You sit at a desk all day. So why are you exhausted?

Does it ever surprise you that you are exhausted in the evening?? As you read this article, you’re unlikely to be working up a sweat.? In fact, much of your day will probably involve sitting comfortably.? And yet, by the time you log off this evening, you may well be utterly exhausted.? How does that happen? The answer provides a startling and valuable insight into how to get the most from our brains...

The Chess Diet

It turns out that the cells in our brains need twice as much energy as the other cells in our body to function.? That makes concentrating for any period of time a really high intensity activity.? So much so that a chess grandmaster can burn up to 6,000 calories a day, just sitting and concentrating (that’s more than an average person uses in three days!).? Former world number 2 Fabio Caruana has claimed that he regularly loses up to a stone over the course of a two week tournament - welcome to your new exercise routine!

The Multiplier Effect

We mere mortals might not be making the same high-level calculations as a chess grandmaster, but that doesn’t necessarily make our cognitive load lighter.? Rather than being lost in focus like a chess player, we are more likely balancing a whole host of competing priorities - a stacked to-do list, a calendar full of meetings and (on average) nearly 300 emails and IMs across a typical day.? With so much on our plates, research suggests we typically spend about 11 minutes on a task before switching to something else.

If anything, this only makes the task harder for our brains.? Every few minutes we ask them to reset, to take in new information and re-focus on something new.? Just thinking about it feels exhausting!

The Pit Stop

The effect on our brain cells is draining, and not just in a metaphorical way.? Our brain cells rely on a balance of sodium and potassium, and (if we’re really good at staying focused) we can manage a maximum of up to 90 minutes of brain power before this gets depleted and our performance suffers - we might start to get tetchy and impatient, or bored. We’ll certainly start making poorer decisions and more mistakes.? At this point, we need a break to recharge - 15 minutes is enough, then we’re ready to fully focus once again.

Takeaways

If you find yourself exhausted after a day of sitting at your desk, there's a good reason!? But there’s lots we can do to help our limited mental energy go further.? By switching tasks less frequently we can reduce the overload on our brains, so less frequent email checking and longer bursts of focus on one activity at a time can help our brains to be less over-burdened.? And taking short breaks when we do start to get fatigued can help us reset and come back stronger for the next burst - a quick 15 minute pit stop is a strategic recharge when you need it most, not just a luxury for the days you’re not busy.

Helping your mental energy go a bit further might just allow you to get more from the hours you put in, do better work while you’re there, and have something left for when you do get to stop at the end of the day!