How to Fight Fatigue in 15 Energizing Ways

Dragging through your day on Monday morning after a wild weekend is nothing new to most of us, but when that same Monday morning fatigue continues throughout the other days of the week, including the weekends, it becomes a serious health issue. Learning how to fight fatigue can be as simple as taking dietary supplements and as complex as making a significant dietary change.

In this article, we will list 15 energizing ways to fight fatigue through diet and behavioral changes, but they are not all inclusive cures. Chronic fatigue can be an indicator of a more severe condition for which you need to consult a health care professional.

How to Fight Fatigue in 15 Energizing Ways

1. Spinach

When we consider foods that fight fatigue, one of the best places to start is with spinach. Spinach is one of the most iron-dense whole foods that you can eat. Its iron content helps to deliver more oxygen to your blood cells and perk them up. Also, spinach contains magnesium, potassium, and vitamins B and C, which all contribute to boosting metabolism.

What to do:

Try to include 1 to 2 cups of spinach in your daily diet.
You can add raw spinach leaves to sandwiches, salads, or add it to your veggie juice or smoothie.
You can also add cooked spinach to stews, soups, and casseroles.

2. Red Bell Peppers

Red bell peppers are probably a surprising addition to our list of remedies for how to fight fatigue, but they have the necessary nutrients to be a major contributor. One of the best sources of vitamin C of all foods, bell peppers help to reduce free-radicals in your blood and reduce the level of the stress hormone cortisol.

Just 1 cup of a red bell pepper daily will be more than sufficient to keep your energy and metabolism high. You can include red bell peppers in your diet in raw, baked, roasted, grilled, cooked or stuffed form.

What to do:

Add 1 cup of red bell peppers to your diet daily by adding them to your favorite salad, soup, casserole, eggs or ethnic dishes (Asian and Mexican come to mind).
Stuffed and grilled peppers are also a viable option for adding bell peppers into your diet.

3. Walnuts

Another food which is useful in how to fight fatigue is the walnut. High in omega-3 fatty acids and protein, walnuts are one of the most natural ways to fight fatigue and depression which is often the root cause of chronic fatigue. Besides these nutrients, walnuts are also rich in fiber and minerals which assist in enhanced cellular function.

What to do:

Work on adding at least ¼ cup of walnuts to your daily diet.
Salads, trail mix snacks, yogurt, desserts, and smoothies are all great places to add walnuts into your daily diet.

4. Beans

Also, top performers on our list of foods that fight fatigue are beans. Beans are something of a super-food because they contain a favorable ratio of complex carbohydrates and protein. Their array of minerals, low sugar content and high fiber make them ideal when it comes to giving you a boost of energy which can be sustained over a long period.

What to do:

Different types of beans in soups, salads, casseroles, and entrees can help encourage adding a minimum of 1 cup of beans to your diet on a daily basis.

5. Oatmeal

Oatmeal is almost the perfect remedy when it comes to how to fight fatigue. Its high-quality carbohydrates and protein help to fuel the brain and muscles to give you a boost of energy. Oatmeal also includes magnesium, phosphorus and vitamin B1, which all contribute to metabolism and energy production. Need we mention that it also gives your intestines and digestive system a boost?

What to do:

A bowl of oatmeal with nuts and berries in the morning is an excellent way to give yourself a boost into the day.
Cooked oats can also be added to yogurt, smoothies and various snacks throughout the day to keep your energy running strong.

6. Watermelon

More than just a great picnic food, watermelon is also an awesome addition to our list of how to fight fatigue. Fatigue is often caused by dehydration, especially on a hot day or after a heavy workout. Rich in water and electrolytes, watermelon gives you hydration boost, but it also contains potassium, vitamin C, lycopene, beta-carotene, and iron. These nutrients are essential in fighting off fatigue.

What to do:

Watermelon can be added to salads or yogurt or just eaten (and slurped) as is.
Add watermelon juice to your favorite sports drinks and smoothies to add both flavor and nutrition to your after workout routine.

7. Yogurt

The high protein, carbohydrate and gut-enhancing probiotics of yogurt make it a top remedy on our list of how to fight fatigue. Yogurt’s probiotic properties aid the production of healthy gut-flora, which contribute to better nutrient absorption and a healthier digestive tract. These factors contribute to reducing and eliminating symptoms of chronic fatigue syndrome.

What to do:

Add at least 1 cup of plain yogurt to your diet on a daily basis.
To enhance its flavor, utilize berries, nuts, and oatmeal and get that little extra boost your body needs.

8. Matcha Green Tea

Matcha green tea is another heavy hitter when it comes to how to fight fatigue. Matcha, which means powdered, is the crushed up leaves of the same plant as is used to make green and black teas, but the entire leaf is consumed rather than just the extract. By consuming the entire leaf, you receive highly concentrated benefits of the antioxidants, vitamins, minerals and amino acids, giving you a long-term boost of energy.

What to do:

Add at least one cup of matcha green tea into your daily diet.
Prepare and consume the tea in the traditional fashion.
You can also add ½ to 1 tsp of the powder to your smoothies, juice and sports drinks.

9. Pumpkin Seeds

One of the best snack foods on our list of how to fight fatigue is pumpkin seeds. Loaded with minerals and B vitamins, these high protein seeds also contain a high concentration of omega-3 fatty acids which all work together to boost energy. Additionally, the amino acid tryptophan in pumpkin seeds helps contribute to better and more productive sleep, which can be a major factor when it comes to how to fight chronic fatigue.

What to do:

Add ¼ to ½ cups of pumpkin seeds to your daily diet.
Eat a handful by themselves or add them to your favorite trail mix.

10. Bananas

Potassium is an essential mineral which helps your body convert sugar into energy and bananas are loaded with both. Therefore, they are an excellent remedy for how to fight fatigue. Bananas are also rich in fiber, vitamins, omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids and carbohydrates. Bananas are considered an antidepressant food as well, after all, who has ever seen a depressed monkey.

What to do:

Eating 1 or 2 bananas daily isn’t hard to accomplish because they can be put together with almost anything.
Smoothies, fruit salads, shakes, desserts, trail mix (dried), cereal and banana bread are just some of the many ways to add them into your daily diet.

11. Potato Water

One of the least common natural ways to fight fatigue included on our list is potato water. By boosting your intake of magnesium and potassium with potato water, you fight off dehydration, which is a major contributor to fatigue. Don’t expect a jolt of energy from potato water like from a high caffeine or high sugar booster, but you will get a prolonged-release boost of energy that will last a lot longer.

What to do:

Slice a medium, unpeeled potato (do not peel it because there are a ton of minerals in the peels).
Soak the slices in a quart jar of water overnight.
Drink the water first thing in the morning.

12. Become Active

One of the best remedies in how to fight fatigue isn’t something you consume, but something you should do. Often times fatigue, depression, dizziness, and achiness go hand in hand with long periods of inactivity. Getting fresh air, sunshine and just getting your blood flowing can help get rid of fatigue.

What to do:

Spend at least 5 minutes walking or exercising for every hour you spend sitting or lying down.
Try not to sit or lie down for more than 2 hours in duration without some form of physical activity.

13. Citrus Juices

Also among our best remedies in how to fight fatigue are citrus juices. Lemonade and limeade are two of the best ways to perk you up while also hydrating you, but grapefruit and orange juice can also contribute to beating fatigue. The magic of this remedy is in the electrolyte and antioxidant properties of citrus fruits.

What to do:

Squeeze half of a fresh lemon or lime into a 12 oz. to 16 oz. glass of water.
Add 1 to 2 tsp of honey as required.
Add ice if it’s summer time or drink it warm if it’s winter time.
Repeat this twice daily.

14. Magnesium

One of the most important minerals involved in how to fight fatigue is magnesium. This mineral is involved in more than 300 enzyme functions in your body. These enzymes regulate a wide variety of biochemical reactions including muscle and nerve function, protein synthesis and energy production.

What to do:

Adults can take up to 350 mg of magnesium supplement daily.
You will get far more benefit out of consuming foods rich in magnesium, which include: dark green vegetables, nuts, seeds, whole grains, cold water fish, and bananas.

15. Cat Naps

When you are considering ways to fight fatigue, you really can’t discount the value of cat naps. Can naps are a way to shut down all systems and allow your body to rid itself of stress and reset. It is sort of like the control, alt, delete function on your computer.

What to do:

Darken the room and cover up if necessary.
Recline rather than lying down like you do when you go to sleep.
Relax and nap for between 20 and 30 minutes.
Napping longer or lying down is likely to make you feel groggy.

Conclusion

Don’t allow that Monday morning feeling to hang over you throughout the rest of the week. Armed with our list of how to fight fatigue, you can give yourself and your routine a boost of energy. Implement one or several of our 15 energizing suggestions over the next several weeks and see what happens. Be sure to add any questions, comments or success stories concerning how to fight chronic fatigue in the section below.

Images from depositphotos.com.