Photo by Skye Studios on Unsplash
In short: Mental energy is the fuel behind your focus, your patience and your motivation. It runs low when you sleep badly, eat irregularly, carry too much stress and never truly stop. You fill it up again with simple things: enough sleep, movement, food that feeds your brain, real breaks, kind people and kinder thoughts.
It’s four o’clock and you’ve read the same email three times. You haven’t carried anything heavy or run anywhere today, and still you feel emptied out. Someone asks what you’d like for dinner and the question feels like too much. You’re tired, but it’s your head that’s tired, more than your legs.
That’s what low mental energy feels like. And it can be looked after, in much the same way you’d look after a tired body.
What is mental energy?
Mental energy is the fuel that powers your brain, your thoughts and your actions. It’s what lets you concentrate on one thing, make a decision without agonising, stay calm when plans change and find an idea when you need one. When you have plenty of it, you’re more creative, more resilient and far more patient with the people around you. When you have very little, everything feels like an effort, even the things you normally enjoy.
It matters for much more than getting things done. With enough mental energy you cope better with stress and worry, you’re a nicer person to live with, and you look at a problem with a fresh eye instead of going round in circles. It’s part of your wellbeing, and of the quality of your relationships too.
Why does your mental energy run low?
Your mind uses energy all day, also for things you don’t count as work. Every small decision, every notification, every worry you carry in the background takes a little. Add a short night, a skipped lunch, a tense conversation and a to-do list that’s longer than the day, and by mid-afternoon the tank is empty. If that’s the time of day you struggle most, have a look at what I wrote about the afternoon energy dip.
The answer is rarely to push harder. It’s to fill the tank more regularly, and to stop the leaks.
What helps? Ten ways to boost your mental energy
1. Get enough sleep
Sleep is when your brain tidies up, stores what you’ve learned and recharges. After a good night, memory, attention and creativity all work better. After a bad one you’re tired, irritable and unable to concentrate. Go to bed and get up at roughly the same times, so your body clock knows what to expect, and give yourself a calm half hour before you turn off the light. You’ll find more ideas in my article about sleep.
2. Move every day
Movement is as good for your mind as it is for your body. It lifts your mood, eases stress and anxiety, and clears your head. It doesn’t have to be sport. A brisk walk, a bike ride to the shop, half an hour in the garden: what counts is that you do it most days, and that you like it enough to do it again tomorrow.
3. Manage your stress
Stress is one of the biggest drains on mental energy, because a worried mind never rests. Find what helps you come down again: meditation, slow breathing, yoga, reading, music, time in nature. I teach autogenic training, a relaxation technique you can learn and then use anywhere, and it’s one of the tools I recommend.
4. Feed your brain
Your brain needs proper food to work well. Vegetables and fruit, whole grains, protein and healthy fats give it a steady supply, where sweet snacks give you a quick lift and then a fog. Nuts, oily fish and a square of dark chocolate are particularly good for the brain. If you’d like to know why fish and walnuts keep coming up, read about omega-3 fatty acids and the brain. And to start the day well, try the Brain Smoothie in my recipe collection.
5. Be realistic about your goals and your time
Saying yes to everything and spreading yourself thin is a fast road to burnout. Decide what truly matters this week, give it your best hours, and leave room for rest. A shorter list that you finish gives you energy. A long one you never reach the end of takes it away.
6. Take breaks and disconnect
Your brain isn’t made to concentrate for hours without stopping. Short breaks through the day recharge it: stand up, look out of the window, make a cup of tea, step outside. And put the phone down for a while. Even a brief pause from screens eases mental tiredness. If that sounds difficult, a digital detox can start with one screen-free hour.
7. Make self-care a priority
Self-care means looking after your physical, emotional and mental health before you’re running on empty: moving, eating well, sleeping, and making time for what calms you. It protects you from burnout. A good place to begin is a Sunday self-care routine that sets you up for the week.
8. Challenge your brain
A brain that learns stays lively. Take up a new skill, play an instrument, do puzzles, learn a few words of another language, or fold paper: I wrote about folding origami cranes as one calming way to keep your mind and hands busy. The point is to do something that asks for your full attention and has nothing to do with your to-do list.
9. Surround yourself with positive people
Some people leave you lighter after ten minutes. Others leave you drained. The same goes for what you read, watch and listen to. You can’t always choose, but where you can, spend more time with people who encourage you, and less with whatever pulls you down.
10. Practise positive thinking
The way you talk to yourself uses energy or gives it. Going over and over what went wrong is exhausting. Looking for what’s still good in a situation, and speaking to yourself as you would to a friend, makes setbacks easier to carry. It takes practice, and I explain how in Mind your thoughts, change your life.
What if you’ve tried all this and you’re still exhausted?
Sometimes changing your habits isn’t enough. If your mind stays tired and heavy whatever you do, something deeper may need attention, and that’s the moment to ask for professional help. Talk to your doctor, or to a therapist or counsellor. It can also help to look honestly at alcohol and other things that numb you in the evening and cost you the next day.
How do you keep your mental energy up?
Mental energy doesn’t come back overnight. It builds, with patience and with small habits repeated often. So start with one thing from the list, the one that seems easiest this week, and add another when the first feels normal.
And notice your progress. Celebrate the small wins: the evening you went to bed on time, the walk you took when you didn’t feel like it, the lunch you ate away from your desk. Each one builds your confidence and your motivation, and those feed your energy too. For the physical side of the same question, read how to boost your energy naturally.
Frequently asked questions
What is mental energy, exactly?
It is the capacity you have for thinking, concentrating, deciding and staying patient. You can be physically rested and still have very little of it, for example after a day of small decisions and constant interruptions. It goes up and down with your sleep, your food, your stress and how much you are asking of your mind.
Why do I feel mentally tired when I have hardly moved all day?
Because thinking, deciding, worrying and switching between tasks all cost energy, even when your body sits still. A day at a screen with no real breaks can leave your head empty and your body restless at the same time. A short walk often helps more than another hour on the sofa.
Which foods help my brain?
Regular meals with vegetables, fruit, whole grains, protein and healthy fats give your brain a steady supply. Nuts, oily fish and a little dark chocolate are good friends of the brain, and so is enough water. Skipped meals and a lot of sugar tend to give you a short lift followed by a fog.
How quickly can I expect to feel a difference?
Some things work the same day: a glass of water, a walk, a proper lunch, an earlier night. Others build slowly over a few weeks, such as better sleep habits and kinder thoughts. Choose one or two changes and give them time before you add more.
When should I talk to my doctor?
If the mental tiredness lasts for more than a few weeks, comes with low mood, anxiety, poor sleep or memory problems, or if it gets in the way of your daily life, please talk to your doctor. Lasting exhaustion can have a medical cause, and it deserves a proper check. Asking for help with your mental health, from a doctor, therapist or counsellor, is a sensible step, never a failure.
Would you like some help?
Eating, sleeping and living in a way that gives you a clear head is one of the things we work on in my group programmes in nutrition and health, such as Six Tuesdays in Montignac. If you’d like to hear when the next group opens, write to me at hello@catherinepolet.coach.
Would you rather work one to one? I also coach online. Book a free 20-minute call, and we’ll look together at where your mental energy goes, and how to get more of it back.
About Catherine
I’m Catherine Polet, a holistic nutrition health coach, yoga and autogenic training teacher for more than 30 years, author and speaker. I help people find a way of eating and living that suits their own body, online in English, French, Spanish and German, and in person in Southwest France.
