Diet and lifestyle tips when you’ve burnt out
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If you’ve been experiencing a particularly stressful time that’s left you feeling exhausted and no longer able to cope, there’s every chance that you’ve burnt out. This is no fun.
Here are some tips on how to overcome the impact too much stress has had on your body and how to recover and rebuild your resilience again.
1 |
Watch what and how you eat. Eat a varied healthy diet and set aside time to eat regularly (do not miss meals). |
2 |
Balance your blood sugar. When adrenally fatigued, it is essential that you balance your blood sugar as low blood sugar levels stimulate the stress response, adding a further burden to your burnt out body |
3 |
Eat good oils. Top up your good oil consumption by eating fish and nuts and seeds; use olive, hemp or rapeseed oil to make dressings. |
4 |
Have your five-a-day. Eat five-to-six portions of vegetables every day. Variety is key to boost your intake of nutrients, so include lots of colour (dark green, red, orange, yellow, purple). |
5 |
Keep fruit to a minimum. It’s high in natural sugar which upsets blood sugar balance and in potassium which will upset your salt/water (electrolyte) balance when aldosterone is low. |
6 |
Use salt. To rebalance your electrolytes, salt your food to taste – this raises sodium levels affected by low aldosterone. Avoid table salt. Instead use Himalayan rock salt or sea salt which contain minerals. |
7 |
Eats foods high in B vitamins. B vitamins are required for energy production in the cells. Good sources include vegetables, wholewheat bread and pasta, and grains such as brown rice. |
8 |
Avoid: sugar, caffeine, fruit juices, hydrogenated fat, junk and processed food. |
9 |
Take some gentle exercise but avoid competitive sports. Gentle swimming, walking, yoga, Tai Chi are all good. Exercise at a pace that does not leave you feeling more tired the next day and most importantly, is enjoyable. |
10 |
Go to bed early (before 10.30pm) – whatever you do, don’t sit up with a second wind. |
Learn more about dealing with stress in my best-selling book, ‘How to Prevent Burnout’.