Top 3 Easy Ways To Boost Energy Quickly
With increasing demands of modern lifestyles, everyone is need of extra energy. The problem with this is that people tend to go for methods that leave their bodies drained and more tired than they were before. Instead of reaching for a coffee, there are ways you can provide the body with what it needs to boost energy quickly, without the negative side effects (don’t worry there is still a place for coffee).
These are strategies that I use every day to boost my energy without over-stimulating myself. You might be surprised at how simple yet overlooked the first two are.
Chronic Dehydration
This is the number one issue I find with people who are struggling with low energy or just poor health in general. Consuming plenty of clean water with electrolytes is key to optimizing the flow of electricity throughout the body. The brain and the nervous system require adequate water and electrolytes in order to conduct impulses throughout the nervous system.
Another aspect of water as it relates to energy production is how it is required for ATP production. Most of us know this, but as a refresher, ATP is the energy molecule manufactured by the mitochondria that lie within just about every cell in our bodies.
To keep things simple, ATP formation occurs as the result of a complex biochemical process. Certain steps in this process require lots of hydrogen ions in order to move forward. These hydrogen ions are derived from water.
Additionally, almost every biochemical process in the body relies on water in order to proceed properly. This is why I always place such a great emphasis on staying adequately hydrated.
Finally, if you want to perform at an optimal level on a daily basis, you need to ensure your body is adequately eliminating built up toxins. By starting off the day with super-hydration, you go a long way in assisting this process and boost energy levels naturally.
Hydration Strategies
I am a huge fan of starting the day with a mega-dose of water. I like to call it super-hydrating. During this time, I will consume up to a gallon of water before consuming my first meal of the day. To maintain electrolyte balance in the body, it is a good idea to add a pinch of a natural salt (pink Himalayan or grey celtic) or drink diluted organic chicken broth for the mineral content.
Doing this on a regular basis helps to flush out the liver, kidneys, and digestive tract. This helps the body to detoxify more effectively, boost energy levels and really help get your body prepared for the day.
The Importance of Super Hydration
There is some new evidence suggesting that swapping a low-salt, low-fat diet with a higher-salt, high-fat diet, is more conducive to balanced blood sugar and insulin levels (1, 2). This goes a long way in mitigating inflammation, the most insidious robber of your energy. Taking it a step further and going on a ketogenic diet may increase these benefits by boosting mitochondrial energy output.
During this time, your body is also able to better hydrate the cells and tissues to support optimal biochemical processes. To anyone who is experiencing low energy, I definitely recommend starting your day with some super hydration.
…And of course, it is extremely important to drink purified reverse osmosis or distilled water to remove any impurities that are commonly found in municipal water supplies as many of these chemicals can be extremely harmful to the gut and mitochondria. These include arsenic, aluminum, fluoride, chlorine, and more.
Adding Citrus or Apple Cider Vinegar
Squeezing fresh lemon or lime juice, or adding a small amount of apple cider vinegar to your water is a great strategy to boost energy levels daily. The organic acids in these help to balance the gut microbiome, stabilize blood sugar, and rebalance calcium levels in the body (3, 4, 5).
Lemon is also a great source of Vitamin C and antioxidant bioflavonoids that help improve capillary permeability and improve oxygenation of tissues (6).
The acetic acid in vinegar may also be helpful for improving blood lipids, boosting fat burning, mitigating sugar cravings, and aiding in digestion. These compounds taken along with plenty of clean water on a daily basis is one of the most overlooked and inexpensive strategies to boost energy levels and overall health.
Getting More Organic Acids In Your Diet
In addition to adding apple cider vinegar and lemon juice to your water first thing in the morning, there are other great ways to use these acids to improve your energy. I will often use fresh squeezed lemon or lime but due to convenience, it is a great idea to have organic lemon or lime juice around!
For apple cider vinegar, look for one that is raw and has the mother within it. The mother is the fermenting colony of microbes that create the acetic acid and is a sign of a higher quality vinegar that isn’t highly processed.
Here are 3 ways to use these and remember that lemon and lime juice are interchangeable with apple cider vinegar in these suggestions. This means you can choose any of the 3 you enjoy the most or that are the most convenient for you at the time.
Add to Meals:
Lemon juice and apple cider vinegar taste amazing sprinkled over meat and vegetables and can even be added into certain recipes. In fact, this coconut lime seared salmon recipe is one of my favorites.
This adds flavors and begins the digestive process by breaking down the meat and veggies before they even go into our body! The less stress you put on your digestive system, the less gut inflammation you produce and more nutrients you absorb and you boost energy levels more effectively.
Before Meals:
Taking 1-2oz of lemon or lime juice or apple cider vinegar in a glass of water 15-20 minutes before a meal can help stimulate the digestive process and allow you to break down your food much more efficiently.
These acids trigger the release of salivary enzymes, stomach acid, bile and pancreatic enzyme production which primes the body for the upcoming meal! How cool! This is one of the key strategies I use to help people heal digestive complaints and leaky gut syndrome.
Meat Marinade:
Many people don’t even think of this but using lemon juice or apple cider vinegar to marinate meats is a powerful strategy for energy levels. Digestion is an energy intensive process and the organic acids in these liquids actually help to start the digestion process before you even take a bite of your food.
The acids and enzymes begin to break down and soften the meat so it is significantly easier for your digestive system to handle it. Plus, they taste good on the meat. Think about recipes like lemon pepper chicken for example!
Extra Boost: Caffeine
Caffeine is by the far the most common strategy people use in order to boost energy quickly. This isn’t necessarily bad, as long as you are in good health. For many people, an occasional pick-me-up turns into a daily crutch that eventually puts them in a chronically fatigued and inflammatory state. This pattern of chronic over-stimulation contributes to HPA axis dysfunction (some would call adrenal fatigue) and makes it harder to perform at a peak level on a daily basis.
Personally, I like to use one of three strategies: Turmeric Fat Burning Coffee, Ketogenic Matcha Green Tea, or Energy Charge.
Use an Organic, Mycotoxin Free, Shade Grown Coffee
Low-quality conventional coffee is not great. Pesticides and mycotoxin in coffee can be harmful to your health. It is important that you drink high-quality, organic, mycotoxin-free, and shade-grown coffee for optimal benefits and safety.
I personally love and highly recommend Lifeboost Coffee. This coffee is organic, free from GMO, shade-grown, sun-dried, pesticide and chemical-free, full of antioxidants, stomach-friendly, less acidic than most coffee, and fairly traded with a 2-year shelf life. Most importantly, it is absolutely delicious.
Energy Charge:
Energy Charge™ is a new and revolutionary product that transforms water into a great-tasting, revitalizing energy drink. Each stick pack provides a combination of B vitamins, electrolytes, trace minerals, antioxidants, amino acids, a small amount of natural caffeine and specialized herbs such as green coffee bean extract to fuel your body’s energy production.
This combination helps to stimulate bowel motility (in a gentle but effective way) and will boost your energy and mental sharpness. Forget about the processed energy drinks…this works WAY BETTER without the harmful chemicals and toxins.
With just 5 g of carbohydrate per serving and zero sugars, Energy Charge simply gives your body what it needs to produce energy without any of the crap that burns out your adrenals and causes you to crash later. I personally LOVE using Energy Charge on my long days and it really helps fuel my brain and body for high performance.
Maintaining Resilience
Living a high-energy or demanding lifestyle is stressful on the body. Sometimes you have no choice but to be in a high-performance state and caffeine can be helpful for this.
The most important thing to remember is to not overdo it. A performance booster can easily become a harmful stressor if proper precautions are not taken.
First of all, pay close attention to how your body reacts to stimulants. If you notice a profound energy boost from things like coffee, it is likely that you are a fast caffeine oxidizer and should stick to more gentle forms like matcha and Energy Charge. Coffee is okay on occasion, however sticking to the latter options for more regular use may be advantageous.
Additionally, if you are living a hard-charging lifestyle and constantly are looking to push the envelope on productivity and accomplishment, it would be a smart decision to take extra precautions on boosting your body’s resilience to stress.
This means using things like adaptogenic herbs, practicing gratitude to balance your stress response, and doing as much as possible to rev up your mitochondrial energy production. To take your energy to the next level and build your resilience to stress, check out this article on stress resilience.
Looking for feedback. I make a beverage that I drink all day. I brew green tea until I’ve made a gallon of tea. To this i add 1/2 tsp of sea salt and a good amount of lemon juice. I then add a gentile squeeze of liquid STEVIA. A gallon lasts me about 2 days. I also have a large coffee 2x day.. In addition i consume 2 tbs of apple cider vinegar 2x/day, plus 2 tbs/coconut oil 2x day. (doing strict 20g carb keto). Working on my T2D and lowering my blood pressure.
Suggestions…comments ?
Sounds good John! We have great articles on both of those topics:
https://drjockers.com/12-steps-to-beat-diabetes-naturally/
https://drjockers.com/doctor-why-is-my-blood-pressure-high/