Lethargic or Actually Tired?

I've been reading books and listening to podcasts about emotions lately. One paradox that interests me is this: it is important to be in touch with your feelings however, sometimes your feelings can be misleading or not entirely true. One argument is that we don't have the expansive vocabulary that is required to most accurately label the feeling. For example, someone could say they are mad when what they really mean is that they're disappointed. The more specific the label, the more clear we can be about what's really going on. Then, we can start navigating what to do (or not do!) with better understanding and in a way that advocates for our needs.

In the health and wellness world, I'm reminded of the confusion between being lethargic vs. actually being tired. This is so important to dive into because it is a common obstacle for moving our body and boy does it need to be moved! But sometimes it needs rest too. These are two COMPLETELY different states but they are often labelled similarly when describing how we feel.

Check out how they compare:

	Synonyms	Situations	What to Do
Lethargic	sluggish, inert, apathetic	sitting or not moving for far too long, poor diet, exposure to something unsettling	Move your body!
Tired	exhausted, fatigued, worn out	poor sleep, prolonged stress, overloaded, illness	Rest!

Learning which category you fall into takes practice, awareness, and more practice. And yet, it can still be hard to tell. Some helpful reflections may be, "What was I just doing?" or "What has been going on for me lately?". If it's been a day of meetings and sitting in front of the computer, you could be lethargic. If your toddler has been waking up in the middle of the night for weeks, you could be tired. Of course, you can be both. A helpful window into your nervous system is tracking your resting heart rate. Dive into this blog post to read more about that. Through observing your resting heart rate, you can discover that perhaps you are overloaded and you need to back off. But if you are lethargic, you need to get up and move because, ironically, the way your body produces its own energy (called ATP) is through exercise!

I want to share a trick I've used whenever I'm not sure if I'm lethargic or simply tired. Over time, you will get better at recognizing which state you're in. Until then, it's nice to have some sort of guideline. I call it the 10 Minute Rule.

I love running. But there are some days when I don't feel like getting out there and it leaves me perplexed. I know it is good for my physical and mental health and I always feel better when I go, so what's the deal? Cue The 10 Minute Rule. To apply this rule, I will go out and jog an easy pace for 10 minutes. If I still feel like I don't have it in me that day, I go home. Yes, I have done this before. And yes, I fully believe it has prevented me from injuries. I can't tell you how many times patients have said, "I sort of knew I shouldn't have ran so hard that day but I did it anyway and then I felt pain." You can apply this rule to anything; the gym, yoga, or whatever else you usually enjoy. I find that it takes about 10 minutes to "wake up" my tissues and realize my body wants and needs this exercise or to understand that it's not for today. Interestingly, I later learned it has been shown in the research (thanks to the Stecco's) that fascia has a warm-up period in which it needs some movement repetition before it slides and glides at its best. This is due to a decrease in the viscosity of the fluid within our tissue. Like the oil in our cars, with heat, our parts become more lubricated and we experience a decrease in stiffness and easier movement.

Next time you are feeling like you're moving in slow motion, how will you know if you need rest or if you need to move? Notice what has been happening for you lately. If you're still not sure, give movement a 10-minute try and then decide.