Move and Groove #9 - Adapt

"Head, heart, hustle" - the words of my friend, Thomas Moyer, MBA, MSF , were in my head, egging me on.

10 miles done, 9.5 to go, it was New Year's Eve, the last day of a 31-day experiment in adaptation. I was exhausted but I knew I was going to make it. 99% chance of completion.

I heard about the 496 challenge while watching the Rich Roll podcast with Sean Conway - you run 1 km for each day of the month, so 1 km on the 1st, 2 km on the 2nd, and so on up to 31 km on the 31st, all adding up to 496 km (about 308 miles). I like quirky challenges like this. I decided on a whim to do it. It was November 30th which gave me a full December attempt. I gave myself a 30% chance of completion and promised to bail if any injuries occurred.

For 31 days I ran. I ran on the treadmill, on the beach, in the mountains, and on the streets. I became a runner. My body changed dramatically. I tested adaptation and recovery techniques. I learned a lot. Here are some of the learnings (see the long form here for more details):

• Running on tired legs forces you to be more efficient, improving form.
• The logistics of running every day is almost as hard as the running.
• Moments of bliss were mixed in with long bouts of struggle.
• My performance to recovery ratio was about 2:1.
• You can stay in zone 2 for a LONG time.

My recovery process was the following:

• Cold immersion followed by hot - I reversed my normal process because the cold exposure was causing me to remain hot for too long after each run. When exposed to heat, your body starts the cool down process, which worked better for me when I had meetings after running.
• Rollers and Theragun - The roller was a magical tool. My calves would be like solid pegs the next morning if I didn't roll them out. When I rolled them out for 15 minutes at night, I could immediately feel relief and walk normally. The Theragun was almost too much but worked well on hamstrings, quads, and glutes.
• Nutrition/hydration - Instead of eating before running, I ate while running like I would for marathon/ultra training. I carried food and water in my pack, which eventually felt like part of my body.
• Novelty - I mixed in trail running, mountain running, and new routes to ease the boredom. Delivering the plunger was a great example of making the running fun, which was the whole point. This helped with the mental recovery from long runs.
• Lots of sleep - I slept really well during the month and did my best to dial it in. I took naps when needed and tried to be consistent in wakeup time.

I learned that I needed an hour of recovery for every two hours of performance. If I didn't get this hour, then I would start the next day with more soreness and less strength. It was very clear how effective the recovery was with each morning's run.

Neuroscience Nugget: Our ability to improve performance in physical, cognitive or emotional systems is through adaptation. If we increase the stress we put on these systems and then recover, we adapt to higher levels of performance (Selye et al., 1976). However, it's crucial to strike the right balance. Excessive stress, insufficient recovery, or chronic stress can lead to long-term consequences. Chronic stress has been linked to a range of health issues, including increased risk of cardiovascular disease, impaired memory and cognition, and weakened immune function (McEwen et al., 1998). So, while pushing our boundaries is essential for growth, let's remember to prioritize the recovery phase to reap the full benefits.

Pep Talk: As this new week unfolds, embrace the power of adaptation to achieve new capacity and capabilities. If you are working on something cognitively draining for several hours, it is important to balance that with an appropriate amount of cognitive recovery. Instead of just thinking about performing, take your recovery seriously and notice how it affects how you feel and how you perform.

Go for a walk, stare at a tree - do something without a lot of cognitive stimulation to recover well!

Keep moving, keep grooving, and see you next Monday! ??

Be well,

Eric

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