I have always been one of those people who when they come back from school and college, lay down on my bed and then accidentally end up falling asleep for 2 or 3 hours and then end up wasting the entire night.
Now I know that this is alright if it happens every so often, but it turned into something that was occurring every single night... And it needed sorting.
I tried asking my family why they thought I was so tired and they just based it on me 'not going to bed early enough' (but that's a whole other issue). I then spoke to my friend and he said it's probably because I'm not active anymore.
I used to dance twice a week, every week, however I quit around my GCSE's last May because I didn't have enough time as I was too busy revising. When September came, I initially thought I would go back to dancing but to my shock, after dancing for around 10/11 years and loving it, I didn't even want to go back. So I didn't.
That was the only form of exercise that I did. It kept me relatively fit and helped me maintain a slim figure. Now I do not do dance any longer, I would definitely say my fitness levels have decreased (only slightly), yet my figure hasn't changed... Thankfully!
So, I decided that I needed to stop being so lazy and do some exercise to help regain my fitness and also, to help me stay more active and hopefully, be more awake. I now go on runs every once or twice a week, and tend to run about 5 or 6 miles each time. Although to some that may not be a signifant amount, to me it is a good start. I can already tell a difference in my fitness, as I can now run faster and for longer. When it comes to how sleepy I am, I'm slowly but surely improving. I can now come home from college and for what feels like the first time in ages, I can actually stay awake and make productive use of my time by revising for my AS exams.
I would definitely recommend that if you become extremely tired like me that you either try and get more sleep during the night (yet I do understand that for some teenagers that's an impossible task - me being one of them) or try being more physically active.
I also feel that changing my diet can have a positive impact on the way that I feel. I am an absolute sucker for chocolate, I love love love it! But I've realised that eating a lot of it doesn't help me, it's gives me energy for a short period yet I feel tired after it. Whereas, if I ate fruit or healthy snacks, my body is provided with a continuous amount of energy which lasts longer. Therefore, because of this, I have gotten into the habit of making fruit smoothies 3 times a week for me to drink instead of eating chocolate. It usually consists of: strawberries, bananas, blueberries, frozen yoghurt and ice. It makes a thick consistency drink and the ice makes it cold and fresh. It is definitely something I would recommend introducing into your diet, because not only is it fun to make by experimenting with what fruits taste good with one another, it's also delicious!
Hopefully if I can maintain all these healthy and active ideas then I will be able to see and feel the benefits. I recommend that you try them with me too!
Love,
Hannah x
