Ways to deal with a lack of energy

[sqbr]

(This I started as a reply to fred_mouse's post)

So, if people's lj posts are anything to go by, a LOT of you have issues with fatigue/energy levels. What have people found effective in dealing with them?

Myself:

• NO SUGAR (except for as a deliberate treat when I don't mind feeling crap later). It just makes me hyper and then very sleepy.
  
• Similarly with caffeine, but I am unusually sensitive.
  
• Eat small amounts of low GI food fairly frquently. A balance of fresh vegetables, wholegrain stuff (rye bread, vita brits etc), fresh fruit, and lean unprocessed meats.
  
• Trying not to overtire myself. This means taking breaks when I'm starting to get tired, even if I feel all motivated to keep going, not overbooking myself (no more than one social event per weekend if I can at all help it) and, if necessary, piking on work/social etc commitments at the last minute rather than overstraining myself when I'm borderline fatigued.
  
• Keeping active. A small amount of pleasant exercise on a regular basis (yes, this is hard to balance with the previous one)
  
• Stop myself from feeling overextended/stressed: Saying no to too many commitments. Organising things well in advance. If I have energy, doing something off my to-do list NOT something new and exciting (unless it's REALLY exciting :)) If I'm bored but tired, see if I can do something simple off my to do list even if I'm too tired for the most important things. Organising my life so that me getting sick at random doesn't screw everything up.
  
• Not doing counterproductive (but briefly enjoyable) things when I feel ill. i.e. no comfort foods which are unhealthy or I'm allergic to etc (most of them :( ) No surfing the net when I have a headache. No long walks when I feel fatigued.
  
• Figuring out what foods make me ill and minimising the eating of them, especially when I'm already under the weather (not universally applicable :))
  

That's all that comes to mind.

EDIT: Ones other people reminded me of (more in comments):

• Get your underlying medical condition seen to (thyroid, allergies, depression, etc)
  
• Get enough sleep at regular times
  
• Low GI sustaining breakfast
  
• NO caffeine past a certain time of day (4pm for me)
  
• Iron supplements, especially for women
  
• Have a routine
  
• Remove stress, do things which make you calm and happy (like patting cats)
  
• Drink at least 2L of water a day
  
• Be young :(
  

I sometimes wonder if I have a minor case of something like chronic fatigue syndrome, I've had pretty bad attacks of "too tired to make lunch(*)" on and off since during my Phd, I eat through my sick days at a crazy rate (at least this job HAS sick days). Then again, it's hard to say how much of it is related to my gazillion minor food intolerances and reflux, both of which, amongst other things, make me headachey, sore, and tired. I also have a tendency to get actually sick (with colds etc) whenever I'm overtired or stressed, but that's actually being getting intermittently better as I get older.

(*)Any of you who have seen me when I've been forced to delay lunch will understand how significant this is :)