Day In The Life

I talk a lot about strategies to have more energy for life, but what does that look like in real life?

There’s an equation that is central to all the work I do (and how I live my life) - stress plus rest, divided by awareness, equals energy.

Stress is an unavoidable part of life and we need it to thrive. We need stress to adapt and grow mentally and physically, but we don’t have unlimited capacity for it and you’re not getting enough rest then you might find your tolerance for challenging situations goes down. I’ve written about the theory behind this equation here and here, but what does it actually look like in real life? So often blog posts and articles will talk about what you need to do to feel good but don’t actually go into how to realistically implement those strategies. Everything I share on this blog are things I use in my life to manage my energy and wellbeing, and I thought what better way to explain how I integrate them day to day than to share a day in my life!

I’ll caveat this by saying what works for me might not work for you (I have a lot of flexibility so can split my work day), but I hope it inspires you to include a few easy tools in your routine so that you can have more energy for life.

Morning

I do not get up at the crack of dawn. It used to make me feel guilty, like I was wasting the day and I worried that I couldn’t be productive if I wasn’t getting up and seizing the day with an early morning workout and journalling session. It was actually a source of stress for quite a long time and it was only when I accepted that getting up a bit later (around 8.30am) and easing into the day works best for me I was able to let go of that (totally unnecessary and unproductive) stress.

I take mornings pretty slowly. Mike goes off to work and then I put on a podcast and make breakfast before logging on and working out what I’ve got to do that day. I use a daily planner that has gratitude prompts so that’s usually the first thing I do. I never agonise over gratitude and tend to throw down the first things that come to mind, but I do always make it a non-negotiable as it has such a positive impact on my wellbeing (you can read about why here). My diary also prompts me to write a daily affirmation which I find really focuses my mind and energy for the day, so again it’s a non-negotiable. Then it’s a matter of working out my priorities and doing what matters the most first.

I’m at my best in the morning so it’s when I do most of my cognitively demanding work - anything that requires creative thinking and problem solving gets done while I’ve got the energy to do it because I know my brain power just wont be the same after a long day. Depending on how I feel I’ll usually find my flow and work for 2-3 hours fairly solidly. If I’m finding it hard to find some flow I’ll switch things up and go for tasks that aren’t so cognitively demanding (unless I’m on a deadline when I will just push through, although to be hones deadlines tend to be a great motivators!).

Afternoon

After putting myself through the stress of focusing on complex work for a couple of hours I need to close the energy cycle before I move on to the next task. I do this by taking a walk. I love walking around London, it’s a way for me to process anything that’s going on in my head and I’ll often find myself scrawling ideas down as I go and if I’ve been struggling with a problem I’ll usually find an answer during a walk. Once I get home I’ve usually let go of any thoughts hanging over from the morning and can focus more clearly on the next task.

I try to keep my lunch pretty healthy and filling. It’s usually eggs for those who are interested and I’ll often eat it while catching up box sets or watching YouTube videos before spending a bit of time on admin (replying to emails, comments, paying bills etc etc).

I nap every day. I used to beat myself up for feeling so tired mid-afternoon but I now understand it’s because I’ve expended all my energy working so intensely in the morning and I am ok with that, so rather than getting more stressed I allow myself time to recover.

Evening

From 5pm onwards I’m back on it. My energy has been restored and although I’m not as sharp as I am in the morning I’m usually in a good space to get on with work that requires thinking for a few more hours. It’s also when I’m physically at my peak so most evenings I’ll run or walk for half an hour or so to close the energy cycle, although I try not to go out too late because otherwise my sleep is disrupted.

I struggle with my sleep and more recently I’ve been trying to introduce a routine that helps me relax before bed. From around 8pm onwards I’ll start winding down for the evening. We tend to eat around this time and will usually spend some time hanging out as a family watching TV or a box set and chatting before I take myself off for a hot bath. Baths have become a cue for me to start relaxing before bed, I use lavender oil which acts as a scent cue to relax and dim the lights so that my brain gets the message that it’s time to relax. Again I might watch some TV on my laptop, but often it becomes background noise and I am good with that.

After my bath it’s all about maintaining that state of calm relaxation. I’ll sit in bed with some tea and do some breath work to down-regulate my nervous system, apply yet more lavender to the soles of my feet, take some CBD and pop on an eye mask - this is a new addition but it’s made a huge difference to the quality of my sleep, particularly as we don’t have the most robust bedroom curtains - and then it’s time to sleep!

My Wellbeing Toolkit

It’s taken me quite awhile to find a routine that works for me, there’s been a lot of trial and error and I’m sure I’ll be tweaking things as time goes on. However, taking the time to include a few key wellbeing tools has made a huge difference! The work I do can be stressful, and if I don’t get enough rest I’m not going to have much energy so my tolerance for challenging situations goes down. As you’ve seen - with the possible exception of a daily nap - the strategies I use are really simple and fit pretty seamlessly into my life, and they can be integrated into your life too.

TAKE THE PRESSURE OFF - I used to believe that I had to get up early to be productive, but ultimately it just made me more stressed. By making the decision to let go of what I thought I should be doing and focused on what worked for me I created a morning routine that helped me have more energy for life rather than wasting it.

PRACTICE GRATITUDE - It sounds so cheesy, but practicing gratitude has tangible effects on our wellbeing. In a 2003 study Emmons & McCullough identified that people who kept gratitude journals on a weekly basis felt better about their lives as a whole in comparison to people who tracked hassles or even simple life events. Thinking about it this makes perfect sense, generally you’re less likely to feel down if you focus on the good things that have happened to you than if you’re dwelling on what went wrong. That’s not all, according to Emmons & McCullough people who practice gratitude were more likely to make progress towards their goals over a two month period, and in young adults a daily gratitude practice resulted in increased reported levels of alertness, enthusiasm, determination, attentiveness and energy. Read all my posts about gratitude here.

DAILY AFFIRMATIONS - Making positive statements can help challenge negative thinking patterns and focus your mind on your goals when you use them intentionally.

SETTING PRIORITIES - when you set priorities you’re also setting clear intentions around how you want to spend your time and energy, I find this really helps me cut through the noise of a busy life and focus on what’s actually important.

CLOSING THE ENERGY CYCLE - focusing intensely is stressful and unless you close the energy cycle you’ll carry that stress into your next task. I close my energy cycle by going for a walk, it gives me time to work through any thoughts that are hanging around and clear my head ready for the next thing. My bedtime routine is another great example of closing the energy cycle, although this time it’s getting me ready to close my day and go to sleep. Read my article of rest here to find out more about how this works.

What tools do you use to make sure you manage stress and have energy for life? Let me know in the comments!