Your Daily Diet and Energy Levels
In our day-to-day lives we don’t always get to plan what we eat and when we are going to eat it. A normal working day probably takes over and we often eat whatever we can get our hands at a time decided by our work or busy schedule. Of course we want to be as productive as we can during the day but is making our eating habits fit around work the best way to be productive?
Energy Sources
If food is our energy source and energy is what we use to do everything, including sleep, then it makes sense that the better the energy source the better the energy output and productivity. We get energy from three main sources: carbohydrates, sugars and fats. These sources come from a variety of foods and liquids and there are bad sources and good sources. To measure the effect of these foods on our bodies and the usefulness of their energy output we use the glycaemic index (the measure of foods ability to raise our blood sugar levels). They have even named a diet after this.
Bad Sources
The bad sources of energy are probably from the most popular range of foods. High sugar content foods such as sweets, cake, fizzy drinks, chocolate etc. and the not so obvious types such as white rice, pastas and white breads. The reason these are bad is because the energy they give you is immediate and very high (it has a high glycaemic value). However our bodies can use it very quickly and we get an energy rush. What follows an energy rush is an immediate energy drop or deficit. (fig. 1). The graph shows approximately what will happen to your energy levels when you consume these types of foods throughout the day. The black line shows a good level of energy. So you can see from all the peaks and troughs of the graph that if your day is fuelled with these foods then you will find your energy levels tend to be very short-term and you will be far less productive and eventually more tired and less driven. Not very good if you want to move up the pay ladder, great news if you don’t like your job and you want to leave!
Good Sources
Of course we need sugar, carbohydrates and fats but we need them in a far less refined state. We need to make them much more complex. If they are more complex our bodies will take longer to digest them and therefore the energy is released far more slowly. With a slower energy release and regular eating you will find yourself able to maintain a far better level of productivity. The good sources come from anything that is more fibrous, so in the fruit world a banana which is nice and soft will give you a very quick energy release (high glycaemic value), whereas an apple which is fibrous and not nearly as soft will release the energy more slowly.
Eat your veg
Another trick is to eat lots of vegetables with your meals. This isn’t only essential for your mineral and vitamin intake, but it also helps slow down the energy release process by binding to your other food and thus making it more complex. This of course does not mean that the salad in a burger makes the burger more healthy! It does mean that when combined with other fresh foods and your whole grain breads, rice and pastas, you will be able to get your energy levels maintained at a good level (fig. 2) and say goodbye to those days that seem such a struggle. Fig.2 graph shows a much more controlled energy release and next to no troughs or energy deficits. This will allow your day’s productivity to improve. It goes to show – you really are what you eat!
Glycaemic Index Guide
Well of course you will need to know where the food you eat is on the glycaemic index. As you can imagine the list is endless and I cannot fit it on this post. However “Home of the Glycaemic Index” at glycaemicindex.com has a database where you can type in the food you want and it will give you the glycaemic value for that food and several different variations. (Remember you want low numbers). It will also give you a far more in-depth guide to all the benefits of the glycaemic index diet and what it’s all about.
What to do now
Well, you may find some surprises as to which foods have high G.I. values but basically if it’s not from natural sources then it is more than likely not good for you energy-wise or health-wise. So you have a choice: are you going to continuing eating all those nice sweet foods and greasy takeaways as a regular thing or are they now going to be a little treat that you reward yourself with maybe once a month and make your main source of energy the good healthy food? By doing this you will see many benefits. One important benefit is a longer, healthier life, another is that you will be less likely to suffer from heart related diseases. You will also reduce your overall body fat% and will develop a more happy and energy-filled outlook on life. (Not bad for starters!) Or you can keep eating the junk food and never have the energy to achieve anything with your life. Most of us have the luxury of choice, but what we don’t have is the luxury of the “it will never happen to me” attitude because sooner or later your choice of diet will catch up with you and your children and their children. It really is time to make a change and I promise that the results are going to be worth the bit of willpower it will take.
