Here are 5 reasons for low energy
When I speak with teachers for the first time, they often share, “I don’t have energy to get through the day.” This isn’t surprising! You give so much of yourself to others… Who’s taking care of you?
Oftentimes, one of the main reasons for low energy for teachers has to do with their eating habits. If you’re a teacher with low energy, here are 5 habits that may be slowing you down.
1) Skipping breakfast
As a teacher, your day starts early (hello, sunrise!), and you can only hit the snooze button so many times. It can be a hustle to get out the door, whether it’s just you or you’re waking up kiddos and getting them ready for school too. When you’re pressed for time in the morning, you may skip breakfast and opt for coffee instead.
But skipping breakfast will affect your energy level later in the day. In fact, it can play a big role in why you don’t have energy to get through the day. Here are some reasons.
When you’re sleeping at night, your body rests and cleans up its internal functioning, much like a computer going through a reboot. By the time you wake up, your body is ready for a nutritional energy source, so you can start the day strong and produce energy later in the day when you need it. Food is an essential building block to help you think clearly, react to your students and peers, and function optimally—especially in a mentally and physically demanding career like teaching!
When you skip breakfast, you’re continuing your fast from the previous night. This means you aren’t giving your body the energy source it needs to start the day strong… and this can lead to low energy through the day.
2) Starting with a high sugar breakfast food
A quick cereal bar… A donut in the teacher’s lounge…
High sugar breakfast foods offer a quick boost of energy, but that energy level can drop quickly. As a teacher, you probably have scheduled times when you can grab a bite. If you’re starting your day on a sugar high, you may (or may not) have enough energy to make it to your next break. Plus, when you start with high sugar foods, your body often ends up craving more sugar and stimulants, like soda, coffee or cookies.
Relying on sugary pick-me-ups instead of sources of balanced energy can lead to inconsistent or low energy through the day. The reason is these foods are spiking your insulin and glucose levels… which ultimately come crashing down. It’s difficult to sustain the high. Your ability to teach effectively may drop too because you feel jittery, anxious or short on patience. [link to teacher exhaustion symptoms article]
3) Relying on stimulant-based beverages through the day
A warm cup of coffee, a cold Diet Coke or a caffeinated cup of tea offer a quick buzz. But these types of stimulants create a similar cycle to starting the day with high sugar foods.
Not to mention, using these beverages through the day can throw off your sleep cycle at night. These drinks are not only messing with your energy levels today, but if they affect your sleep, they’re potentially making it harder for you to function tomorrow too. It’s hard to get ahead and break the stimulant / low energy cycle. You’ll wake up tomorrow and do the same thing.
The good news is there are lots of snacks and meals you can eat quickly that will sustain your energy and do good for your body! These healthy snacks and meals offer consistent sources of energy and provide your body with the nutrition it needs, so you have energy to get through the day and feel your best.
4) Grabbing processed snacks
You have short bursts of time to eat during the day, so it’s easy to grab processed snacks and foods from the grocery store—like bags of chips, cookies, or nutrition bars and energy bars. (While these bars seem like they should be a healthier choice, they can have a high sugar content.)
These snacks will stimulate your mind with a quick buzz, but your body is not receiving the actual nutrition it needs. Your body craves nutrients, so it makes you hungrier. You’re in a hard-to-win cycle.
The goal is to switch to quick, high quality, nutrient-rich snacks that will keep your energy up through the day.
5) Snacking at night
Let’s chat briefly about snacking in the evening. It’s common! Often, people do it out of boredom or habit. But it’s also possible to get nighttime munchies because your body hasn’t received enough nutrients during the day. There’s a difference between calories and nutrients. Your body will still crave the nutrients you need, even when you’ve gone way past the calories you need.
Snacking at night also makes it harder to fall asleep, and you don’t sleep as deeply. Your sleep quality goes down because your body is working on digesting foods, instead of cleaning up your internal systems and removing toxins. You’re unintentionally delaying the process of allowing your body to relax and rejuvenate for the next day.
It’s like keeping your computer running all night instead of powering down and rebooting.
Next thing you know, you’re waking up tired and reaching for a cup of coffee. The whole cycle starts again.
Here’s the takeaway (and the good news)
One of the big reasons for low energy is your eating habits. Your food choices affect your body all day, especially when it comes to your energy levels and wellness.
If you’re a teacher who’s ever felt like you don’t have energy to get through the day, there’s good news. You can swap problematic choices (like caffeinated beverages, high sugar foods and skipped meals) for high quality, nutrient rich options. When you do, you’ll find balance and boost your energy through the day.
Everything gets easier!
If you’d like to learn more about how to make good food choices and how to stick to them, check out meal planning for teachers.
