Recently I was inspired to write about a Movement Diet after participating in an amazing seminar that changed my perception on good human movement.  I used the term diet as derived from its original meaning in Ancient Greece as a way of life. With that same meaning in mind let’s look at how you can get more energy through an inspiration diet.

Inspiration can mean a few things.

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Full Definition of INSPIRATION 

(From the Merriam-Webster dictionary)

1 a :  a divine influence or action on a person believed to qualify him or her to receive and communicate sacred revelation

 b :  the action or power of moving the intellect or emotions

 c :  the act of influencing or suggesting opinions

2 :  the act of drawing in; specifically :  the drawing of air into the lungs

3 a :  the quality or state of being inspired

  b :  something that is inspired <a scheme that was pure inspiration>

4:  an inspiring agent or influence

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Here I’m going to focus on three areas of inspiration that can be used to get more energy (I’m using lower Greek numerals below to keep the ancestral wisdom flavor):

α. The sense of inspiration

β. The thoughts of inspiration

γ. The act of inspiration

Like a food diet and a movement diet, I think there are benefits to adding and subtracting variables in an inspiration diet.

For most people, adding tends to be easier than subtracting.  If you are adding a salad to your day rather than subtracting a coffee, you will probably be more successful taking this diet (in the modern sense of the word) and turning it into a way of life.

My goal is to make success easier for you which can lead to greater health improvements more quickly and so you get more energy in the long run.  With this in mind, let’s focus on the inclusions rather than exclusions for a good inspiration diet.

An Inspiration Diet to Get More Energy

Inspiration comes from many places.  If you embed it in your life, it helps you get out of bed in the morning with a driving purpose to feed you all day long. Don’t settle for a life without inspiration.

α. The sense of inspiration

Keeping it simple we can break this down into the five senses.

Sight – 

Humans are visually dominant, that is, we favor visual stimulus over our other senses.

From Feng Shui to the whatever artwork lifts your spirits, dec out your house to make it inspirational.  Do the same in your office.  Your environment will affect your mood and help you get more energy naturally.  Plants, paintings, pictures and anything that makes you smile can dramatically lift you up.

Try it out.

There is no sadder sight than a young pessimist. - Mark Twain Click To Tweet

Start with an area you use often and try it out. Then spread the visual inspiration.

Sound – 

I wrote about sound’s powerful effect on our health in Sound Healing. The science is there.  Explore binaural beats to change your brain waves for creativity, focus, alertness and relaxation. This is on the cusp of modern science and interesting research is being done here.

You don’t need to be on the cutting edge to know that your favorite music can lift your spirit and get you through the day. Use it to get more energy and enjoy almost anything you do – so simple, so effective!

Touch –

Without getting into a long explanation of the value of human touch, don’t discount the inspirational power of this sense.  Hugs have been shown to release oxytocin, the love hormone, which lowers stress, increases bonding and can push you through challenges.

Feeling the love is one of the best ways to get more energy in everything you do.

Connect with your loved ones, reach out and hug them – it’s a win-win.

Smell –

Think about Spring and you’ll know that smell can be a great addition to an inspiration diet.  Beyond that, you can enjoy anything from fragrant flowers to essential oils which all lift the spirit.

Personally, I add time in nature where the smells of the ocean or the forest make me feel fully alive. I’m sure you can picture arriving by the ocean and being exhilarated by that salty air.

Nothing is more memorable than a smell. One scent can be unexpected, momentary and fleeting, yet conjure up a childhood summer beside a lake in the mountains. – Diane Ackerman

If you can’t make it to the ocean, trees, flowers, and even grass can give off smells that inspire.

Taste – 

Food can be inspiring.  Delicious food is pleasurable and inspiring.  Delicious, healthy food you make yourself with good company could be one of the most inspiring things there are. Many a religious, spiritual and transcendent practice incorporates special food rituals for a reason.

Food from the Earth, made with care and intention builds inspiration through the preparation into the serving and enjoyment phases.

This is where an inspiration diet blends with a nutrition diet. A great nourishing meal is inspiring and you get more energy from the actual nutrients it provides.

The shared meal elevates eating from a mechanical process of fueling the body to a ritual of family and community, from the mere animal biology to an act of culture. – Michael Pollan

β. The thoughts of inspiration

Unfortunately, humans give more attention to negative ideas and stimulus than positive or neutral ones.  Negativity bias has been studied in many areas and is used in advertising, sales and media strategies.

One of the reasons this is the case is because of our survival instincts that have been around for thousands of years. We pay close attention to bad things so we can avoid them and stay alive.

The problem of an overload of negativity is that it is exhausting, physically, mentally and emotionally.

The news pumps out negative stories to retain viewers/readers and get more clicks. This is why it’s a good idea to take a break once in a while from all the external information that bombards us in the modern world. I covered this in The Right Kind of Detox.

Our thoughts also drift to negativity, self-doubt, and fear. If you want to get more energy, your inspiration diet would do well to include positive influences, external and internal.

Subtract some gloom and doom from your news, entertainment and socializing and replace it with inspirational stories, optimistic people and timeless sources of amazing feats. History and the natural world are full of these but we tend to divert our gaze elsewhere.

We are shaped by our thoughts; we become what we think. When the mind is pure, joy follows like a shadow that never leaves. – Buddha

Practice pushing negative thoughts aside and focusing on gratitude. Even with all our struggles, most of us are very fortunate when we step back and consider the millions of people in this world that are challenged daily in ways we aren’t.

One part of the Boundless Energy course that you get free when you take our complimentary Vitality Quiz is a practical tool to build positivity with an intention and gratitude practice.

Another great resource is the book The Happiness Advantage by Shawn Achor, who is a positive psychology expert and Harvard professor.  He has shown that when we put happiness ahead of success,  we become more successful quicker.

γ. The act of inspiration

This might seem like a completely different kind of inspiration but to get more energy and have a great inspiration diet, it is key.

As defined in the Merriam-Webster dictionary,

Inspiration: the act of drawing in; specifically:  the drawing of air into the lungs

How we breath plays a vital role in our energy levels as well as our mood. Without adequate inhalation, we have an oxygen deficiency. Oxygen is key to the functioning of all our systems.

In emergency medicine, the airway is the very first priority and breathing is number two. On a daily moment to moment basis, this is how we can take control of our state of mind, body and dare I say,  spirit.

You have a choice. Live or die. Every breath is a choice. Every minute is a choice. To be or not to be. - Chuck Palahniuk Click To Tweet

 

I’ve practiced Box Breathing, Wim Hof’s innerfire breathing , Nadi Shodhan Pranayama (alternate nostril breathing), Holotropic Breathwork and other meditative breathing techniques. Each has their benefits and all affect one’s state of mind and energy levels.

This type of inspiration (referring to breathing) can profoundly increase all the other definitions of inspiration.

 

Each one of the three areas of inspiration that I touched upon in this article, (sense, thoughts and act) could be explored in much greater depth but I’ve presented an overview for you here and encourage you to start with one.

Add more as you like and see what works for you as you develop your own inspiration diet.

The best thing about inspiration is that it’s incredibly powerful and yet it can be completely free. Develop your skills with it and you will gain immense control of your energy levels and the quality of your life.