Police Commander Eric Tung shares strategies for maintaining steady energy levels throughout a shift—especially during night and swing shifts. Drawing from 18 years of experience in law enforcement and wellness coordination, Eric covers everything from improving sleep hygiene and managing blood sugar to incorporating light exercise and building team morale. With practical tips and real-world insight, this video helps shift workers stay sharp, safe, and supported throughout demanding hours.
0:01
hey there my name is Eric Tongue I'm an
0:03
active police officer commander by rank
0:06
and I'm a wellness coordinator for my
0:08
department I've been in the trade for 18
0:10
years and there is so much that I've
0:12
learned about resilience and health in
0:14
shift work including working night shift
0:17
Today we're going to be talking about
0:18
maintaining energy levels through your
0:20
shift This is obviously a challenge for
0:23
so many If we even start with one basic
0:26
health pillar which is sleep A lot of
0:28
people have a lot of trouble with sleep
0:30
during the daytime hours or a swing
0:32
shift what have you But ultimately that
0:35
is one key thing that you can focus on
0:37
But it doesn't stop there So first we're
0:39
going to talk about sleep And then we're
0:41
going to talk about some other
0:42
considerations to help those energy
0:43
levels stay stable so that you can be
0:46
optimal safe and efficient and
0:49
productive at work Sleep is obviously a
0:52
huge topic and we could go on and on
0:55
about it There are a lot of resources
0:57
but I do want to leave you with a couple
0:58
things to think about One is to consider
1:00
your sleep hygiene right so that might
1:02
have to do with the routine that sets
1:04
you up for the best night of sleep
1:07
possible There are a lot of tools and
1:09
considerations to help with sleep That
1:11
could include everything from blackout
1:13
curtains to using a noise machine or a
1:16
white noise machine app on your phone
1:18
That could also be literally turning
1:20
your phone off or having it away with
1:22
the ringer off Most people recognize
1:24
that there's only a few people that will
1:27
relay any type of critical news that you
1:29
want them to wake you up in the mo
1:31
middle of your sleep So maybe you can
1:33
program them in to notify you You could
1:36
also consider things like mouth tape
1:39
There's a lot of resources on that It
1:41
could cut down on snoring uh sleep
1:43
position the type of pillow a cooler
1:46
environment So they sell sheets and
1:49
mattresses and pillows to help you have
1:51
a cooler environment but you could also
1:53
turn the thermostat down Another
1:55
recommendation is potentially raise your
1:57
body heat such as with a hot bath or
1:59
shower as you're having that wind down
2:01
routine so that when you go to bed your
2:03
body is instantly starting to cool and
2:06
dumps that temperature off So a lot of
2:08
considerations there Beyond sleep there
2:10
are other factors that are all
2:12
interrelated with your health So your
2:15
food and nutrition when you eat how you
2:18
eat are you eating in a way that keeps
2:19
your blood sugar stable through your day
2:21
or your shift oftentimes many
2:25
nutritionists dieticians and doctors
2:27
will recommend food combining So
2:29
combining different types of
2:31
macronutrients so that you maintain
2:34
blood sugar levels that are stable
2:36
General recommendations would be not to
2:39
have just a carb or just a sugar So
2:41
that's a lot of your processed carbs or
2:43
sugars quickly digestible which makes
2:46
your blood sugar spike and you have that
2:49
energy crash So combining things like a
2:52
protein and fat or carbs and protein
2:55
generally whole food sources fiber Next
2:58
I want to talk about exercise And
3:00
although people may feel averse to
3:02
introducing exercise when they're
3:04
already tired and they're having trouble
3:06
with their energy levels it is
3:08
worthwhile to recognize that for most
3:10
people light to moderate exercise can
3:12
actually boost energy levels When I was
3:15
working graveyard oftent times in the
3:18
middle of our night which would be 3:00
3:20
or 4 in the morning myself and my
3:22
buddies at work would go walk around at
3:24
a park The air was cold and crisp We
3:27
would oftentimes do a little bit of a
3:29
workout maybe some body weight squats
3:31
maybe some pull-ups on a local jungle
3:33
gym when we didn't have access to a gym
3:35
That kind of stuff would literally boost
3:37
our energy because we were moving we
3:40
were breathing we had endorphins and
3:42
dopamine because we were feeling good
3:44
from the activity and the camaraderie
3:46
with that So think about ways that you
3:48
can inject that in whether it's a break
3:50
time or a meal break We all recognize
3:52
the power of being around people we like
3:54
We all know that there are certain
3:56
people when they walk into a room we
3:58
literally feel better Maybe the whole
4:00
room feels better The energy is lifted
4:02
So anytime that you can inject that and
4:05
support that positive culture in your
4:07
workplace the better And so that's a
4:10
shout out to things that build a team
4:13
things that build camaraderie that could
4:15
be potluck meals that could be these fun
4:17
little competitions in the office or the
4:19
warehouse or whatever your work
4:21
situation is So find ways to have fun
4:23
within reason and you can absolutely
4:25
de-stress as a group So again there are
4:28
many ways to address low energy levels
4:30
And it's not just sleep and improving
4:32
your sleep There are really every type
4:35
of health tenant whether it's sleep
4:38
nutrition exercise uh emotional support
4:42
social health all these types of
4:44
engagements interplay on each other to
4:47
help you be your best So all health is
4:50
intertwined and that is exactly the same
4:52
for trying to address and improve your
4:54
energy levels through your shift
