In my last post I talked about the role the mitochondria play regarding health and energy levels. As stated, the mitochondria can be likened to your own personal batteries, producing more than 90% of energy in the body’s cells.
This post covers – in a simple way – the biological processes that are at the root of whether or not you have the physical resources to get through each day, and still have energy to spare.
And, also determine how well you sleep at night.
In the next two posts I will cover a couple of things you can do to regenerate degenerating mitochondria.
So what are the mitochondria?
Mitochondria are membrane-bound cell organelles that take in fuel from carbohydrates and fats, (such as glucose, fatty and amino acids) and convert this into something called ATP (adenosine triphosphate). ATP is an energy-carrying molecule found in the cells of all living things; once released through the cell it fuels other cellular processes needed for life, health and energy.
One of the most important roles mitochondria plays is in the maintenance of high energy organs and systems such as the liver, heart, muscles and brain. For instance, 40% of heart muscle is made up of mitochondria.
Other important functions of the mitochondria are the regulation of stem cells – which are vital for your health, they determine basic homeostasis of your body, are a critical part of the fight or flight response. They determine the longevity of the cells – in other words, the health of your mitochondria will play a role in how rapidly you age.
How do they do all of this?
It is through something called the Krebs cycle that the mitochondria produce ATP. This is obviously a biologically complex process that I as a non-scientist don’t really understand so I will use the simplest explanation. If this kind of stuff does fascinate you there is of course plenty of info online!
The Krebs cycle is a series of chemical reactions that are part of the process of aerobic cell metabolism; it is through what is called the Krebs cycle that the mitochondria convert nutrients into ATP.
Through a series of enzymatic reactions, oxygen is used to break down glucose and other molecules into carbon dioxide and water to produce the high energy phosphate compounds that make up ATP – the energy component of your cells.
What can you take from all of this, right now, on a practical level that will actually boost energy levels?
An important aspect is how much oxygen is being taken into the body and being utilised by each cell. Another is the stress response – this is a key factor in how rapidly the mitochondria degenerate.
Specific forms of breath-work will cover both of the above at the same time, directly affecting the Krebs cycle and the regeneration of the mitochondria.
In Why Am I So Tired?, I cover breath-work and how to manage the impact of many different forms of stress on your body and mind. The course includes many healing meditations that you can simply listen to if you are too tired to do anything else!
For very practical knowledge on how to begin boosting your energy, please click on the link below. The cost of this course has been cut by 50% until the 16th of August – take advantage of this now!
Catherine Strang 
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