Tired of Being Tired? Here’s How to Reclaim Your Energy Naturally

Fatigue is common, but it doesn’t have to be normal. If you're waking up already tired, mainlining coffee just to get through the morning, and crashing hard by mid-afternoon… you’re in good company. 

Exhaustion has become so routine for many people that it’s practically worn like a badge of honor. But while constant fatigue might be common, it is not normal. You deserve to feel more than just functional. You deserve to feel alive in your own body.

As a board-certified health coach and exercise physiologist, I see clients every week who are frustrated by their lack of energy. Some are doing all the “right” things (getting enough sleep, eating what seems like a healthy diet, even exercising regularly) but they still feel like they’re dragging through the day like they’re moving through molasses. 

That’s because chronic fatigue rarely stems from one single issue. It’s often a tangled web of stress, nutrient imbalances, poor recovery, and hormonal disruption.

This post will guide you through holistic, evidence-backed ways to reclaim your energy naturally, without the toxic positivity, 7-step miracle routines, or overpriced powders. Let’s get grounded in what actually works.

Table of Contents

Understanding the Root Causes of Low Energy

Fatigue doesn’t happen in a vacuum. It’s not just about how many hours you slept last night or whether you drank enough water. Energy is the sum of many moving parts, and when one of those systems starts leaking, your whole body feels the drain.

Think of your energy levels like a bank account. Daily stress, poor nutrition, sleep disturbances, or even unresolved emotional tension can act like auto-drafts you didn’t authorize. I call these “energy leaks.” You might be losing capacity without even realizing where it’s going.

Physically, energy leaks might show up as:

• Skipping meals or eating foods that spike and crash your blood sugar

• Overexercising without proper recovery

• Underlying nutrient deficiencies (iron, magnesium, B vitamins)

Emotionally, they often stem from:

• Constant low-grade stress with no real downtime

• People-pleasing or saying yes to everything

• Ignoring your body’s signals because you’re too busy “pushing through”

Key Body Systems That Impact Energy

1. Adrenal System: Your adrenal glands produce cortisol, which helps you manage stress and regulate energy. Chronic stress can dysregulate this system, leaving you feeling wired-but-tired or totally depleted.

2. Thyroid Function: The thyroid sets the pace for your metabolism. When it’s underactive (hypothyroidism), everything slows down: your digestion, recovery, and yes, your energy levels.

3. Gut Health: Your gut is where nutrients are absorbed. A disrupted gut microbiome, low stomach acid, or food intolerances can interfere with how well you extract energy from your meals.

4. Blood Sugar Regulation: Frequent spikes and crashes in blood sugar levels lead to mood swings, energy dips, and increased cravings. Stabilizing your glucose is foundational to sustainable energy.

Fatigue isn’t something to just push through. It’s a signal. Your body is asking for support. And support does not (usually) mean another iced coffee. Instead of slapping a bandaid on the problem, more coffee, another supplement, another 30-day cortisol reducing diet, the real work is figuring out where your energy is leaking and actually plugging the damn holes.

The Misconception: You Just Need More Sleep

You might assume that if you feel tired all the time, you just need to sleep more. Seems logical, right? But here’s where things get tricky: plenty of people get 7–9 hours a night and still feel like they’re dragging themselves through the day. Sleep quantity isn’t the full story. Sleep quality and your body’s overall recovery state matter a whole lot more.

I've worked with clients who logged eight hours in bed religiously, had blackout curtains, used white noise machines (you name it) but still woke up groggy and struggled to stay alert after lunch. When we looked beyond the surface, we found inconsistent sleep quality from things like unstable blood sugar, chronic emotional stress, or training habits that didn’t allow for proper recovery.

The body doesn’t just need time in bed. It needs restorative sleep, the kind that cycles through deep and REM stages efficiently and aligns with your natural circadian rhythms. If your nervous system is stuck in fight-or-flight mode or your blood sugar crashes during the night, your sleep cycle gets disrupted. You’ll technically be asleep, but your body won’t be resting in the way it’s designed to.

It’s Not Just About Sleep. It’s About Recovery

Recovery is multi-dimensional. You could be:

• Working out hard without fueling properly

• Mentally overcommitted without giving yourself any downtime

• Living in a constant state of background anxiety that never quite lets you “turn off”

All of these stressors contribute to a recovery debt that no amount of pillow time can fix.

When you consistently feel tired despite a decent bedtime, it’s time to stop blaming yourself for laziness or poor discipline. It’s time to start asking better questions: Is my sleep restorative? Am I actually recovering from my day? Where might my system be stuck in overdrive?

How Blood Sugar, Stress, and Hormones Impact Your Energy

If your energy feels unpredictable, like you're cruising one hour and crashing the next, it's time to look beyond sleep and straight into the body's regulatory systems. Blood sugar, stress hormones, and your endocrine balance all work together to create (or drain) the energy you feel daily. When they’re out of sync, no amount of naps or caffeine will fix the fatigue.

Blood Sugar: The Quiet Saboteur

Your body runs on glucose, but it’s a delicate balancing act. Meals high in refined carbs or sugar can cause a spike in blood sugar, followed by a steep crash that leaves you foggy, irritable, and reaching for another snack or coffee (or energy drink). This rollercoaster effect stresses your body’s energy systems and trains you to rely on external fixes instead of building internal stability.

Eating in a way that balances blood sugar—meaning consistent meals with protein, fiber, healthy fats, and complex carbs—helps keep your energy levels steady throughout the day. Skipping meals or eating mostly snack foods can wreck that balance fast.

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Stress and Cortisol: The Energy Gatekeepers

Cortisol, your primary stress hormone, plays a major role in regulating blood sugar, energy availability, and inflammation. Short-term stress increases alertness. But chronic stress? That’s when things fall apart.

When your cortisol rhythm gets dysregulated, either too high for too long, or so depleted that your body can’t mount a response, you’ll start to see fatigue, poor concentration, disrupted sleep, and weakened immunity. This isn’t hypothetical: studies show that chronic stress can directly raise blood glucose and impair energy metabolism even in people without diabetes.

And while the term "adrenal fatigue" gets tossed around a lot in wellness circles, it’s not medically recognized. What's real is HPA-axis dysregulation: a breakdown in communication between your brain and your adrenal glands caused by ongoing stress and lack of recovery. This imbalance affects everything from energy to mood to hormonal function.

Hormones: The Missing Piece

If daytime fatigue lingers even with good sleep and nutrition, hormones might be playing a role. An underlying medical condition like an underactive thyroid can slow your metabolism, leaving you cold, sluggish, and mentally foggy. Estrogen imbalances, especially around perimenopause, can alter how your body manages stress and sleep. Low testosterone, in all genders, can contribute to reduced motivation and stamina.

The tricky thing is, these medical conditions often develop gradually and get dismissed as “normal aging” or “just being busy.” But they're not inevitable, and they're absolutely worth addressing with a healthcare professional who knows what to look for beyond the basic labs.

Common Mistakes That Keep You Stuck in Fatigue Mode

If you’ve been trying to feel better, maybe even following advice from health influencers or well-meaning friends, but you’re still dragging, it might not be because you’re doing “too little.” More often, it’s because the strategies you’re using are out of sync with what your body actually needs. These are some of the most common mistakes I see keeping people stuck in low-energy mode:

1. Skipping Meals or Relying on Caffeine

Skipping breakfast or pushing through lunch while running on caffeine might feel productive, but it sends your blood sugar on a crash course. When you don't fuel consistently through a balanced diet, your body compensates by pumping out more cortisol to keep blood sugar stable. That emergency response might give you a temporary lift, but it’s draining your reserves. Over time, this constant up-down pattern leads to exhaustion, mood swings, and more cravings.

Caffeine isn't the villain, but using it to replace rest or food is a slippery slope. If you're relying on multiple cups a day just to feel baseline functional, it's worth looking deeper.

2. Overcommitting and Under-Recovering

This one hits especially hard for caregivers, perfectionists, and anyone who feels guilty saying no. If your calendar is packed, your workouts are intense, and your brain never gets a real break, you’re operating in a chronic energy deficit. Over time, this kind of low-grade burnout shows up as irritability, forgetfulness, and straight-up physical fatigue.

Recovery isn't passive. It’s not just about doing nothing. It’s about doing things that refill your cup, creative hobbies, unstructured time, gentle movement, real rest.

3. Ignoring Nutrient Deficiencies

You can be eating “healthy” and still missing key nutrients that power energy production. Low iron, vitamin B12, magnesium, and vitamin D are some of the biggest fatigue culprits I see in client labs. If you’ve been tired for a while and haven’t had labs run, or have only had basic ones, it’s worth advocating for a deeper panel.

And no, multivitamins don’t fix everything. Absorption, gut health, and stress levels all affect how well your body uses what you eat.

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4. Overtraining or Not Moving Enough

On one end of the spectrum, we’ve got folks pushing hard with high-intensity workouts multiple times a week, layering it on top of a full-time job, poor sleep, and a stressed-out nervous system. That’s a recipe for tanked energy, not resilience.

On the other hand, if you’re barely moving at all, especially if you sit all day and rarely get outside, your body may be stagnating. Gentle movement like walking, mobility work, or low-intensity strength training can actually increase your energy levels by improving circulation, glucose regulation, and mood.

Simple Strategies to Regain Your Natural Energy

Getting your energy back isn’t about overhauling your entire life overnight. It’s about making small, consistent changes that support your body’s natural rhythms. You don’t need to hustle harder or biohack your way out of fatigue. You need nourishment, rhythm, and recovery that actually fits your real life.

1. Support Your Circadian Rhythm with a Daily Rhythm

Your body loves rhythm. Light, temperature, food, and physical activity all send signals to your internal clock (your circadian system), which in turn regulates sleep, energy, digestion, and hormones. When your daily routines are inconsistent, like irregular wake times, late-night screen use, or skipping meals, your body gets confused and fatigued.

Try this:

• Wake up and get outside light exposure within the first hour, even if it’s cloudy

• Keep sleep and wake times as consistent as possible, even on weekends

• Avoid eating large meals or doing intense workouts late at night

• Limit blue light exposure an hour before bed

These small tweaks help reinforce your body’s natural energy flow.

2. Eat to Stabilize Blood Sugar and Fuel Stress Recovery

Forget restriction. If you’re under-fueled, your body will let you know, often through low energy, mood dips, and intense cravings. The goal is to eat meals that nourish, stabilize blood sugar, and support your adrenal and thyroid function.

Build meals around:

• A palm-size portion of protein (eggs, tofu, chicken, beans)

• Plenty of fiber-rich carbs (oats, lentils, sweet potatoes)

• Healthy fats (olive oil, nuts, avocado)

• Colorful veggies or fruit for micronutrients

Don’t forget to eat enough. Especially if you’re recovering from dieting, stress, or intense exercise, your body may need more than you think.

3. Prioritize Active Rest

Rest doesn’t just mean collapsing on the couch (although that’s valid too). Rest can be dynamic and nourishing, especially when it includes movement that calms the nervous system.

Try incorporating:

• Gentle walks, especially outdoors

• Stretching or restorative yoga

• Deep breathing or guided breathwork (4-7-8 breathing is a great place to start)

• Intentional pause breaks in your day like five minutes between tasks to check in with your body

These practices lower cortisol, improve recovery, reduce the risk of health conditions, and support better sleep.

4. Build a Wind-Down Routine for Better Sleep Quality

Good sleep starts before your head hits the pillow. A consistent wind-down routine helps cue your body that it’s safe to transition from alert to restful.

Suggestions:

• Dim lights 1–2 hours before bed

• Shut down screens or use blue light blockers after dark

• Avoid stimulants (like too much caffeine or intense news) late in the day

• Create a 10–30 minute bedtime ritual: reading, journaling, a hot shower, herbal tea, whatever helps you decompress

Creating a predictable, soothing pattern will help your brain and body downshift.

5. Get Labs and Work with a Practitioner if Needed

If you’ve tried these changes and still feel overly tired, it’s time to look under the hood. A qualified provider can help identify health conditions like thyroid dysfunction, anemia, blood sugar irregularities, or hormonal shifts.

Ask for:

• A full thyroid panel (not just TSH)

• Iron and ferritin levels

• B12, vitamin D, magnesium

• Fasting glucose and HbA1c

• Possibly cortisol rhythm testing or sex hormone panels, depending on symptoms

Getting this data gives you clarity and working with a professional can save you months of guessing.

How to Tell Your Energy Is on the Upswing

Sometimes we don’t notice we’re healing until we pause and look back. Energy doesn’t usually return all at once in a dramatic light-switch moment, it returns gradually, through dozens of small but powerful signs. Recognizing these changes matters. It helps you stay motivated and validates that your efforts are working, even if you’re not “there yet.”

1. You Wake Up Without an Alarm and Feel Rested

This is one of the clearest signs that your circadian rhythm is syncing back up. If you’re waking before your alarm, without dread or grogginess, it means your sleep cycle quality is improving and your body isn’t fighting to pull you out of deep sleep every morning.

Even better? You might find yourself feeling more alert earlier in the day and less reliant on that first hit of caffeine.

2. Mid-Afternoon Slumps and Cravings Decrease

When your blood sugar and cortisol are more balanced, you won’t get slammed by those 3 p.m. crashes or sudden needs for sugar, salt, or caffeine. Instead of surviving the afternoon with snacks and stimulation, you’ll feel steady… and maybe even productive or creative.

This is one of the most empowering changes I see with clients because it means their systems are becoming more resilient, not just surviving.

3. Mood, Focus, and Motivation Improve

Fatigue isn’t just physical. Mental energy is often the first thing to go when your body’s under stress, and the last to come back when you're chronically depleted. If you're suddenly remembering words easier, thinking more clearly, or feeling motivated to start things you’ve been putting off, take that as a huge win.

Better focus, steadier mood, and fewer “meh” days are all signs that your nervous system is finding its groove again.

Coach Brittany Morgon Pick
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4. You Recover Faster From Workouts or Stress

Increased recovery capacity is a major marker of improved energy. That might look like:

• Less soreness after regular exercise

• Feeling like you want to move instead of dreading it

• Bouncing back quicker from stress or emotional upheaval

If you’re noticing that rest actually feels restorative again instead of just... not enough, that’s your body telling you it’s healing.

Frequently Asked Questions About Low Energy

When you're dealing with persistent fatigue, it's easy to feel confused, or worse, dismissed. You've probably Googled every possible reason you might feel tired, tried every sleep hack, and maybe even been told by a doctor that “everything looks normal.” These are the questions I hear most often from clients navigating low energy.

Is it normal to feel exhausted even after 8 hours of sleep?

No, and yes. It’s common, but not healthy. If you’re sleeping a full night and still feel unrefreshed, it’s a sign that your sleep quality or recovery is off. That could mean poor blood sugar regulation overnight, elevated cortisol at night, hormonal imbalances, vitamin deficiencies, or even things like undiagnosed sleep apnea. Your body might be spending the night in stress-response mode instead of repair mode.

Sleep hygiene is a great place to start, but if it doesn’t help, deeper investigation is warranted.

How do I know if my fatigue is hormone-related?

Hormone-related fatigue often shows up alongside other subtle changes. You might notice:

• Unexplained weight changes

• Cold hands/feet or feeling chilly when others aren’t

• Brain fog or low mood

• Irregular periods or changes in menstrual flow

• Low sex drive or increased anxiety

These can signal thyroid imbalances, estrogen/testosterone shifts, or HPA-axis dysfunction. If your energy feels off and you're seeing other bodily changes, it’s worth requesting a hormone panel and working with someone who understands how these systems interact.

What foods naturally boost energy?

Foods that support energy don’t come in a “superfood” label, they come in balance and consistency. Key players include:

• Protein: eggs, lentils, chicken, tofu—helps stabilize blood sugar and rebuild tissues

• Complex carbs: oats, brown rice, root veggies—fuel your brain and workouts sustainably

• Healthy fats: avocado, nuts, olive oil—support hormones and long-term energy

• Leafy greens and colorful produce: packed with vitamins and minerals that support mitochondrial health and reduce inflammation

The real trick? Eat meals with a mix of these components every 3–5 hours to prevent crashes and support steady output.

Should I get lab testing for chronic fatigue?

Yes, especially if the fatigue has lasted longer than a few weeks and isn’t resolved by better sleep, stress reduction, or dietary changes. Start with:

• Comprehensive thyroid panel (TSH, Free T3, Free T4, reverse T3, antibodies)

• Iron panel (ferritin, serum iron, TIBC)

• B12 and vitamin D

• Magnesium (RBC magnesium if possible)

• Fasting glucose, HbA1c, and insulin

Depending on symptoms, cortisol rhythm testing or sex hormones may also be helpful. And if your provider won’t run these tests or dismisses your symptoms? It’s time for a second opinion.

Step Into a More Energized Life

If you’ve been stuck in fatigue for what feels like forever, I want you to know this: chronic exhaustion is not your fault, and it is not a life sentence. You are not lazy, broken, or just “getting older.” You’re likely dealing with a body that’s been running on empty for too long, and it’s doing its best with the information and fuel it’s been given.

The key to sustainable energy isn’t found in another supplement, restrictive diet, or 30-day plan. It’s found in tuning into your body’s signals, responding with care, and making choices that actually align with what you need. When you nourish consistently, manage stress intentionally, and recover like you mean it, your energy starts to rebuild. Sometimes slowly. But always steadily.

Coaching can help connect the dots, especially when you’ve already tried the basics and still feel stuck. Together, we can map out the hidden energy drains, find personalized strategies, and create rhythms that support your real life, not just what wellness culture says you “should” do.

Ready to start feeling like yourself again?

Download the Health Coach Bullshit Filter to get clear on who’s legit, who’s selling you garbage, and connect with practitioners who actually know their stuff.

And if you’re ready for deeper, personalized help reclaiming your energy, consider coaching with me. We’ll work together to uncover what’s draining you and build rhythms that actually restore.

You don’t have to stay tired. Your body wants to heal. Let’s give it the chance.

• References

  Hypothyroidism (Underactive thyroid). (2025, January 15). National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/endocrine-diseases/hypothyroidism

  Graves, B. S., Patel, M., Newgent, H., Parvathy, G., Nasri, A., Moxam, J., Gill, G. S., Sawhney, V., & Gupta, M. (2024). Chronic fatigue Syndrome: diagnosis, treatment, and future direction. Cureus. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.70616

  Cadegiani, F. A., & Kater, C. E. (2016). Adrenal fatigue does not exist: a systematic review. BMC Endocrine Disorders, 16(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12902-016-0128-4

  Tomas, C., Newton, J., & Watson, S. (2013). A review of Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis Function in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. ISRN Neuroscience, 2013, 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1155/2013/784520

  Torres‐Harding, S., Sorenson, M., Jason, L., Reynolds, N., Brown, M., Maher, K., & Fletcher, M. A. (2008). The associations between basal salivary cortisol and illness symptomatology in chronic fatigue syndrome. Journal of Applied Biobehavioral Research, 13(3), 157–180. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-9861.2008.00033.x

  Penckofer, S., Quinn, L., Byrn, M., Ferrans, C., Miller, M., & Strange, P. (2012). Does glycemic variability impact mood and quality of life? Diabetes Technology & Therapeutics, 14(4), 303–310. https://doi.org/10.1089/dia.2011.0191