup.
I’d absolutely LOVE to hear if you try this and what you learn. Shoot me an email at janna@atthewellcoaching.com to share what you discover!
Step 3: Learn How to Eat For Energy
I’m really excited to dig into the topic of Eating for Energy because I know SO many moms struggle with their energy and eating foods to support that energy. I’ve put together this webinar to help you have more awareness and tools so that you can eat the best foods for your body.
If you're tired of being tired and want to learn simple tips to improve your energy that are actually do-able for an exhausted, busy mom, you don't want to miss this webinar. Join me on February 28th for my FREE virtual Eating for Energy event! Click here to register.
