👋 Hey. Welcome to issue #77 of The Everyday Athlete Newsletter.
Here are my 3 favourite ideas, learns and resources to help you improve your performance this week (4 min read):
🔋 The steady energy tweak
Adenosine is a hormone that makes us feel tired. It naturally builds up throughout the day.
When we sleep adenosine is recycled and levels are reduced.
But there’s still a bit hanging around in the morning, which we can clear out by signalling to our bodies that it’s morning e.g. movement and sunlight.
Here's the thing:
When we drink coffee, the caffeine blocks our bodies' ability to feel adenosine. But it doesn’t clear it.
So we feel awake, but we’re actually just wearing a blindfold because adenosine is still at the party.
So when the caffeine starts wearing off our adenosine levels are higher than they should be. And we feel the crash.
Another hormone, cortisol, is also going to work...
Our cortisol levels naturally rise in the morning (which makes us feel alert and awake).
But pounding a coffee immediately after waking can disrupt this natural process.
So when the caffeine wears off, our bodies’ standard system isn’t operating properly, which can contribute to a crash.
- ⏰ So try waiting an hour before boiling the kettle
- ☀️ And get some movement and light into that first hour
It could make all the difference.
But if coffee is a non-negotiable first thing, fair enough. Ditto to Huberman 😂
🥛 Cool new product: Milky Plant
"Tienes leche vegetal?" were the first 3 words of Spanish my partner Issy learned travelling through Central Am last year.
(do you have plant-based milk?)
Unsurprisingly, we didn’t hear sí too often.
The problem at home isn’t access. It’s quality – few have no additives, few taste good.
So for all the oat latté-ers running plant-based milk, you might like Milky Plant (at-home DIY fresh plant milk in minutes).
No small investment! But maybe a goer if you pound the stuff.
(not an ad, just thinks it’s cool)
🎾 Winners or losers game
On the back of Aus Open tennis fever, I was reading an article about the difference between amateur and professional tennis games…
“In the 1999 tennis book, Extraordinary Tennis for the Ordinary Tennis Player, author Simon Ramo broke down the difference between amateur and professional tennis:
- Amateur tennis is a Loser's Game. 80% of points are lost on unforced errors. You win by avoiding errors and waiting for your opponent to make errors.
- Professional tennis is a Winner's Game. 80% of points are won on incredible shots. You win by hitting incredible shots.”
Food for thought for your next hit.
But also a good frame for the other “games” we play in sport, business and life.
Where are we on the learning curve? Do we need to hit winners? Or can we win by avoiding big mistakes and just staying in the game?
If we’re running a marathon, do we need to just follow a good program, recover well, and stay injury-free? Or do we need to do altitude training, use hyperbaric chambers, and get a $1,000 pair of shoes with a shelf life of one race?
If you wanna drop a bit of fat, do we need to eat mostly high-protein and fibre whole foods, build some muscle and hit 10k steps a day over a few months/forever? Or do we need to do boot camps, restrictive diets, and “fat-burning” supplements for 4 weeks? (ahem, pls don't)
The winning shots are sexy. They get the headlines. So we try and replicate them.
But maybe they’re not always the best path.
👋 Wanna work with me 1 on 1 to unlock your health and performance? Join the Happy Body Blueprint.
That's it!
Have a great weekend 🤙
Matt
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The Everyday Athlete Newsletter is not a licensed health service and is not a substitute for professional health advice, treatment or assessment. The information given in this email is general in nature, written for a specific audience. If you’re struggling, please see a healthcare professional.
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