Beating Fatigue

One of the top reasons people list for not taking care of themselves is: “I don’t have the energy”.  It’s a pretty compelling reason.  If you have ever tried to work out or do something strenuous when your body was working against you, you know it is pretty taxing.  So here are some facts about how energy works and how you can increase your energy levels.

How does body energy work?

All your cells have power plants in them called mitochondria (except for red blood cells).   The mitochondria pump out ATP (adenosine triphosphate).  The ATP is “burned” by your body for energy. Adenosine triphospate used during exercise is replaced by both odidative and non-oxidative resynthesis.  You can worry about that part later. 

The amount of energy you have throughout the day depends on how much ATP your mitochondria can produce.   Your ATP production levels vary according to all sorts of factors like diet, genetics, thyroid activity and… age.  Mitochondria efficiency can decrease by up to 1% per year.  Over 10 years, that is a huge drop in energy levels. 

You might be tempted to think that certain “lucky” people can exercise because they naturally have lots of energy.  But it’s just the opposite – those people have lots of energy because they exercise. 
Issues like Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and diabetes have been linked to mitochondrial dysfunction, so taking care of your mitochondria should be on your To-Do list.

Things that can cause low energy

Low levels of Vitamin D, Niacin, B vitamins, zinc, iron, iodine, testosterone, and serotonin can cause fatigue.  If nothing else is helping you, talk to your doc about checking your levels.

If you hop onto Pubmed, you will see that there are a zillion reasons people have low energy.  If you have fatigue that is not helped by sleep, ask your doctor for help.   On the bright side, for nearly every cause of low energy two of the primary solutions are the same!

What can I do about it? Exercise!

The good news is that you can increase your body’s energy production by exercising!  Working out increases your energy in three ways:

1.       Increased blood flow to the brain helps manage stress and make decision making easier

2.       Increased mitochondria in your cells which in turn increases your ATP resynthesis rate

3.       Stronger muscle and cardiovascular system make your daily tasks easier

We all know we should be working out.  But what if you are trying to get healthy while fighting fatigue? Start easy.  Walk for 5 minutes on the morning.  If that goes well, do another 5 at night.  Do that 3 times per week and then increase your time slowly.  Your body WILL adapt by producing more energy – even if you feel like you want to die during the exercise.  Mitochondrial specialist Dr. Donald Johns calls this staying within your “energy envelope”.  You want to work out enough to get your body running at a higher speed without being unable to move two days later.

What can I do about it? Diet!

This part isn’t rocket science. Eat nutrient rich foods that are high in lean protein and low in fat and salt.  Some people maintain that if you exercise you can eat whatever you want.   This is sort of true.  However, you can’t exercise out of a bad diet.  Your energy levels WILL reflect the way you eat.  Eventually, so will your body.  Not all calories are equal and your mitochondria know it.

As a side note, a multivitamin won’t actually help you unless you have a specific deficiency in some area. Before you start taking eye-of-newt or whatever weird supplements that your neighbor sells – talk to your doctor.  If you actually DO have a mitochondrial dysfunction you may need coenzyme Q10, creatine, B12 or any number of things.  Let a real doctor decide what you need.

If low energy levels are keeping you from being healthy, start with some diet and exercise changes.  If that doesn’t help over several weeks, talk to your doc and find out if something else might be going on.  The good news is that no matter what your problem is, exercise is usually one of the solutions. It’s time to start using that fact for your own advantage.

 Sources

Wu I-C et al, “Metabolic Analysis of 13C-labeled Pyruvate for Noninvasive Assessment of Mitochondrial Function,” Annals NY Acad Sci 1201 (2010): 111-120.

Lo M-C et al, “Glycoxidative Stress-induced Mitophagy Modulates Mitochondrial Fates,” Annals NY Acad Sci 1201 (2010): 1-7.

Clay A et al, “Mitochondrial Disease,” Chest 120 (2001): 634-648.

Kim J et al, “Role of Mitochondrial Dysfunction in Insulin Resistance,” Circ Res 102, no. 4 (2008): 401-414.

Lane RJM et al, “Muscle Fibre Characteristics and Lactate Responses to Exercise in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome,” J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 64 (1998): 362-367.

Choi E-Y, Cho Y-O, “Effect of Vitamin B-6 Deficiency on Antioxidative Status in Rats with Exercise-Induced Oxidative Stress,” Nutrition Res Practice 3, no. 3 (2009): 208-211.

Personal communication from Donald Johns, M.D. when he was chairperson of Neurology at Beth Israel-Deaconess Hospital in Boston, MA.