Tired of Being Tired
A man grows most tired while standing still. ~Chinese proverb
Post written by Leo Babauta.
Its tough being tired all day. Ive had days like this, when Im struggling through the day and dont have the energy to tackle anything that matters.
Hell, Ive had years like this.
When youre tired, not much seems appealing. Life is dulled, and you dont get much accomplished. Worst, you dont have the energy to change the situation.
These days I dont have many days like this, but when I do, I rest. We have gotten good at ignoring our bodys signals much of our lives is training our minds to pretend our bodies arent tired, so we can be more productive.
This is wrong. It ends up in burnout and less production, because we inevitably run out of energy. Listen to your body your long-term health and sanity depend on it.
Why Were Tired
Mostly were tired because we dont rest enough. Yeah, I know: duh, Leo. But if its so obvious, why do we ignore it?
The Spanish famously have siestas. When I get tired, so do I. Its a luxury not everyone can afford, but even when I had a day job I would find ways to sneak into a back room and take a power nap of 20 minutes.
We dont rest enough. Its not as important as other things: waking early, getting stuff done, attending to a thousand meetings, being sucked into the world of online connections and reading, god-forsaken television.
So we cut rest in favor of these other things that are much more important, and then wonder why our energy levels are low.
But theres more. If youre like me, you drink coffee in the morning. You might drink more later in the morning, to keep yourself energized. By the time afternoon rolls around, youre in caffeine withdrawal. This is often why people are sapped by mid-afternoon.
We also run ourselves too fast, like a sprint, when life is much longer than a sprint. Try ! it: go o utside and sprint all-out for two minutes. Stop, breathe for a sec, then sprint again. See how long you can keep that up most cant go very long. Our days are like a series of sprints.
How to Get Started When Youre Too Tired to Start
My first suggestion is to take a nap. If youre too tired to take other steps, taking a nap is easy. If you cant take a nap, at the very least disconnect from digital devices. Computers and smartphones are powerful tools, but being on them for too long tires us out.
Disconnect, get outside, take a walk. Cancel an appointment or two if you can. Stretch. Massage your shoulders. Close your eyes for a few minutes. Breathe.
These are small things you can do right away, and they will help you become more rested.
More Solutions
Once youve taken the first steps, youll be a bit more rested and can take a few more steps:
1. Sleep more at night. If youre not getting at least 7 hours of sleep, youre probably getting too little. Lots of people need a full 8 hours, and some need more. Go to bed earlier the Internet will be fine without you. I like to read before bed (a book, not websites) as a ritual that helps me sleep. It takes awhile before your sleeping patterns change. If you have insomnia, try my simple cure.
2. Take stretch breaks. We sit for too long at the computer, sapping energy. Get up, stretch, every 20-25 minutes. Walk around for a minute or five. Move in any way you can do pushups, squats, lunges, jump up and down, do a dance. Get the blood circulating.
3. Exercise regularly. You needed me to tell you to exercise, Im sure. But its amazing how even a little exercise can help you to feel more energized throughout the day. A huge workout session can leave you exhausted in which case you should rest but shorter workouts leave you physically just a bit tired, but mentally you feel amazing.
4. Cut back the caffeine. If yo u go cold turkey with caffeine, youll really have no energy. But cutting back a little at a time, while doing some of the things mentioned here, wont be bad. And youll skip the afternoon withdrawal, which can ruin half your day. If you feel tired from drinking less caffeine, take a short nap.
5. Be less busy. Seriously, were too busy these days. Cut back on commitments, put space between things, allow yourself to have a slower pace. Your energy levels will thank you.
6. Focus. While most people multitask, in truth thats mental juggling. And theres only so much you can do in a day. As most of you know, I advocate single-tasking its basically doing one thing at a time, and being fully present while doing that task. This really transforms anything you do, from work tasks to conversations to chores like washing the dishes. Its less tiring, mentally, and it can make anything you do more enjoyable. Life is less tiring when you single-task.
7. Hydrate. This is actually a huge factor that most people dont realize is making them tired. Drink water throughout the day. You dont really need 8 glasses of water (we get some in food and other drinks), but drinking more water doesnt hurt. Your pee should be a light yellow if youre well hydrated (not clear, definitely not dark yellow).
8. Freshen up. Sometimes a quick, cold shower in the afternoon or evening can be refreshing. Or change your socks. If youre sweaty, a fresh outfit also helps. Wash your face. Youll feel brand-new.
9. Work on something youre excited about. If youre passionate about something, youll feel energized. If you dont really care about your work, youll be dragging. Read this if you need help.
10. Work with interesting people. If you work with other people who are passionate about something, youll feel more excite! d about the work you do. Its incredible to work with a partner or group of people who care about what theyre doing, who are fired up. If you dont have that, seek it out.
11. Learn what makes life effortless. We thrash about in the water all day, making the swim exhausting. Instead of working against the world, learn to glide. I write about this more in my new book, The Effortless Life, which comes out next week. More soon!
A lot of people are tired around here, but Im not sure theyre ready to lie down, stretch out and fall asleep. ~Jim Jones
Note: This post was written publicly, with a little help from my friends. Thanks everyone!
