IT’S easy to shrug off a case of lethargy or poor stamina as just another sign that you’re getting older or that you’re coming down with something. But for most of us, it’s neither. Most fatigue is not due to aging or to a serious medical problem. More often it’s a signal that the body is getting too much or too little of something, and that’s making you feel run-down. Most fatigue is caused by too much work, too much stress, too much weight, too much junk food and not enough exercise.
Fatigue’s greatest impact is on human function and activity, says Dr. Kurt Kroenke, associate professor of medicine at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Maryland. When you don’t have the strength or energy to move, even simple tasks become difficult. You become sedentary, your productivity drops, your motivation suffers. For some, this persistent weariness can be so debilitating that they can’t even get out of bed. Fatigue can take a toll on your mind as well. Thinking becomes difficult and confused. Decisions come slowly. Even your outlook on life turns gloomy. The result is that fatigue can lead to poor work performance, less interaction with friends and family and less participation in the sports and activities you enjoy.
Most of us live and work in rapid, pressure-filled environments. Much of the fatigue people experience is really due to the inability to pace themselves, to effectively stagger their workloads or to bring a sense of order to the chaos around them. Just dealing with the pressures of everyday life takes a lot of energy. Fatigue can also signal that you’re not eating right, says Peter Miller, Ph.D. executive director of the Hilton Head Health Institute, a clinic in South Carolina. The eating habits we established when we were younger are not suited for our middle years. If you’re an overeater, for example, you’re going to be storing more fuel than you need in the form of fat. And lugging around that excess body weight can make anyone feel sluggish. At the other extreme, under-eating can also cause fatigue by depriving you of sufficient calories to propel your body through the day. That’s why many men who go on “crash” or very low calorie diets often find their energy levels crashing.
Your activity level also has a direct effect on whether you feel fatigued. Lack of exercise can easily create a pattern of inactivity that is difficult to break. A body at rest tends to remain at rest. Generally, the more active and fit you are, the more stamina and energy you’ll have on a day-to-day basis. On the other hand, too much exercise can have a negative effect. Overexertion can send your energy level crashing. That’s because when we exercise, the body produces lactic acid, a substance that accumulates in our muscles, producing weakness and body aches. This accumulation usually doesn’t pose a problem when we avoid working ourselves to exhaustion and we follow our workouts with proper rest, because then our bodies are able to get rid of the lactic acid. But when we push our bodies during workouts and don’t allow our muscles time to recover, lactic acid accumulates faster than we can get rid of it. And this can leave us feeling fatigued all the time.
Recharge your batteries
Fatigue is a symptom of everything from the common cold to cancer. It’s a symptom of hepatitis, diabetes, heart disease, tuberculosis, thyroid problems, Hodgkin’s disease, multiple sclerosis, anemia, AIDS, anxiety and depression. And it’s also a side-effect of some medications used to treat these conditions. But fatigue is rarely anything to worry about unless it’s accompanied by other symptoms such as pain, swelling or fever or it lasts longer than a week. If your fatigue has lasted that long or you have other symptoms, see your doctor. Here are some tips to re-energize your life.
Slow your pace. Fatigue is the price we pay for pushing ourselves beyond the point where our minds and bodies say no. So think about where you might be pushing past your natural limits. Cut back on some activities. Don’t work or exercise as hard, as fast or as long as you have been. Take frequent breaks. And make sure you get a good night’s sleep every night. Avoid needless worrying. Agonizing over situations beyond your control only eats up personal energy, says Dr. Thomas Miller. Learn to let go of things you cannot change and focus your energies on those that you can.
Organize and prioritize. Clear the clutter out of your life bit by bit. Start your day with a list of four or five tasks that you can definitely accomplish and work on them alone. The next day, try four or five more. What at first seemed like a mountain of work you couldn’t climb then becomes a series of small hills that you can step over with ease, says Dr. Miller.
Balance work with fun. All work and no play puts more stress on the mind and body than they can handle. Mixing your daily schedule with a combination of social experiences and enjoyable activities provides a needed break in the action and relieves those stresses before they can drain your energy systems.
Eat the right foods. A junk food diet high in sugar, fat and processed foods gives your body few or none of the basic vitamins, minerals and nutrients it needs to perform at normal levels. And sometimes just the slightest deficiency of any one nutrient is all it takes to send energy levels plummeting. It’s important to hit all the major food groups–fruits, vegetables, grains and cereals, dairy, nuts and meats every day to guarantee that you’re giving your body the right combination of fuel and basic nutrients to keep on running at peak levels.
Eat four or five small meals. Skipping meals can leave your fuel reserves dangerously low, and digesting big meals can be an enormous energy drain. Your body needs fuel in moderate doses throughout the day to keep performing at optimal levels, says Dr. Miller. He recommends eating four or five small meals each day.
Avoid the quick fix. Sugar-loaded foods such as candy and soda may zip up your energy level for a while, but they also cause your blood sugar levels to increase and then sharply drop. The result is that your energy level will dip even lower than it was before.
Drink coffee. Studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge have discovered that the caffeine in a single cup of coffee can boost your energy level for up to six hours. But don’t overdo it.
Drink your water. Feeling run-down is often the first sign of dehydration. Drinking at least eight glasses of water every day or more if you’re active or trying to lose weight will prevent this type of fatigue.
Explore alternative approaches. Divine meditation, yoga and massage are just a few of the nontraditional options that will energize, refresh and revive both body and mind. Taking a deep breath, exhaling, then sitting quietly for 20 minutes as you focus on a word that reflects your faith in God will relax and re-energize both mind and body.