How do you deal with constant feelings of fatigue?
jonagolddreams
Posts: 39 Member
I have two children, one is school-aged and the other is under a year old. The youngest has never slept well, but lately has been going through a sleep regression and I am getting 4 hours of sleep or less per night. I try to grab a nap when he does, but it's less and less these days and the rest of the day I'm chasing him around the house. Most days I am struggling just to function, how do you dig deeper and find energy to exercise while balancing the rest of your responsibilities? My husband is only home on the weekends, and will soon be gone for that too, so it's just me. I want to get healthier before the weekend help is gone too, but I feel like I'm in survival mode right now. Any tips or past experience is welcome.
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It's exhausting when they're little. I wish I had some advice, but sometimes I still feel like I'm in survival mode. I work, try to keep the house clean, cook meals, go to band concerts and school plays and then crash into bed so I can do it all again the next day. My twice-a-week judo class is the only thing in my life I really do for ME, so I drag the kids even though they complain about having to sit through it. More exercise would be nice, but I just can't do it right now.1
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When I was still nursing I used advocares Spark, sort of pricey but definitely gets you going and the pediatrician gave me the ok. Now I drink whatever preworkout is on hand here. I also used to drink strong coffee (honestly the instant tasters choice has more caffeine then regular coffee) and green tea during the day (which is also very good for your metabolism)0
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I started really slowly with walking 3x a week for 20-30 minutes. Then I started adding time, doing it more days. My pace picked up naturally.
I knew that 20 minutes of walking at a moderate pace was not going to leave me more tired or feel punishing. What I did notice was that I felt energized. Exercise begat exercise and I just kept taking baby steps to increase my intensity when I felt something had become too easy.
I feel like a different person 10 months later. On my most tired days, getting out the door still sucks but I know I will feel better when I'm done so I go. I do have anxiety as well, so it's a critical component of managing that.
It's not the most helpful advice but start small, and then just keep doing it until your body and mind learns that it actually fuels your energy reserves instead of draining them.2 -
I have 4 kids and work full time so the only way to get over the tired hump for me is working out when everyone is sleeping (early AM) and drink a Spark like Jordon5799 said. For me, caffeine is a must. The early morning workout gives me major energy and then I build on it with my AM Spark. Another thing that helps me is meal planning/prepping on Sunday so I don't have to think about my food for the week, which keeps me going instead of slowing me down. I have 20lbs to lose but I'm on a roll so hopefully it keeps up!
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I found a gym that had a preschool in it!! It was tough, but was definitely worth it for me.0
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Coffee is my love language so I drink plenty of that. But when I was feeling exhausted (like, to the core of my being) I went to my naturopath and got some blood work done. We found my Iron levels and B12 levels were super low...which directly relate to energy levels. So I started taking B12 and the difference was astounding. I felt like my regular tired self, not my "emptying the dishwasher took all my energy" self.
You might make sure you are taking regular daily vitamins.0 -
I have found for me that of course working out helps my energy levels but a vitamin drink called zipfizz mid day helps tons!! Its just vitamins, specifally B12 so its great for a pick me up instead of a treat0
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Our young son is 4, he’s not been the greatest sleeper and is very energetic. On top of this I have had full time study and a very demanding outdoor job with horses. I have ankylosing spondylitis and fatigue comes with it. I find a b12 vitamin is a great booster along with iron. Eating good foods and plenty of protein helps. When you have kids it’s very easy to loose yourself and the cycle of parenting can really be mentally draining even when we love it so much. Find some time for yourself, even if it’s 5mins to paint your nails or straighten your hair, when the kids go to bed have a bath and read a book. Some times relaxing the body and soul is just as good if not better than workinh out. If your trying to loose weight just stay within your calories and don’t push for workouts until you and your child are in a better more settled routine.0
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