Boost Your Energy

Give Yourself a Visual Aid

Olympic athletes who visualize themselves outperforming the competition win more medals. What's their secret? Science shows that imagining an activity fires up the same parts of your brain that work when you're actually doing it. Consider this study published in the Journal of Neurophysiology: One group of participants exercised a finger for a month, while another group just imagined exercising it. Without even lifting a finger, the visualizing group improved the digit's strength by 22 percent, while the group that exercised got a 30 percent boost. When you hit a slump, visualize yourself as full of energy: delivering a strong presentation in your next important meeting, knocking out an hour of power yoga, or flying through a huge pile of paperwork.

Think Premium Thoughts

Ever find yourself obsessing over something dumb you said in a meeting? Notice how draining it can be to keep those thoughts going? Any thought that's repeated over and over will get trapped in your head sooner or later. But unlike negative messages, positive ones don't stress you out. So fill your mind with premium thoughts. Premium thoughts are like premium gas: high-quality fuel that keeps your body and mind charging forward instead of spinning in place. Next time you're stuck reciting a negative mental script, try putting a glass-half-full spin on the situation. For example: "Sure, the hotel was a dump, but we laughed the whole time we were there," or "He broke my heart, but not my spirit. Next!”

Pump Up the Jams

You can be singing along to your favorites in the car or cycling to the beat at the gym; the effect is the same: Music can help you sleep, reduce anxiety, and keep you invigorated. A study at York St. John University in the UK found that people who listened to music while holding a dumbbell straight out in front of them were able to hold it 10 percent longer than those who heard nothing in the background. So when you need a jolt of energy—to get moving in the morning, to master a tough strength-training routine—crank it up.

Expand Your Mind

Meditation lowers your heart rate, eases muscle tension, and provides a burst of endorphins that makes you feel happier and more alert. The goal of the practice is to simply exist in the moment. For two or three minutes every hour or so, tear yourself away from your computer screen, close your eyes or find a pleasant spot to focus on, and breathe deeply and slowly, paying attention only to your breathing. When you're at the bottom of an exhalation, gently contract your lower abs to push every bit of air out, then allow your lungs to slowly fill again.

Try this A.M. Trick

The yogic breathing practice known as "the breath of fire" stimulates your body in the same way that working out does. Do this exercise in the morning to help you spring out of bed—or anytime you need a charge:

1. Start by sitting with your spine erect and your chin tucked in. Place both hands on your abdomen, one above your navel and the other just below.
2. Exhale forcefully through your nose while contracting your abs in and up.
3. Inhale through your nose and feel your abdomen expand.
4. Quickly exhale again, lightly pressing your hands against your belly. Aim to create a steady rhythm with your breathing.
5. Start with one breath per second, and gradually increase the speed to three breaths per second. Try to work up to 50 breaths at a time.