3 Steps to Kicking Ass (productivity without the burnout)

If you've followed me here for a while then you have likely read about my Brain & Body Optimization 242 Strategy (2 minutes of Intentional Movement 4 every 2 hours of focused brain work). Intentional movement is moving just for the sake of moving (not to walk the dog or get a coffee). It's a stretching, outdoor walk, running up and down stairs, or dancing to your fav song, for example. This strategy is based on what researchers know about the energy flow of intense mental and physical activity typically ranging from 90-120 minutes before it starts to diminish and have a negative impact on brain health.?This cycle is called the Ultradian Rhythm.

In my Brain & Body Optimization coaching, I help clients evaluate their "power hours", or when they have their best energy to tackle various cognitive performance tasks. They discover when their ultradian rhythm ebbs and flows in regard to the time of day, period of time (how many minutes they are at peak performance), and kinds of tasks needed to be done.

The Power of Full Engagement, Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz say:

We are capable of overriding these natural cycles, but only by summoning the fight-or-flight response and flooding our bodies with stress hormones that are designed to help us handle emergencies. The long-term cost is that toxins build up inside us. We can only push so hard for so long without breaking down and burning out.The more you try to fight against your body, the less productive you’ll be and the more burned out you’ll become. Working in concert with your body, however, can unlock?reservoirs of productivity that you thought you never had.

This article is about just that: working in concert with your brain and body so that you can get everything done well without the side effects of burnout. Our body gives us lots of warning signs (Yellow, Pink, and Red Flags below) as to why and when we need to address stress levels. Unfortunately, most of us ignore them and power through hour after hour after hour of sedentary mental work.

Yellow flag examples: easily distracted, forgetting details like names and where you put your cell phone or keys, frequent carb snacking.

Pink flag examples: difficulty falling or staying asleep, frequent headaches or backaches, fatigue, boredom, increased irritability, decreased energy for other parts of life, increased feelings of "imposter syndrome", prolonged recovery from physical injuries, more errors in your work, inability to lose belly fat, increased anxiety related to work performance.

Red flag examples: frequent illnesses, inability to have restorative sleep, emotion dysregulation, IBS or other digestive issues, increased alcohol or other substance use, binge eating, relationship problems, neglect of personal interests or hobbies.

With this as the backdrop, I am going to give you the 3 ways to kick ass without burning out. That said, this article can only provide a high-level introduction to healthy performance ass-kicking and you will have to come back next week and the week after for more of an in-depth explanation of these strategies. You can also reach out to me here with questions that I will eagerly answer. Of course, you can schedule a consult call with me to really go over these three rules for Kicking Ass Without Burnout (KAWOB) and customize any of my Brain & Body Optimization strategies for your personal needs.

#1 Rule for KAWOB: Know your rhythm.

For one full week, track your energy and productivity. Waking, mid-morning, early afternoon, late afternoon, and evening energy rated by a sense of passion, vigor, interest, and focus. Note when you start to feel foggy, make errors, get distracted or bored, have physical pain, or lose patience. Include weekends because (1) many people work parts or all of the weekend and (2) if you're not working on weekends, the data collected is essential to evaluate how you are making choices around your ultradian rhythm otherwise. By the way, while science shows that human brains have this window of 90-120 minutes of cognitive ability before people need a brain break, some of my most successful clients have realized that they can't go longer than 45 or 60 minutes without brain care. In fact, they report that their more frequent brain care routine (that takes them 2-12 minutes each time) has increased their mental energy and improved their performance. Once you realize your Power Hours, you can apply the following steps.

#2 Rule for KAWOB: Develop Your Mental Max Plan.

With greater self-awareness of your Power Hours, you can effectively maximize your productivity based on your mental energy flow. Some of us have a clearer sense of our workload and can neatly develop a daily routine around optimal performance energy. However, I hear regularly (most often from younger professionals) that they are bombarded with demands from higher-ups often with quick turnaround times and overlapping deadlines.

With the relative predictability of your work, you can now map out what tasks align best with when you have higher passion, interest, vigor, and focus and what tasks you need to tackle when you know you are lesser in that energy.

When you are in a position that throws requests/needs at you at any time of day or night, it's a little tricker but still essential to your wellness and performance. What you need to do is to create a Non-negotiable practice (I've written about this in other newsletters!). Non-negotiable means neither you nor anyone else can talk you out of this practice that you must do to protect & help restore your brain. One non-negotiable practice is the aforementioned 242 strategy. Another is my Restore strategy that you can do three times per day with great impact. First, when your alarm goes off or you naturally wake up, dedicate the first 12 minutes to drinking 8 ounces of tepid water and either looking at nature, engaging in movement, and/or listening to music that matches your personality/moves you in some way. Of course, this means you are not touching your phone beyond turning off your alarm. You commit to looking at messages after your 12 minutes of brain care. You can repeat this midday and later in the evening.

#3 Rule for KAWOB: Nourish your brain power.

Don't go on a diet (again). Rather, edit your intake to be about optimizing your performance. I can almost guarantee that if you choose options to fuel your brain well, you will also find that you drop extra pounds. Why? Because you will be replacing empty calories with nutrient-rich ones, assisting your brain to produce the energy it needs (so it won't be as stressed...which translates to lower cortisol with means easier loss of belly fat).

This is a big topic and I will be writing about my Brain & Body Optimization Nutritional Psychology strategies in the next few newsletters. For now, here are some nutrition tips for optimal perfomance:

*Hydrate more than you think is necessary. Most people still live by the old-school notion that we need eight 8-0z glasses of water daily. Wrong. People over 150lbs will ideally drink 15.5 8-oz glasses and those under 150lbs need 11.5 8-oz glasses (Mayo Clinic, Institute of Medicine and National Academies, google it!). Our brain is made of largely water. When it is only 8 ounces under what it needs, parts of the brain actually shuts down to conserve energy. When you feel "brain dead", it's often because you are lacking in water and your brain has actually gone dormant in parts.

*Go nuts. Well, literally not emotionally. Walnuts are packed with DHA, an omega-3 fatty acid, antioxidants, melatonin, folate, and vitamin E. Two ounces of walnuts a couple of times per day will give your brain a boost for lowering cortisol, increasing concentration ability, and enhancing memory function.

*Simple carbs create simple minds. In other words, if your work requires complex thinking, you have to give it complex carbs (the ones that digest slowly and are value-packed with health benefits). Simple carbs are quick-acting, empty snacks like cookies, muffins, chips, pretzels, and french fries. They create blood-sugar spikes that cause brain performance turmoil. Increased energy, yes...but then there is the crash and burn shortly after. Sidenote, this rollercoaster can mimic or exacerbate anxiety! Complex carbohydrates that work well for optimal performance and wellness include bananas, lentils, sweet potatoes, quinoa, and yogurt with berries.

Timing is key with all nutrients for mental and physical performance. For the pre-performance boost, eat your brain healthy snack 15-20 minutes prior to getting started. (Eat your snack and then do your 242 strategy 10 minutes prior to performance and your energy will be ready for you!)

Remember, this is the first of a few articles on ways to enhance performance and reduce or prevent burnout. Pay attention to your Flags (above) and if you need more explanation on the strategies here then shoot me an email or set up a time to talk!

Ava Diamond, LCSW, Therapist, Coach, Speaker, Author,

Brain & Body Optimization Coaching

On a mission to help 1 million people care for their brain as regularly as they brush their teeth.