Before we venture to elaborate on the ways and means to increase stamina, and why it is important for day-to-day life, we must have an idea of what does stamina means in health parlance. Stamina is the capacity of a healthy body to undertake prolonged hours of work without being physically tired or mentally exhausted. In the other words, the body and the mind can acquire sustainable energy for work that requires endurance and energy level for prolonged hours of work.
Importance of Stamina
Having known what stamina is all about, it can hardly be exaggerated the significance in our daily life. Life has become fast-paced and competitive in. Gone are the days when the leisured class would spend their days in idle amusements. Now, to have a decent livelihood, almost everyone has to put effort for long hours at their workplaces. Stamina is required so that they can endure the pressure of work and remain joyful and energetic for the other vagaries of life.
Who would require increased stamina?
For physical and mental wellbeing, almost everyone would require an enhancement of sustainable energy level. However, it is quite natural to get exhausted after long hours of work at the office or factories, or after a rigorous workout. To restore the balance of the body and get back the renewed energy level, all you need is peace of mind, healthy food, good rest, and a daily workout regime.
Some people, mostly those who are in middle age, complain about getting exhausted easily. They feel a sort of breathlessness after a day of basic daily activities. This is the initial sign that you would require to take initiatives to increase your level of stamina. This happens mostly to those who lead a sedentary life, or are under too much stress, either physically or mentally.
This article would elaborate upon the simple and accessible means to increase your daily sustainable energy level, by some simple lifestyle changes, diet, and a brisk work-out level.
Ways to increase stamina
- Exercise regularly
One of the surest means to increase stamina is to be consistent about your daily workout regime. Even if you feel low in energy level, you should persevere and push through your daily exercise, which would gradually enhance your energy level. With time and patience, you would notice that your stamina and endurance have increased to make you look and feel more active. Recent researches have shown beyond doubt, that people experiencing post-work fatigue, would gain their lost stamina after six weeks of consistent and brisk workout.
- Eat well-balanced meals
Food is the fuel of the body and the mind. It provides us with the necessary energy to carry on with our daily routine and plays a major role in sustaining stamina for longer hours. You should eat a well-balanced meal, consisting of nutritious food. You should take light meals at smaller intervals, instead of taking heavy meals after long intervals. Light meals taken at short intervals would help your body to utilize the nutrients properly. It helps the body to assimilate nutrients and release the necessary energy more efficiently.
You should avoid junk food, and foods rich in unsaturated fat. Eat enough vegetables, fruits, and white meat like a chicken. You should avoid red meat, as far as possible, as red meat might produce other health complications in the long run. Eating fish is also recommended, as fish contains healthy protein and beneficial fats, which are high in energy and low in saturated fat and cholesterol.
- Drink enough water
While you include a daily exercise regime and healthy meals in your daily routine, you should now check upon the level of hydration for your body. Many people drink less water than is required by their body which leaves them feeling fatigued. Researches have shown that a well-hydrated body, performs better at training, and gets less exhausted after prolonged hours of work. Here, it may be mentioned that drinking too much water is not beneficial either.
Along with the daily intake of water, you should also include other liquid sources in your food regime. You can add naturally occurring juices like coconut water, orange juice, lemon water, barley water, etc. These nutritious juices would keep your body hydrated, and provide enough energy and nutrients which are greatly beneficial for the body. It helps to build stamina.
There are also naturally occurring energy drinks available at the store. You can try them, but with caution, lest they contain artificial substitutes which may be harmful to your body in the long run. So before you buy an energy drink, inspect the nutritional information carefully, and then opt for the one which contains naturally occurring juices.
- Try yoga and meditation
In this fast-paced and competitive world, one of the main reasons for physical and mental fatigue is too much stress at workplaces. We must realize that the body and the mind are inextricably linked so that when your mind is stressed out, it releases toxins that affects the body and decrease its capacity to work or enjoy. When you are physically or mentally stressed out, you would get tired easily, so that your stamina level would be descending gradually, until you feel completely exhausted.
Medical researchers have shown beyond doubt, that practicing yoga and meditation de-stress the body and the mind. Once you practice meditation, you would realize that if you dive deeper into the inner realms of mind, there is a great calm residing there, where all chaos of the surface disappears and you find a sort of contentment which is all the more important for your overall well-being. It may be added here that meditation should be practiced under the guidance of an adept teacher. It requires time, patience, and perseverance to learn yoga and meditation. Once you get used to it, you would reach a level of calmness of mind, and fitness of the body, with an enhanced level of stamina for both your work and your leisurely activities.
