Feeling Zapped?
How to Have More Energy
After a Long Work Day
For most of us, our post-work plans are full of good intentions. We convince ourselves we’ll hit the gym, prepare a home-cooked meal, and maybe even spend some quality time with the family. But when it’s time to head home from work, we have no energy and endurance left to do much of anything, let alone exercise, cook, and clean!
Ready for a boost in your post-work energy levels? Learn what could be zapping your energy during the workday and how to not feel exhausted after work with a few simple changes to your routine.
Why Do We Feel So Tired After Work?
If you work in a physically demanding profession, it's probably no secret as to why you're tired at the end of the day. But if you spend your workday behind a desk, it would make sense to have a good amount of pent-up energy at the end of the day.
But if that was true, why then are so many of us — even those who spend most of the day behind a desk — completely and utterly exhausted after getting home from work? Much of it has to do with our mental and emotional state during the workday.
A typical workday can put your body under a lot more stress than you may realize! Whether it’s from an overbooked schedule, too many tasks to manage, looming deadlines, or a demanding boss, work pressures can mount up pretty quickly.
While that may make for an exciting challenge for some people, it can leave others of us feeling overwhelmed and anxious. If you're constantly living with stress, much of your day is spent in a state of high-intensity emotion. Add in other stress factors in your life — like relationship issues, financial worries, health concerns, etc. — and your emotional state likely only intensifies.
So, what does this have to do with feeling zapped after work? Research shows that spending much of your day in a state of high-intensity emotion can be physiologically taxing. Feeling intense emotions like excitement, anxiety, or anger lights up the amygdala — the emotional center of the brain — and activates the sympathetic nervous system, also known as our fight-or-flight response. Combine this reaction with high amounts of caffeine and sugar throughout the day and our bodies quickly become overstimulated, impacting our ability to focus and regulate emotions.
It’s no wonder why so many of us feel tired after work! For most of the day, our bodies are on high alert, being drained of energy by our sensitive stress response. By the time you're heading home, your energy is likely depleted, you’re mentally exhausted, and any motivation you had goes right out the window.
How to Have More Energy After Work
The good news is you don’t have to let your stress response run the show any longer. With some simple changes, it’s possible to better manage your stress and help save energy for all the post-work activities you want to enjoy. Here are some tips to promote improved energy levels during and after long days at work.
3. Hydrate Throughout the Day
There’s no way around it: hydration is key. Studies show that when your body is dehydrated, your energy levels can plummet and your brain function can suffer. Dehydration can leave you feeling tired and sluggish, and you may even suffer from headaches.
Additionally, that soda or sugary drink you might reach for to feel more energized may only dehydrate your body further.
So, how much water should you be drinking per day? The CDC recommends drinking water daily as opposed to sugary drinks or alcoholic beverages. This advice applies regardless of age, race, sex, body weight, or any other factor. Water is good for all of us! Especially because dehydration can cause unclear thinking, mood swings, constipation, kidney stones and more.
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