We are what we eat, as the saying goes. The foods and drinks you consume can have a surprising impact on how we fell, especially on our energy levels. It’s important to realize the effects various kinds of food and drink have on your energy level, and to consistently apply that knowledge in your daily diet. Here are a few tips on how to boost energy:

1. Lay off the alcohol.

Alcohol leads to dehydration, and frays your nerves. Needless to say, you may lose your ability to stay focused. Alcohol fatigues more than it relaxes, especially when your use becomes excessive or habitual.

2. Do without some caffeine and sugar.

Things like coffee, chocolate, and so-called energy bars and energy drinks offer an apparent quick fix for exhaustion, and may give the feeling of a sudden surge of energy. But this peak is quickly replaced by a valley. Don’t rely on these things to keep a high energy level.

More on Strategies to Help Boost Your Energy Naturally

In today’s hectic world, with long work days, children’s activities, and other things that must get done each day, no wonder we are usually out of energy.

We get through the things we have to do, but many, if not most of us, complain that we are tired, and we feel we are stretching our bodies to the maximum. How can we remedy this situation?

The answer lies in some very basic practices. In a way, these are the practices of yesteryear. They are time-tested practices that medical practitioners continue to support, and that our parents have always preached.

They are: (1) getting enough

More on Energy – How to Get More of It?

We all want and need more energy today. There is so much to do, so little time to do it, and we try to squeeze out every hour of the day.

No wonder we go from one exhausting thing to the next in our battle to get things done. How can we get that energy we need?

The answer really lies in healthful living, which will challenge the way most of us work and live today.

What is healthy living, and how can we achieve it?

Healthful living is an all-encompassing way of life that takes into account how we approach our life, how we eat, what we do for recreation, and how we react to situations.

The total amount of energy we have will depend on all of these elements. Harnessing the power of healthy living takes some thought and work. It’s easy to stay in our own lifestyle because we’re too busy with everything to change it.

Yet, if we want to have more energy, More on Energy: Harness the Power of Healthy Living

With that big project hanging over your head, due first thing tomorrow, you follow the same old habit and reach for another coffee or chocolate or energy drink, just to keep your eyes open. Moments later, you feel the rush of sugar and caffeine, and hack away at the computer, pushing ahead on the project, with your eyes on the prize. But after an hour or so has passed, your high of a moment ago suddenly plunges into a deep valley; you feel completely drained. Once again, you reach for another energy drink or coffee. The vicious circle reasserts itself, every time you try to boost your energy level.

Maybe it’s time to step back and evaluate the causes of this pattern. The simple scientific fact is that sugar and caffeine have no energy benefits whatsoever. Although they may produce a fleeting sensation of higher energy, you’ll realize, the minute it passes, that they’ve only succeeded in sapping your energy, leading you to feel more exhausted than you were when you first reached for the coffee maker.

What about sugar? It’s full of carbohydrates, and therefore has the reputation as a sort of high-octane fuel for the body and mind. However, while some carbohydrates, such as those found in starches, inject their energy over time into your blood circulation, sugar dumps its energy almost immediately into the blood. Naturally, your sugar levels in the blood experience a sudden spike. Insulin is emitted by the pancreas in response, redirecting that extra sugar floating around in your veins to your cells. So, overall, the level of sugar in your bloodstream actually falls, compared even to when you first began to enjoy that chocolate or “energy bar.”

Used in moderation (as with just about anything in life), caffeine isn’t necessarily a health threat. It may increase your mental focus or clarify your thinking, if taken in small doses. But if you indulge in it a bit too often, the law of diminishing returns sets in. Not only will you derive less and less benefit from every successive cup of coffee, but you’ll in fact add to your exhaustion. Analyze your caffeine intake over several days, and try to determine where your cut-off point is—the point where that coffee or energy drink stops helping, and starts hurting. Then, you can enjoy caffeine in reasonable doses, without compromising your productivity.

Maybe you should formulate a new strategy, and think of ways to boost your energy naturally. The quick fixes you’ve resorted to in the past may actually be hurting more than helping.