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Tuesday, July 1, 2008

Day 16 - Fighting Fatigue...And Laundry

Do you ever wake up feeling like a mac truck hit you...and then ran back over you?

Some mornings, before I have my coffee, that's exactly how I feel. It doesn't matter how "organized" I am for my day, if I have my priorities staring me in the face, or a routine to kick my behind in gear, when I'm tired, I'm useless. Now that I can't have my beloved coffee anymore (hello baby # 3) I don't know what I'm going to do! Oh, I know what I have to do, laundry.

Here are the best "energizing" tips I've found out there that have nothing to do with caffeine (drat!):

Move

Apparently, inactivity makes you more tired. The solution? Do something...like running, dancing with your kiddos, kickboxing, swimming, hiking, walking, or...cleaning! :)

Only get the sleep you need

Turns out, I function much better on six to seven hours of sleep as opposed to eight. In fact, when I have more than eight hours of sleep, I'm like a sloth...I just want to sleep more! Figure out how much sleep you really need, and then get it. Steve Pavlina did a sleep experiment to become an earlier riser and has some good tips on how to exert more control over your sleep patterns.

Remember how we talked about feeling overwhelmed?

Well, work on the suggestions I gave on over coming feeling overwhelmed because, evidently, stress makes you tired too.

Increase your magnesium (this one's out of the blue!)

This is what Colette Bouchez from WebMD has to say:

"In a study done at the Department of Agriculture's Human Nutrition Research Center in Grand Forks, N.D., women with magnesium deficiencies had higher heart rates and required more oxygen to do physical tasks than they did after their magnesium levels were restored. In essence, their bodies were working harder which, over time, says Heller, can leave you feeling depleted.
The recommended daily intake of magnesium is around 300 milligrams for women..."

Add a handful of almonds, hazelnuts or cashews to your daily diet.
Increase your intake of whole grains, particularly bran cereal.
Eat more fish, especially halibut.

If you're not prego or nursing, my number one suggestion is: CAFFEINE! (and lots of it!) Preferably in coffee (or diet coke with lemon, if your name is Debbie).

I know I'm breaking my own rule here by adding caffeine, but I just can't help it - I really believe that God gave caffeine to me as a gift, and perhaps I may now pass this beautiful gift on to you.

"Planning for your energy involves thinking about your meals, sleep hours, workout schedule, and stress management ahead of time and making time for them." Dulce Zamora

Oh, and your challenge for the day, laundry - lots and lots of glorious laundry! I know I have about 15 piles to work through...and it doesn't count if you don't FOLD it and PUT IT AWAY! Okay? Come on...how many can you get done?

31 Days to Clean - Jump in anywhere! (Seriously, we're not about rules here!) :)

21 comments:

JMMEE said...

Congratulations Sarah and Jesse!!!
Missed the late afternoon blog yesterday... I check out my favorite blogs early in the morning - let's just say they are my "warm cup of coffee" (much better than the real stuff).
I'll be praying that you'll not struggle with the dreaded "morning sickness" this time around. They say "Three's a charm" ... (though it didn't wotrk for me).
But all in all, I'm very happy for you.

Have a blessed day and keep up the wonderful blogging posts - I truly enjoy them as a part of my morning "cup of coffee"

Rachel's Journal Pages said...

Was just about to shut my computer down for the night and head off to bed when I saw your next 31 Days to Clean post - guess that I now know the approx time difference between you and me... you're just getting up - I'm just going down.

Have done my schedule and would love for you to check it out - always appreciate your encouraging words.

Seeya,
Rachel

Kat said...

That was an interesting something to ponder about the getting only the sleep that you need. Also on that note, I once read in a magazine that a good portion of our being tired during the day is from not getting up when we first wake up. It said it was a bad thing to hit the snooze button.

You sound like my sister regarding the caffiene. She absolutely declares she has so much energy because she #1 takes a B-Complex Vitatmin and #2 drinks 4+ cups of coffee a day!!

Anonymous said...

Vitamins are my anti-caffeine! My parents can't function without 3 or more cups to start their day, and I always said I didn't want to end up addicted like that, so I try to avoid coffee except for really bad days or when I want to tease my husband by convincing him I'm turning into a junkie :) Potassium, Vitamin B, Vitamin C--all good things to help your body operate at peak efficiency. I just take a multi-vitamin every morning (plus calcium, since I'm still nursing), and that seems to help me most days.

Herbal tea is a nice alternative to coffee, too--although I guess you're not supposed to drink that while pregnant, either!

Unknown said...

I hung a load of laundry out on the line this morning before coming to work! I also haven't had any caffeine this morning, and I'm not even pregnant - kuddos for me!

katylinvw said...

how did you know that my laundry mountain was about to take over my laundry room? i actually did a load this morning before i left for work, but it is not folded or put away, darn it anyway!

i work at a company that provides tv, internet, and phone service to our community. i started out in customer service, and i'm now a project coordinator - to answer your question from yesterday :)

Trixi said...

The 6 to 7 hours of sleep is so true for me too. I feel sluggish all day when I get too much sleep. These posts are great. Thank you,
Trixi

Anonymous said...

I am HUGELY pregnant. Enough to be nesting, and begging God every single day that I can hold this little one by the end of the night. Laundry has become my middle name!!! (But I am still tired, even with my coffee.) In the past few days we have washed every piece of clothing (you'd be surprised at how many dirty clothes 8 children shove back in their drawers!), sheet, blanket, and towel in the house. I shudder to think of the water bill (even with a front loader), but we are hanging everything out on the line, so the electric shouldn't be too bad!

Anonymous said...

Oh yeah! And there is an organic vitamin with probiotics called, "Perfect Prenatal" (I get mine at Vitacost) which works WONDERS. I encourage everyone to try it!

Heathahlee said...

I'm so proud of myself for actually starting my laundry before settling myself at the computer! Thanks for the reminder to now go actually check said laundry.

Btw, Congratulations! So happy for you!

The Peacock Pearl said...

hi i'm a new reader... thanks for such an inspiring and motivating set of posts!
i have four very energetic children and a friend of mine who is now mother to six shared her discovery of SuperMom Vitamins. i no longer need that mid-day "pass-out on the couch while the kids watch a movie" nap! and it's easier to get out of bed the next morning! you can get them at beeyoutiful(dot)com.
also WATER WATER WATER. dehydration causes fatigue, so drinks lots o'water!
and a long time ago i heard that an apple every morning will work better than a cup of coffee (but of course that would require going through withdrawal symptoms from the caffiene addiction) ;)

Katie said...

Laundry it is. It's weird how all these tasks are starting to line up with what I was going to be doing that day anyway! It's like you are in my head. And if you are, I apologize for what you see. Hehe!

Unknown said...

I definitely need to work on laundry, although I have less of it piled up than I used to since I've been trying to fold and put away each load before going on to the next.

I notice that I have had more energy since I've started exercising regularly (at least 3 times a week) and drinking more water.

Also, just a thought to try...what if you have your same cup of morning coffee - but make it decaf? Even though the flavor is different, you might still feel like you have your same comfortable morning routine and it might even "trick" your body into revving up a little.

scargosun said...

Anything but laundry!!! Thanks for the jumpstart reminders. I hit a wall at about 2pm EVERYDAY. If I do someting active, maybe it will help.

Queen Los said...

yay again im just so excited and shocked i didn't expect to hear this news from you guys until dec so it was a total surprise... me and ash have already been on the phone planning haha aren't you glad you are our friends! btw i actually posted some cruise pics on my site.. check it out..
love ya manda

Tara said...

Makes perfect sense to get moving. As a physical therapist and former marathoner, etc...I know it's the right thing to do! Guess I'd better get out of this chair and get my day started to feel less fatigued :) Oh, by the way it's 1pm!!!

Yes, I feel pregnant and barfy, so I'm now easing into my days (I'm 7 1/2 weeks along and the first trimester was the worst last time, as well).

Thanks for commenting on my blog, too!

Caroline said...

Thanks for leaving a comment on my blog recently. I wanted to come back and say that I won't write you totally off for not liking Ann Taylor. But Goodwill? It must be way better where you live cause ours is...how should I say this?...slightly less than desirable.
BTW, congrats on the bun in the oven!

kari said...

thank you for this post- you don't know how appropriate this is for me.

my blog is firstwehavecoffee.blogspot.com-
i think we're on the same page!

many blessings to you-

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