One of the questions we asked in our recent survey was what your main barriers are when making a change to improve your health. “Lack of motivation” was the top answer...by a landslide. This is a HUGE increase from our survey at the beginning of the pandemic, and while not surprising, we wanted to dedicate a week to addressing this.

Our recent survey revealed that managing stress and anxiety is still one of the biggest pain points for members of our community. While many of you noted that your physical health has improved since the beginning of the pandemic (nice work!), for many of you, your mental health has gotten worse.

You might have heard the term ‘Heart Rate Variability’ thrown around in the past couple of years. With the recent advances in wearable technology, many fitness trackers and health apps have added this functionality to their list of features, such as VIIVIO, Oura Ring, and Whoop.

We hope you enjoyed a nice break over the holidays! Now that you’re recharged and refreshed, it’s time to get excited for the year ahead! We have a lot of great topics headed your way for the next few months. But first, we want to dedicate this week to taking a step back and focusing on your bigger purpose. This will set you up for the coming year and help you stay focused as we dive into more advanced topics to amplify your health and performance.

Many of us enjoy a coffee or tea from time to time (or maybe on a daily basis). But what are the drawbacks to coffee (besides the obvious insomnia?). What’s a safe amount to drink and when should you have it? We’re dedicating this week to clearing up these answers.

The key is to switch from time management to priority management. Time management is living by your calendar. Priority management is getting the most important things you need to do every day done.

One of the ways in which you can set yourself up for a productive day (in work or in another area of life) is by winning the morning. The first hour of your day sets you up for success - provided you do it right! Prioritizing your morning and starting your day right allows you to be focused, creative, alert, and perform at your very best for your family, coworkers, and everyone who depends on you.

As many of you know, one of our main mantras is that incremental improvements, or micro-gains, will help you win over the long term. Being just 1% better every day has a huge impact on your physical and mental health over time.

Great performers enter a state of complete connection to the task while remaining completely relaxed. In so doing, they consistently deliver exceptional performance. From a brain science perspective, they are able to access gamma mode, a state of intense brain activity when the entire brain works together at once.

I’ve spent a lot of time trying to crack the code of ultra-performance.

I do it by looping back through everything I’ve learned as a scientist and physiologist, and comparing that knowledge to everything I am learning from meeting and working with some of the highest-achieving people on the planet.

What I’ve observed is that elite performers are consistently able to access their full potential.

What we know is that there are specific cleaning cells inside the brain called astroglia that are between the neurons. When they are activated, astroglia scoop up waste products and drive them towards blood vessels so they drain away from the brain.

When you are awake and hustling, this system is shut down. Only when you enter a deep sleep and delta waves prevail, do the astroglia activate and do their work.

During his remarks, Eisenhower referred to a university president he knew who was fond of saying, “I have two kinds of problems: the urgent and the important. The urgent are not important, and the important are never urgent.” This phrase went on to become the basis for what is known as The Eisenhower Decision Principle – a decision-making process for prioritizing tasks and projects.

In the #hustle culture of manic busyness, it can be hard to remember the basic facts about personal growth. Mentally and physically, human beings are built to adapt to stress, but it will not happen if we don’t take time to rest and recover. That’s when the growth occurs. We cannot grow, let alone heal, if we are constantly on the go.

An interview with Dr. Greg Wells - It's okay to dream big, but start small. With "1 per cent tips," Wells advocates staying focused on micro-improvements (using spices, not sauces, to cut calories; walking 15 minutes a day to potentially lower risk of breast and colon cancer 24 to 40 per cent). "Microchanges are sustainable forever," he says. "When they add up over time, it's like compound interest for your body and mind."

A good night’s sleep is the foundation of physical health and mental energy.

I’m a science geek. I like to know why a particular approach to life or technique for success works. Otherwise, I tend to glaze over when faced with another “X Ways to Achieve Y Results” article. In the absence of research or evidence, I’m less likely to pay attention and less motivated to make a change in my life.

Maybe that’s just me. But I’ll assume you’re also a “but how do we know that really matters?” person and lay it out for you — on the subject of sleep.