If, like me, you tend to put off your run until after work, you might be feeling a bit glum this week, and wondering why it’s harder to be motivated. With the clocks going back, the evenings are getting darker and colder, and it’s all too easy for the wintertime blues to set in.
Many people experience a slump in energy when the clocks go back; this is mainly due a decline in the feel-good hormone seratonin, which requires plenty of sunshine to keep it topped up, and which when low can produce symptoms of lethargy, brain fog and depression. The good news is that exercise such as running can actually stimulate production of seratonin and stave off the blues, if you can get up the energy to do your workout in the first place.
This is where natural energy boosters can be useful. Sunlight is the most obvious one; walking to work, taking a stroll on your lunchbreak or moving your desk next to a large window all help you get your daily dose of super sunlight – the cheapest performance-enhancer available to runners. For those who are unable to see daylight during the week (night workers for example) or who have a weakness for gadgets, there are indoor therapy lamps available (such as the Lumie) which claim to mimic the effect natural light has on maintaining seratonin levels to boost mood, productivity and energy levels in athletes.
Foods rich in tryptophan (a building block for seratonin production) can help balance mood and sleep patterns to prevent energy slumps. Good sources in the diet include turkey meat, yoghurt, cottage cheese, oats, nuts and seeds, which are also good energy foods for runners.
For a quick-fix against lethargy, ginger root has been shown to stimulate the brain and improve energy levels, so making you more likely to get up the motivation to run. Try grating fresh ginger into hot water, with honey and a squeeze of lemon for a drink with zing. If that doesn’t kick you into action, nothing will!
Other Recommended Reading
- Just beat it!
- Run, Relax and Unwind
- Running Sleepy – Run yourself to sleep!
- The true cost of running shoes
- Running in the heat at the London Marathon
About the author
I am a trained medical doctor and a writer specialising in health and medicine, fitness and outdoor sports and dreaming about becoming a novelist. I have been a runner for many years and have run-explored in places around the world including Paris, Barcelona, Lausanne, Porto, California, New York and North Carolina, to name a few. I also enjoy swimming, cycling, badly attempting sailing and other watersports, and thinking about doing a triathlon (whilst sitting comfortably at home drinking copius amounts of tea).
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