Why am I so TIRED all the time?

It’s 3 o’clock pm.  Your burger and fries (and Frosty 😯) for lunch just deposited into your intestines, and now you’re ready for a nap.  The best thing to do is to grab a coffee, or that Snickers bar you were going to eat for that mid-morning snack—SO GLAD YOU SAVED IT NOW! WOO-HOO!

There are many reasons why our energy levels aren’t what they were in our youth. It could be poor diet, such as the example above (sugary foods wreak havoc on blood sugar, plummeting our energy levels). It could also be due to a food sensitivity. When I eat foods not “designed” for my body, my energy will diminish, mostly because when I reenter my “healthy” diet the next day, I enter a state of detox, which can cause low energy levels—almost like a hangover.

But, what if your diet IS on track, and you have a stomach of iron? There are a number of OTHER reasons why energy levels are waning, such as:  an under active thyroid, not enough fasting during the evening hours, or weak/tight muscles. What? How do weak or tight muscles make me tired? I work out several days a week; surely, this doesn’t apply to me?!

Your muscles, when not used, or stretched, enough (i.e., avid gym buffs), could begin to atrophy.  Muscles and joints are meant to move in every direction—EVERY DAY—which usually doesn’t occur in a body building state. (I know; I used to train like one!)  The muscle cells would not receive enough nutrients (due to insufficient circulation), such that they would starve and shrivel up (like raisins), compressing all of the muscles into a tighter and tighter mass, compressing the joints. Then, the connective tissue around the muscle, or fascia (think Saran Wrap), has to shrink down to fit around the shrunken muscle.

So imagine, if you will, a 4 year-old hanging onto your leg as you try to walk (which frequently happens to me, by the way). It’s possible to walk, but it’s much harder, and I have to exert much more effort to do so, making me tired. When your muscles and joints are compressed by a tight band around them (the fascia), and it is not lubricated as it should be, it’s harder to move, so it takes a lot more energy! Do that all day long, everyday, and you will be dragging A**!!

Have you ever heard of mitochondria?  The mitochondria are the little “power houses” of our muscle cells. If you discover one day that you just “aren’t moving as you did in your 20’s,” or your energy just “wasn’t what it used to be,” it could be a lack of mitochondria DUE to the lack of functioning muscle cells from atrophy.

So, what’s the solution? Movement, movement, movement! And, I’m not just talking about a walk around the block; I am talking about movement of EVERY muscle, EVERY joint, EVERY bone, EVERY DAY!

So here is the formula:

MORE MOVEMENT =

More CIRCULATION/LUBRICATION of joints and connective tissue =

More HEALING to every cell =

An INCREASE in functioning muscle cells =

More functioning POWER HOUSES (mitochondria) =

Yep, you guessed it:

MORE ENERGY!! (As well as much more fat burning, even at rest—BONUS!)

“So, Jill, I’m in pain when I move!”  

The solution? Unless you are having knife-like pains that are absolutely debilitating, or you are under doctor’s orders, you NEED to MOVE to solve the pain problem! As we go through our days and “baby” our aches and pains, we continue to stiffen the connective tissue, muscle tissue, and joints. Each and every day we don’t move, it becomes worse because there is no healing blood flowing to these areas.

“When you have an injury, you want to make those muscles move and have the blood circulating to help heal the injury.”

—Anik Bissonnette in Forever Painless by Miranda Esmonde-White

It may be difficult at first, but the more you do it, the better you will feel. And, the better you feel, the more you will do!

I am happy to answer any questions or concerns you may have regarding any, and all of my topics. I love feedback!

Be WELL today!

Jill

Reference:  Forever Painless, Miranda-Esmonde White.

Disclaimer:  This blog is not a replacement for medical treatment. Please consult a medical professional.