Since the day you were born, your body has been collecting data about you and responding accordingly — physically, mentally and emotionally. Long before smartwatches were on the scene, your body was aware of what it needed. It has the ability to send you signs and signals to alert you of the need for food, movement and rest. Even if your schedule says otherwise.
As the years have passed, society has changed the way we relate to our physiology and our body intelligence has diminished. We’ve been conditioned to think of ourselves as machines, and trained to push through at all costs in order to keep up with our (or others’) ambitions. And so, we have become surprisingly adept at ignoring the natural intelligence within us. We turn to caffeine to override tiredness, mindlessly eat at our desks whilst multitasking at work, and take painkillers to mask the discomfort caused by headaches and migraines.
We treat the signals our body is communicating as inconveniences getting in the way, rather than acknowledging the data we are receiving and then acting upon it. But our physiology is not a barrier to performance. It’s the enabler. And rather than fighting against our bodies, we can leverage its intelligence to achieve peak performance over the long term.
The challenge is that we tend to place more value on the cognitive side of our brains, forgetting that the brain does not operate independently of the body. Every decision, choice and idea is affected by the entire body system. The state of our sleep, breathing, nutrition, activity and nervous systems will influence how we think, feel and operate.
Our energy levels, mood and focus are directly related to these factors. And so, whilst it sounds obvious that our mental and physical states are interrelated, this link is often one of the most easily forgotten, even if remembering it can make us significantly more productive, effective and impactful simply by tuning into our physiology more intentionally.
The cost of overriding our signals
You don’t get a headache for no reason. You don’t feel tired unless your body needs rest or food to give you the energy required to function. But in today's world, when everything feels urgent or important, pushing through often becomes the norm. Of course, you can’t abandon responsibilities because you feel tired or take a day off when motivation is low, but it is a signal to take note and make changes.
Tuning into your natural edge is about becoming better at distinguishing between discomfort that can reasonably be worked through and signals that really require attention. If we constantly override these signals, we lose touch with what we need to perform well and have the edge. Depleted concentration may be interpreted as laziness, low motivation or aging. Hunger can be interpreted as irritability, and an overloaded nervous system can be mistaken for a failure to cope. Coffee, energy drinks and painkillers are simply a band-aid to help push through.
We know that performance is impaired when under extreme stress, or when tired or hungry. For example, after a poor night’s sleep, you might intend to be positive and patient, yet your physiology will impact your success. Research shows that sleep deprivation can impact our cognition in the same way as alcohol does, and poor sleep also has consequences for our decision-making capacity and emotional regulation.
Leverage your physiology to boost performance
The good news is that we can fine-tune a few factors to support performance. For example, we can prioritise a good night’s sleep and establish the conditions to enable this, ensure quality nutrition and hydration are on the agenda, and train our nervous systems to become more resilient.
Rather than trying to force our way into a better cognitive state, changing our physical state can be a much more effective option. When finding it hard to concentrate at work, don’t push through. Take a few minutes to get up and get some fresh air into your system, move around, or take a power nap (if possible). Research shows that slow breathing increases relaxation and alertness, increasing activity in the pre-frontal cortex — the brain region associated with executive function and logical thinking. A Stanford University study also highlighted the mind-body connection and how walking boosts creativity.
Acknowledging and supporting our physical systems will enable higher performance, so establish strong foundations and make it a habit to optimise your human physiology before defaulting to other measures and strategies. And although we live in a world that is increasingly integrated with technology, we remain human, and it’s important to remember that. Instead of competing with artificial intelligence, we need to sharpen our own natural edge.
4 steps to rediscovering your natural edge
It can seem overwhelming to be advised to ‘tune into your body’, especially if you don’t know where to start. To make it easy, work intentionally through these four steps. Over time, this will become an unconscious competence.
- Notice what’s going on. Before pushing through or reaching for a quick fix, ask yourself: What’s happening in my body right now? Where do I feel tension or discomfort? How deep, shallow, slow or fast is my breathing? What is my energy and concentration like? What is my mood like right now? Simply observe, without judgement. This stage is about awareness.
- Interpret the data. Now you have some information, be curious. Are there any patterns or factors that could be contributing towards your current state? Have you been working without a break? Are you hungry, tired or mentally overloaded? Has the food you’ve recently eaten had a positive or negative impact on your energy levels? Build a picture over time and spot the trends.
- Respond. Change something. Go for a 1% adjustment to make this realistic and easy. Perhaps you will drink more water, eat a more nutrient-dense lunch, go for a walk outside in your lunch break, or wind down without digital devices an hour before bed. You may sit up straighter and focus on your posture, slow your breathing, or delay making important decisions when tired.
- Learn & adjust. Once you have changed something, pay attention to what happens next. If it appears that the adjustments you are making are supporting your performance, lean in more deeply. Also remember that it can take more than one attempt to really see results, so be patient and experiment with one thing at a time for a few days so you can pinpoint what is working for you. Has a daily lunchtime walk helped you to concentrate more effectively during the mid-afternoon? Did eating something nutritious before an important meeting improve your patience and concentration? Did slower breathing help you enter a conversation in a composed state so you were able to think more clearly?
Over time, these steps will enable you to create your very own peak performance blueprint. You'll be able to recognise your unique patterns and adjust your approach to show up at your best.
