There are seasons when life feels like a constant sprint. No matter how many cups of coffee you drink, or how often you reach for energy drinks, you still feel tired. Jaclyn Steele Thurmond has lived through those stretches — running from one task to the next, sacrificing hours of sleep, and hoping sheer determination would be enough to carry her through.

But the truth is, exhaustion always catches up. She remembers lying awake, unable to fall asleep, her mind buzzing even as her body begged for rest. She remembers how the effects of caffeine would spike her energy (hello, jitterbug dance party in her nervous system), only to leave her drained a few hours later. And she remembers those mornings when she woke up foggy, wishing for steadiness instead of the crash-and-recover rhythm that left her feeling fragile (like a latte without the milk — flat and disappointing).

At some point, Jaclyn realized this: she didn’t just want to survive her days — she wanted to thrive in them. And that meant learning how to improve your energy in ways that were nourishing, sustainable, and deeply human.

If you’ve ever felt like you’re running on empty, you may also love my reflections on How to Cultivate Positive Thinking, which pairs beautifully with learning how to protect your energy.

How To Improve Your Energy

For Jaclyn, improving energy wasn’t about chasing quick fixes. It was about building small, intentional rhythms that respected her body, honored her spirit, and created space for joy. Over time, she found four practices that continue to ground her — and alongside them, a handful of everyday habits that serve as quiet lifelines.

Four Ways to Sustain and Improve Your Energy

1. Pause Before You Say Yes

Jaclyn used to say yes automatically — to opportunities, to hosting, to one more lunch date squeezed into an already packed week. But eventually she noticed a pattern: every automatic yes came with an invisible cost.

She remembers a season when her home felt like a revolving door. Guests came and went, beds were stripped and remade within the same 30 minutes, and while she was grateful, she was also depleted. Her body whispered, enough.

Now, when something comes up, she pauses. She looks at her calendar, notices how her body feels, and asks, Do I truly have the space for this? Sometimes the answer is yes. Other times, it’s no. Either way, it’s a choice that honors her energy. And learning to pause before the yes has been one of the most powerful ways she’s learned how to improve your energy.

2. Calibrate Your Energy Daily

Energy doesn’t sustain itself; it has to be tuned. For Jaclyn, that means calibrating every day. Sometimes it’s meditation or journaling, other times it’s physical activity — even moderate intensity movement like yoga, walking, or stretching makes her feel different in her skin.

Food plays a part too. She’s noticed how fruits and vegetables, lean protein, and simple staples like olive oil or a spoonful of peanut butter give her steadiness that lasts longer than processed snacks. She’s also seen how the effects of caffeine and too much drinking alcohol disrupt her balance — spiking energy, then leaving her depleted, or interfering with quality sleep.

Even small habits help. A glass of water before coffee. Choosing to move her body for 30 minutes instead of scrolling. These choices add up. They’re not flashy, but they’re faithful, and for Jaclyn, they’re what keep her steady.

I’ve noticed that the colors and textures in our home environment can shift my mood as much as food does. That’s why I also shared How to Make Your Home Reflect Your Personality— because sometimes design choices are energy choices too.

3. Make Space and Take Alone Time

When her calendar is crammed, Jaclyn notices her creativity dries up. But when she carves out even a little space — an hour alone at a coffee shop, a slow walk under the trees, or just 30 minutes of journaling — inspiration bubbles back to the surface.

She thinks often of Julia Cameron’s Artist Date, and how carving out intentional solitude isn’t indulgence, but necessity. For Jaclyn, these pockets of space are where her soul exhales. They’re where her energy has room to reset.

Creating space is how inspiration rises. If this resonates, you might also find encouragement in Speaking Out in Times of Censorship, where I shared how making space for truth shapes the way we live.

4. Prioritize Sleep and Rest

The hardest — and most healing — lesson has been this: quality sleep changes everything. Jaclyn has lived through the toll of too few hours of sleep — insomnia during pregnancy, newborn nights, seasons where her nervous system was stretched so thin she couldn’t fall asleep even when she tried.

Now she protects sleep as sacred. She keeps an evening rhythm that helps her body wind down, avoids late-day caffeine, and notices how drinking alcohol impacts her rest. She leans on tools like a sleep mask, magnesium, and her Oura Ring to track what actually restores her.

And beyond sleep at night, she’s learned to honor rest during the day. Rest can look like watching a movie without folding laundry, or sitting still without multitasking. Rest isn’t laziness. It’s medicine. It’s one of the most faithful ways to boost your energy and protect the life inside you.

Everyday Energy Boosters That Help

Alongside her four core practices, Jaclyn has also found a handful of everyday shifts that keep her energy steady:

Begin with a glass of water before your morning coffee.
Pay attention to the effects of caffeine — it can help in small doses, but hurt in excess.
Choose whole foods: fruits and vegetables, lean protein, olive oil, nourishing fats.
Move your body daily — even 30 minutes of moderate intensity activity helps.
Be mindful of drinking alcohol, as it disrupts quality sleep and leaves you drained the next day.
Protect your evenings — create space that makes it easier to fall asleep peacefully.

And if you’re curious about how what we put in our bodies shapes us long-term, I shared more in Breathe Better, Sleep Deeper, which dives into the everyday choices that support lifelong wellness.

Final Thoughts

Learning how to improve your energy isn’t about squeezing more into your day. It’s about choosing differently. Jaclyn has learned, through trial and tenderness, that energy is sacred — it’s the fuel for creativity, love, and joy.

For her, protecting energy looks like pausing before the yes, calibrating daily, creating space, and cherishing rest. It also looks like staying hydrated, nourishing her body, moving with intention, and giving herself permission to stop pushing.

You don’t have to run yourself ragged to prove your worth. Protect your energy like the gift it is. Nourish it, rest it, tend to it — and watch your life shift as you learn to sustain and boost your energy every single day.

Live on purpose. Live on frequency.

Ien Araneta - editor of The Freq Show & The Beckon Times

Four Ways on How To Improve Your Energy