Ask HN: Do you have a high level of energy throughout the day?

[dhruvkar]

If you have a consistent, high level of energy throughout the day, I'm interested in how you do it.

In the last 4 years, I've given up caffeine entirely, switched to a 60-70% raw food diet and started a consistent Kriya practice [0]. It's gotten me a lot closer to a high level of energy all day, but still not satisfactory.

What are you doing for this? Any tips to share?

0. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kriy%C4%81#:~:text=Kriy%C4%81%20means%20'action%2C%20deed%2C,effect%2C%20prepare%2C%20undertake'.

[hilux]

That's a very broad question. Since you're asking, I assume that you do not enjoy high energy all day.

First of all, the cause for low energy may be mental or it may be physical.

Don't assume that because you feel tired in your body, the root cause is obviously physical. Long-term therapy helped me a lot. I also meditate semi-regularly, and try to maintain a good network of friends I see regularly. (AND, VERY IMPORTANT ... exclude negative people, if necessary family, from my life!)

Moving on to the body, it sounds like you're asking about "good health." Here's what works for me (has evolved over time):

* Early morning sun exposure, ideally a run.

* Keeping a healthy weight through intermittent fasting and low-carb eating.

* Regular resistance training - squats, pushups, pullups, can be done at home.

* Did I mention low-carb eating? Say no to lunchtime rice or noodles. Or perhaps say no to lunch.

* Very limited alcohol. No recreational drugs.

* Feeding that gut microbiome with lots of prebiotics and probiotics.

* Using a standing desk for about half the day.

* Avoid most meds except in case of emergency, i.e. stay off the prescription cascade.

* Regularly getting a good night's sleep, again without using meds. I recommend a weighted blanket.

I do drink coffee and tea, which are both reputed to be healthy, and I eat lots of other delicious cooked food. (Often without the rice/bread/noodles.) I am highly skeptical of raw-food diets - they seem completely anti-evolutionary.

Good luck!

[yummypaint]

Everyone is different, but i have experimented quite alot with what works for me:

Sleep 4 hours twice per 24 hr cycle, spaced 10-14 hours apart. No caffeine, lots of water. This makes a massive difference.

I reach my "final form" when adding a keto diet to the mix. No energy crashes ever, it's like being a machine. It can also be fun.

That being said it's nontrivial to schedule things in that way, and overall I'm happier when i get to see my family more by sleeping an 8 hour block in exchange for the performance benefits.

Also don't forget to do creative/fun things outside work. Watching TV doesn't count. Nothing kills my productivity faster than feeling like a work robot.

[bethekind]

Does the polyphasic sleep ever interfere with work, family or other obligations?

I've heard that's the hardest part of polyphasic. How long have you kept this up? I'm curious

[previnder]

If I remember correctly, Leonardo da Vinci also had a similar routine.

[crazygringo]

A largely raw food diet might be great for a lot of things, but it's not necessarily going to be great for energy.

Make sure you're getting enough protein, and then enough nutrients generally to fuel your body at the right rates.

For some people this means a lot of slow-digesting grains, other people do better with less carbs and more fats.

And then some people need more to keep their blood sugar from being too low, whether it's bananas and honey at the start of the day or crackers between meals or whatever.

My biggest advice is that energy can be very linked to diet, and don't be ideological about it. Experiment widely and figure out what works best for you. It's truly bizarre just how differently different people respond to different proportions of macronutrients, or things like raw vs cooked, or things like intermittent fasting.

[lakotasapa]

I do 300+ caffeine daily. However one thing this does "wake" me up is short walk outside in full sunlight.

Also found having a good convo on an interesting topic. Find it very satisfying however, that may be due to my loneliness :)

And what others have said: B complex, B12 in particular.

Lastly, I found one of my best workout days are the days where I did NOT want to work out. Those days I flip a coin and do whatever it says. So I find it's a lot of mind over matter.

Like when your football wins, you wanna go out and run a marathon!

[Someone1234]

Have you considered that your definition of "high level of energy" and other people's may not be the same?

For example Ballmer's famous Developers Developers Developers speech[0] is NOT my "high energy" and in fact if I ever had that much "energy" I'd consider myself to be having an emotional breakdown.

My "high energy" is: zero brain-fog, good mental acuity, and not feeling sluggish. I've found light fasting to help with that (e.g. only eating dinners). But it isn't really clear what you're trying to achieve and or what success would look like.

[0] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxbJw8PrIkc

[dafelst]

Ballmer was notorious for his (alleged) cocaine usage, that speech was almost certainly under the influence.

[matt3210]

I drink (literally) 20 cups of Folgers coffee at work per day. Also a 12oz Red Bull for breakfast. Work provides a large lunch and I skip dinner. Essentially OMAD with tons of caffeine. I also sleep like a baby because no caffeine after 2pm (starting the day at 6). I am able to hyper focus 11 hours a day 6 days a week on this diet.

Edit: reading this back and I see I might have a problem with caffeine but I’m not ready to confront that yet.

Edit 2: does hyperfocus == energy? I think so

[alok99]

20 cups before 2 pm? How??

[heyoni]

Stop editing your post and cut back on coffee lol

[adhd_news]

If you're having trouble staying focused and having high energy, especially while working, you might want to consider if you have ADHD. Medication has completely changed the lives of many people that I know for the better.

To be clear: I'm not a doctor, I'm not saying you must have ADHD based on two sentences. I'm not saying that medication is your only option, or would even be appropriate for you. I'm suggesting simply that you take a look at one of the self-report scales like "Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale" (ASRS) and see if it fits your experiences, and if it does maybe talk to your healthcare professional about it.

[rramadass]

You can never have "high level of energy throughout the day" everyday. A lot depends on your Food, Sleep, Time-of-the-day, Past Activities etc. That said you can have good high alertness, cheerfulness, positive mentality, energy for most of the day by following some simple disciplines. Here is mine;

1) From Hatha Yoga: Do Kapalabhati, Bhastrika, Nauli kriya, Mula Bandha, Uddiyana Bandha. All should be done gently without too much force. End with massaging the head lightly.

2) Loosen all your joints particularly hip/pelvic area and then do some stretches (Yoga asanas are recommended).

3) Do deep "Hindu squats" aka "Baithaks" (using the ball of the foot to push off the ground while getting up) and "Hindu Pushups" aka "Dand" in sequence. The squat raises the energy from the sole of the foot and the pushup conducts it through out the body.

4) Read Dr. Satchin Panda's book "The Circadian Code" (and watch his videos on Youtube; eg. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fciGNBN0nKM) and setup your daily activities in accordance with your circadian rhythm.

[rpastuszak]

What works for me:

0. Accept that your energy and dopamine levels will slowly go down throughout the day

1. Get enough sleep

2. Take a short nap or meditate (10-15m) after lunch to clear my head.

3. Exercise (even a little bit helps)

4. Accept that you’re not a robot and you will have worse days.

I’m oversimplifying here a bit but: historically humans worked in cycles (one busy day followed by one slower day) and our current approach is not sustainable.

[idontwantthis]

> Accept that you’re not a robot and you will have worse days.

Love this advice and wish I’d accepted it sooner. Give up! You’ll feel better tomorrow and no one will care that you halfassed your work for a day. No one will even know.

[solumunus]

For most of this year I’ve needed a lunch time nap and not been very satisfied with overall energy levels. Unrelated to that I decided to lose some weight, and after losing 6kg (~13lb) the difference in my energy levels has been astounding. I haven’t needed a nap since and my productivity has certainly increased.

[doubled112]

I don't know what you mean by high energy? I consider my energy level adequate.

There are no secrets, it's just how I run. I only eat "OK", certainly not great. I drink a pot or more of coffee per day, but only water other than that. I don't drink a lot, or do any drugs, not sure if that helps.

I wake up, I get kids ready, start my workday, take them to the bus, continue my work day, pick the kids up, and then I go wherever the night takes me. Sometimes I need to finish my day, my wife and I are going to need to feed kids, wash kids, get their homework going, get them somewhere, etc.

That's probably 7AM-7PM, sometimes closer to 9PM. Most days I'm ready to go until about midnight or so, at a fairly steady, sometimes brisk, pace.

[smileysteve]

My smart watch has a smart alarm on it; it helps me wake up "on the right side of bed". Combined with 8 hours of sleep.

Also, find the tasks that motivate you; working out, working on your car, working on a house, working on a side project. Avoiding TV if possible.

[samorozco]

I will say my energy levels have seriously increased in the last few years and I 100% think it is because I have stopped working out as much. When I worked out a lot I felt like I had a lot more energy and I have noticed similar things from other people.

[valianteffort]

Also possible you weren't doing as much to manage recovery and protein synthesis as you could. I would be too sedentary if I didn't workout.

[solumunus]

Your comment is contradicting itself. You’re saying you had a lot more when you worked out a lot and the same now you don’t, which is it?

[sheepscreek]

Are you saying you gained more energy by working out, or do you feel more energetic now that your workouts are less intense/long and more balanced?

[syndacks]

Cocaine and gummy bears

[Quinzel]

The single most helpful thing for me is having a relatively consistent bedtime and wake-up time. The next important things are: Drinking plenty of water, and exercising every day (It doesn't have to be intense exercises like a full-blown gym session or a long-distance run or bike ride, but you're body is designed to move, so go for a walk... or do something).

For normal healthy individuals without other medical conditions, it really doesn't take anything special, it's just taking care of the base needs, and then from there everything else kind of flows.

[givemeethekeys]

The highest energy I've ever had was achieved by: - Using a standing desk.

- Creating my own list of tasks and trying to get through as much of it as I could.

- Skipping breakfast, keeping my lunch small, drinking plenty of water.

- Working out before dinner, and finally having my first big meal.

- Getting a full night's sleep. Usually skipping coffee because it wasn't needed.

Even on days when I had a large lunch, standing ensured that I didn't fall asleep at my desk.

[riku_iki]

Came to the same plan except I drink coffee at first half of the day to reduce hunger.

[movedx]

Let me ask you a question: all of those changes you made would require discipline and tracking. How did you go about solving those problems? How did you implement these ideas/systems?

[jelsisi]

I've struggled with this a lot and haven't found the answer yet, but I will say that having a light dinner, just enough not to make me wake up at night, has improved my sleep a lot. I also stopped running and have switched over to weight training and that has helped as well. I think everyone's body is different and that these comments will only go so far for any given individual.

[hnthrowaway0315]

From what I observe, some people are just constantly high. I found many examples in sales/marketing. Tired yet high.

[bethekind]

Like edibles?

[jasfi]

Here are some tips:

- Use caffeine for a boost when you need it, but try to go without when possible.

- Try a light green tea instead of coffee for your caffeine boost.

- Take B Complex, strong enough for your needs. Others vitamins such as C, D3, Magnesium and Zinc are good too.

- Try disconnecting from all screens whenever you're not working, where possible.

- Consistently get enough sleep.