Maintaining Your Energy Levels while Dieting

There are some fats in the form of oils that are actually beneficial (Omega 3), so you shouldn’t shy away from fats completely, but reducing your overall intake will give you more room in calories for carbs which in turn will give you more energy.

Fats are also harder for your body to digest. This leads to that lethargic feeling you get after eating a big, fat-laden meal. So avoiding fats should keep you from wanting a nap after lunch.

The size of the meal you eat also influences how “heavy” you feel. Eating smaller meals more frequently is probably the best way to keep your energy levels high while still not eating too much.

Eating more frequently can be difficult. Our current cultural norms are three fairly heavy meals per day, but you are better off eating 5 to 6 times per day. Try to spread out your calories fairly evenly throughout the day – eating more in the morning is OK as long as your daily total stay at or slightly below your BMR.

When you eat, which types of foods is also helpful, but less important in terms of burning fat. Before and after exercise, you might want to get some simple carbs which will give you quick energy. “Good” simple carbs are sugars found in fruits and natural fruit juices. “Bad” simple carbs to avoid are processed products made from white flours and sugary desserts.

Other than before or after exercise, simple carbs should be replaced by complex carbohydrates. These are found in 100% whole wheat products and most vegetables. These items digest more slowly which in turn releases less glucose into the blood stream – the excess is later stored as fat.

Exercise is also important – the more you do, the better shape you will be in and so should have a greater ability to keep up higher energy levels; up to a point. But exercise also tires the body and requires adequate rest and recovery before doing more, so don’t overdo it.

Some people enjoy getting their exercise in the morning and say it gives them more energy to get through the day, but others find they are too tired after exercising and prefer to exercise at night. There is no right or wrong here, but you might also try splitting your routine into two sessions – a short cardio session in the morning and a longer session in the afternoon. This will keep your body’s metabolism active all day and you burn more fat.

Over exercising can do more than drain your energy, it can seriously injure you. Make sure you give your body adequate recovery times between sessions – talk to an expert about this – and don’t exercise while injured. It's better to put your exercise program on pause than stop completely for 6 to 8 weeks while you recover from an injury. Listen to your body, if a certain exercise is hurting …stop, and do a different exercise that doesn't hurt. And get the painful area checked out.

The correct relationship between exercise and rest will help you to get into shape, burn fat and keep higher energy levels. Avoid the “energy” drinks loaded with caffeine and corn syrup and stick to the basic foods Mother Nature intended for you to consume – that way you can burn fat without turning into a caffeine junkie in the process.

Top

Enter your search terms Submit search form