How to increase your energy level to focus on things you really want to do?

It's June and it's already half-way into this year. I thought it would be a good time to reflect on the things that I was able to accomplish this year.

• I have been blogging at least 1 article a month. Though I only wrote 6 articles as of now I am happy with the consistency of these articles.
• I have been reading on an average of little more than 2 books a month. Read 15 books this year. I have a book goal of 20 by the end of this year. More details on my Goodreads account.
• I have been exercising at least 4 times a week. Lost about 4 lbs after losing 15 lbs last year to reach my ideal weight. Even started biking recently with a biking club for 25 miles once a week.
• Finances improved marginally to the point of No debts.
• Relationship with my kid and overall with everyone around me improved to the point that relationship is not stressing me anymore.

This may not sound a whole lot but you would have to imagine this from the point of view of an individual who, a few years ago would only keep his alarm to wake his roommates up. 

If you would have asked me to accomplish one out of this list a couple of years ago, I would have failed miserably. How was I able to do this consistently for 6 months with a full day job and 2 kids? How was I able to find time and energy to act on these goals consistently let alone achieving it.

I was pondering these questions and looking for answers in order to make it repeatable...

Is it because of creating goals?

            I first thought it might be because of creating goals. Goals can create direction and can even find time. But, I doubt if it alone would have to do anything with the energy level to attain it.

Is it because of reducing distractions?

          Then, I thought maybe it's because I stopped consuming those pointless Netflix or youtube or social media content. But, stopping one kind of distractions will only make us focus on something else. The harder we resist our brains the more it wants to freak out. It definitely got me more time but it has less to do with my energy level.

Is it because of reading or hearing rich motivational content?

          Hearing motivational content served as a guide during tough times to avoid falling back to old habits but this also has a lesser impact in terms of energy level.

Creating goals gave direction, reducing distractions bought time and hearing motivational content gave strength but still these are not the main factors in increasing the energy level.

I was not able to find a convincing answer until I looked at my dinner plate.

Not more than a year ago my wife and I decided to do a lifestyle change that would be simple at the same time would help us eating healthy and lose weight. 

It was no more than consuming fresh fruits and only fresh fruits for dinner. It's been a year since we started it.

The initial aim was to make losing weight simple and effortless. Over the time, we figured out that this routine made us enjoy new fruit delicacies which we never tasted earlier. For instance, fruits like Pomelo, lychee, fresh dates, golden melon, etc.  It also helped us to go to bed early without having the sense of fullness. More importantly, it gave us more family time to sit and talk during dinner as we cut and served at the table.

But, we never would have imagined that a routine like this would give us more energy to make life effortless.

Aim of the fruit platter:

                   The aim of this fruit dinner is to enjoy as many different flavours as one could without restricting on the quantity or looking at the calorie content of each fruit. Enjoy eating as many natural foods - restricting on fruit varieties or quantities may force you to quit early. If you like mango go for it don't worry about natural sugars and so on. But, one thing we should watch for is the consumption of enough proteins in other meals. When I talk about this to many of my friends they would immediately say, I cannot be satisfied just with fruits. In that case, start with fruits in addition to your dinner and slowly increase your quantity of fruits intake to the point it can take over. 

Variations:

1. It doesn't have to be dinner, it can be any other meal of your choice.
2. If you are tired of fruits try a vegetable salad or add salted nuts, cheese and other raw ingredients to the mix.

This is a reflection on looking at my energy level, what's yours? Leave it in the comments....

PS: I don't have a lot of knowledge on the diet or nutritional value but I am sharing those lifestyle changes which benefited me and our family.
PPS: Netflix articles like 'Food, Inc' and 'Forks Over Knives' did influence my decision.