I hear myself say the same thing that I hear others frequently say. I am so tired. I did not sleep well last night. I do not feel well. I am becoming increasingly convinced that there is a direct causal link to food. What we eat directly impacts how we feel. If we are malnourished then we are going to feel those effects relatively quickly. It may take a 24 to 48 hour period, but we will start to have a disagreeable reaction to what we are eating or not eating. Dehydration for example has an immediate impact. If our body does not have enough water and electrolytes such as magnesium, potassium, and sodium then this directly impacts cellular function throughout our entire body. You are going to feel bad, and it is going to effect everything. Your mind, your lungs, your joints, your digestive system, everything. You will not recover well. You might have a tough couple of days and because you are partially dehydrated your body will not recover well, your sleep will be disrupted and you will find yourself feeling really sluggish all the time.
Is it that simple? Yes it is. If you are feeling bad and do not know why, look first at the most basic of nutrients the body needs. Water and electrolytes. Those two things your body needs to live. Without them you die, quickly. No doubt if you are not getting enough of them you are going to feel the affects. Most of the time this is immediate, but there is also this compounding effect that occurs. One day of poor eating or undernourishment will not directly cause a negative effect, but string 2 – 3 days together and the compounding of the cumulative result will cause you to suddenly feel…well…like crap.
It is interesting to think that there are several foods and food types that can also have a very negative impact on your mood. Eating a bunch of sugary treats alone will not cause this, but eating a bunch of sugary treats in lieu of healthy rich in Vitamin fruits and vegetables for several days will cause this same effect. Really low vitamin B12 for example will make you so tired that you can barely function, however any drop in your levels will also have a negative effect. You will feel down, not because of that stressful thing in front of you, you will feel down because your body is adjusting to a steady decline in a critical substance that it depends on. I have noticed that blood glucose levels are also very much in play when I am feeling overtired. Too much blood sugar causes your body to regulate with insulin and that effect feels almost like you are ready to go to sleep. Too much of anything causes the body to go into a reactive mode where it will either shut down a particular system, increase another hormone, or going into a protective mode. None of this causes you to feel energetic.
The problem is that none of this is a direct causal pattern. We do not directly feel the impact of our food intake usually. We DO however get a dopamine hit from eating a chocolate bar or some other sugary substance. Ever notice that you can scarf down a whole donut, hardly tasting a thing, but you feel somehow good about it. That dopamine hit is additive and we like the feeling of it, so we will eat 5 donuts not because we need to, not because the extra sugar will help us feel better but because we want the quick spike. During times of stress, we overindulge, not because we are falling victim to cravings but because we are looking for something to improve our mood, to counter the effects of stress. This reaction does not help at all. The sugary treat usually takes the place of something else, perhaps a clean complex carbohydrate source, a nice protein source, a vitamin rich food, or a valuable source of fat with a high density of calories. So your body goes into deficit. Too many of these sessions and then you are really plummeting into deficit and then you are showing up to work free basing on caffeine, tired and grumpy and having a hard time focusing.
This effects is absolutely magnified when you are working out a lot. For example, I am running a lot. I burn through calories and nutrients quickly. I sweat out a lot of water and electrolytes. Consequently, if I am not replenishing the body quickly with the right nutrients from solid food sources then the effects are more severe. A few days of eating poorly, while running significant amounts and my body mind and soul will head into the doldrums really fast. Suddenly nothing works any more, everything hurts, my legs feel like lead and I cannot get a deep breath. My running performance falls through the floor and I find myself struggling to keep focused at all during the day.
In fact we should concerned far less with how much we are eating and more with what we are eating. Your metabolism, if it is never slowed down by poor nutrition habits, will build overtime to an incredible machine. If you stop putting yourself back a week or two with eating crap, then your body will become a machine that can easily burn through excess calories and leave you more energetic to take on tough workouts. In fact, most athletes never struggle with eating too much food, it is always about getting enough food. Gaining the appropriate nutrients to replenish the body is a vital aspect of recovery and if you do not have that dialed in your progress will be slow, if at all.
So are you looking for a reason that you feel tired or weak or out of sorts? Perhaps you should look no further than the food you are eating, or not eating.
Guy Reams
