WAKE THE F UP: 5 Simple Ways To Stop Feeling So Exhausted

Picture the scene. It’s 10am and you’re slumped in your office chair. It’s Tuesday (you think) and you open your laptop to be confronted with the 11 reminders you set yesterday. (Old news.) Reaching for your second espresso, you gaze out of the window and spot a perky commuter bouncing past, phone in one hand, green smoothie in the other. Feeling confused, you sit and stare. 

How the hell does she look so awake? 

You turn back to your now lukewarm espresso and down it quick. You consider your options of what you can actually do to wake up a bit, but whatever you do, everyday is the same. If only there was a way to wake the f up. If only Fizzy Mag had put together a super simple 5 step guide to beat this inescapable feeling of absolute exhaustion…

Well, sleepy reader, its your lucky day. We did exactly that. Here comes 5 simple solutions to make tomorrow morning a little easier. 

1. Eat breakfast

Getting a hit of carbs and protein when you wake up is the right way to kick start the body. Although carbs are important, its also vital to not overdo it, as too much can cause a spike in insulin, which according to nutritionist Caroline Cederquist, can make you feel sluggish and hungry later. But really, the most important thing is if you’re not eating breakfast at all, start now.

2. Get your sleep cycle right

Ok. So you’re probably tired of hearing about the magic of the illusive eight hours sleep. So, lets assume that’s a given. But actually, something that doesn’t get thought about enough is waking up in the right part of your sleep cycle, more specifically, in the lightest part. Awaking during this time and before you go into deep sleep and REM means that you don’t end up waking up whilst your body is completely shut down. Making sure you wake up in this way is proven to make us feel more energetic. The best way to encourage yourself to wake up in the lightest part of your sleep cycle is to use apps such as Sleep Cycle. The app works by waking you up at the best point in the half hour before you would normally set your alarm. It also does this using a super chilled and none-irritating alarm clock, allowing you to wake up without wanting to punch something quite as much. Also, updating to pro can allow you to monitor your sleep quality more closely to ensure that the sleep you’re actually getting, is really the real deal. 

3. Cut down on coffee

Being somebody that reacts to any vague feeling of tiredness with a large black coffee, I can understand that this is not an easy one to come to terms with. But alas, its true. The temporary energy boost has been proven to be followed by a low. This low causes us to crave a pick-me-up even more and so the daily vicious circle begins… What’s more, drinking coffee through the afternoon has also been proven to interfere with sleep, causing us to feel worse the following morning. The best thing to do to overcome this is steadily cut down on coffee. Try replacing subsequent hits with green or white tea for a lighter caffeine hit. 

4. Get movin

According to healthline, the most common reason that middle-aged and older aged gave for not exercising is that they were often feeling too tired. However, in a series of studies, it was also found that that exercising can reduce fatigue among healthy people as well as those living with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. So, its turns out feeling sleepy is no good reason to bail on that yoga class later after all. 

5. Take your own freaking advice

This one is for anyone as shit at doing whats good for them as I am. If you’re not getting enough sleep, drinking too much coffee or not eating or exercising right, its only you who can flip that. But all the hard work and coffee-craving-fighting will pay off once you start. And what’s more, I’m sure it will be worth it, because wouldn’t it be nice to finally be the perky girl with the green smoothie for once?