Issue Date: March 29, 2009
Want more energy?
Grab breakfast, eat veggies, skip sugar
Wake up. Get dressed. Grab some coffee. Get the kids off to school. Drive to work. Next morning: repeat. Does that sound familiar? No wonder Frank Lipman, M.D., director of the Eleven Eleven Wellness Center in New York City, hears so many patients complain about constant lack of energy.
"We are out of sync with our body rhythms," he says. The fast pace we live by isn't natural, causing our bodies to work harder to keep up. And the typical diet high in sugar and processed foods only adds to the fatigue.
Lipman, the author of "Spent: End Exhaustion and Feel Great Again," offers re-energizing dietary tips:
Cut out sugar and processed foods. "It's the most important and hardest thing to do," Lipman says. Eat more fruits and vegetables instead.
Eat a better breakfast. Your metabolism is faster in the morning than it is later in the day, so don't skimp on this meal. "The biggest problem is, American breakfast is poison," Lipman says. Instead of sugary breakfast foods like doughnuts, eat food high in protein and good fats, like a veggie omelet.
Learn to love your veggies. Although it's contrary to the traditional American meal, eat a main course of vegetables with a small side of meat to provide the right balance of nutrients.
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