Key Takeaways
Sustained energy comes from healthy daily habits, including quality sleep, balanced meals, hydration, regular exercise, and stress management.
For energy production, the body needs adequate macronutrients and key micronutrients like iron and B vitamins.
Getting morning sunlight, moving throughout the day, managing blood sugar, and maintaining a consistent routine can help reduce fatigue.
Between work demands, social commitments, and daily responsibilities, maintaining consistent energy can feel like a challenge. Many common quick fixes—like extra coffee or sugary snacks—may provide temporary relief but often lead to energy crashes later in the day. In this guide, we explain how your body actually creates energy and how best to support energy levels throughout the day, as well as some tricks you can use for quick ways to keep energy levels up
Energy primarily comes from the food we eat. A complex digestive process breaks down macronutrients (protein, fats, and carbohydrates) into more usable forms like amino acids, fatty acids, glycerol, and glucose. These undergo more changes as they travel to your cells and their mitochondria, the “powerhouse of the cell,” where they’re converted into ATP, the body’s primary energy currency. Everything from muscle movement to neuron firing requires ATP.
Maximizing the efficiency of this process also relies on key micronutrients—vitamins and minerals that act as cofactors and signaling molecules, such as iron and B vitamins.
To learn more about the causes of low energy in women and men, read our individual guides.
In general, feeling energized through your day isn’t about quick fixes. Caffeine may provide instant alertness, but its effects are temporary, often lead to a crash, and can create a cycle of dependency. The best ways to boost energy long-term are through a consistent diet and lifestyle support.
Deep sleep supports the body's natural restoration and metabolic processes, which are important for daily energy levels. Support this recharging time by sticking to a consistent sleep-wake schedule. Avoid eating late at night, caffeinated drinks in the late afternoon, and blue-light-emitting devices in the hours before bedtime. Most adults need seven to nine hours of sleep each night. Find what works for you and set a routine to support it so your body learns to time the release of melatonin and cortisol.
Because blood is mostly water, adequate hydration directly influences circulation and energy levels. Adequate hydration supports healthy circulation, which plays a role in how energized you feel throughout the day. Everyone’s needs are different, but aim for eight glasses of water a day and minimize caffeinated or sugary drinks for optimal hydration.
Your gut is home to trillions of microbes that support various aspects of your health, including energy. Helpful gut bacteria ferment dietary fiber to produce short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) like butyrate. This SCFA plays an important role in maintaining gut barrier integrity, which supports nutrient absorption and helps maintain a balanced immune response. It may also support energy metabolism via the gut-brain axis.
Make sure your diet includes a variety of high-fiber whole foods, such as fruits and vegetables, legumes, nuts, seeds, and whole grains. In addition to providing important micronutrients, these foods tend to be high in prebiotic fiber that feeds beneficial gut bacteria. Adding probiotics by consuming fermented foods and drinks or by taking a supplement can also enhance microbiome diversity.
Physical activity, particularly cardiovascular exercise (jogging, cycling, swimming), stimulates the creation of new and expanded mitochondria, your cells’ power plants. This effectively increases your overall energy capacity.
Exercise also promotes the growth of new capillaries. This reduces the distance oxygen must travel from the blood to the mitochondria, making energy production more efficient.
Managing stress is key to restful sleep, gut health, and energy conservation. Practice mindfulness techniques like meditation, prayer, yoga, and tai chi. Spending time outdoors and with loved ones also helps relieve stress, while avoiding caffeine and sugar helps keep your mood balanced. For additional support, some herbal adaptogens, such as rhodiola and ashwagandha, have been studied for their potential to support the body’s stress response.
Sometimes, it’s helpful to focus not on “boosting” energy but on maintaining balance. In addition to eating a variety of whole foods for essential micronutrients, try to plan your meals around balancing macronutrients, combining complex carbohydrates with protein, fiber, and healthy fats for sustained energy.
Eating a well-rounded diet of whole foods can help you get the nutrients you need. But we know it’s not always easy to stay consistent and get every meal just right. While there is no substitute for healthy eating, a foundational nutrition supplement can help fill common nutrient gaps and support energy levels with key nutrients like magnesium and B-complex. For a deeper dive, read our guide to the best vitamins and supplements to support energy levels.
For many people, it can be hard to get going in the morning. They immediately reach for caffeine to jumpstart their energy. This isn’t the best method to feel energized throughout the day. Some people prefer to delay caffeine for 60–90 minutes after waking so natural alertness has time to rise first, though research on this practice is limited.
You can assist the natural wake-up process by getting sunlight first thing in the morning to suppress melatonin. Going for an early walk is a great way to get your circulation moving and soak up sunlight. Setting this habit can help reset your circadian rhythm to your schedule, improving alertness during the day and helping you sleep at night. If there isn’t much morning light where you live, consider using a sun lamp that mimics natural light without the UV rays.
Cold plunges—immersing yourself in frigid water for brief periods—have become increasingly popular for good reason. While Nordic countries have done this for hundreds of years, recent studies show that for men, short periods of cold exposure (e.g., a cold shower) may trigger the release of alertness and “feel-good” hormones associated with alertness and mood support.
While consistent nutrition, sleep, and exercise support sustained energy levels, there are also a few natural ways to increase energy levels quickly by targeting the nervous system. In addition to cold plunges and sunlight, try breathing exercises. “Box breathing” forces you to slow down and focus on your breath.
Repeat this for 10 breaths to stimulate calm focus.
Plus, you don’t have to wait until your workout to move your body. A short walk or even a two-minute dance break increases your circulation and delivers a fresh supply of oxygen to the brain and muscles.
Getting your habits and internal clock in sync will go a long way in feeling energized. Use this example for a start:
Evening: Dim the lights and avoid screens to allow melatonin to rise naturally. Practice relaxation techniques like box breathing to lower the heart rate for sleep.
The timeline for increasing energy levels depends on what factors are causing your tiredness.
Long-term (8–12 weeks): This is the "fair trial window" for major dietary or supplement changes. It often takes several weeks for cumulative effects like new mitochondria creation and nutrient replenishment (especially iron and Vitamin D) to stabilize in the body.
When it comes to nutritional support for energy, consistency matters more than any single ingredient. AG1 Next Gen includes B-complex vitamins, magnesium, and CoQ10, all of which support your body's energy production. With over 75 vitamins, minerals, and whole-food-sourced ingredients, AG1’s daily scoop is designed to help fill common nutrient gaps, supporting metabolism and energy levels as part of a balanced daily routine.
Note: We offer AG Vitamin D3+K2 as a separate liquid for superior absorption.