👋 Hey. Welcome to issue #56 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):
💪 Get good at stress
In 1998, 30,000 Americans were asked:
- How much stress they’d had in the last 12 months
- How much this stress affected their health
8 years later, researchers looked at how this group was getting on.
They found the group most likely to die prematurely were those who had [high stress] + thought stress had a [big affect on their health].
43% higher risk than [low stress] + [no affect].
The group least likely to die prematurely?
[low stress] + [no affect], right?
Nah.
The group least likely to die prematurely were those with [high stress] + thought stress had [no affect on their health].
This group were even better off than those in the low stress group.
Insane.
So stress can be bad for us. But only if we think it is 🤯
Or maybe more accurately:
It’s less about the stress. And more about how we react to it (which is backed up by other solid research 1, 2).
But still, my response to reading this was: “Woah, that’s incredible”.
And then, “Huh? But there’s overwhelming science that says some types of stress aren't great for us.”
The confusion came from the definition. "Stress" is so broad. Could be anything from daily dramas to proper trauma.
Then we know there’s eustress like exercise and sauna – a short bout out of the comfort zone that makes us better.
There's distress that can cause extreme anxiety. And chronic stress where our fight or flight response is running hot all the time. It's pretty clear this stuff isn’t good for us.
So what do these studies really tell us?
They tell us that stress is a tool. One of evolution’s best. It kept our ancestors alive. Now it allows us to perform.
But sometimes it gets triggered too easily, too often, and to the extent that it's no longer helpful.
And in those situations, we can reign it in when it's not serving us with tools like:
And buffer it with:
- exercise
- ice
- sauna
- doing hard things
But maybe the best tool we have is the belief stress is good. There to help.
Harness it to perform. Use it's energy.
Kelly McGonigal, PhD, is a research psychologist, lecturer at Stanford University, and an award-winning science writer. In The Upside of Stress, she writes:
“The best way to manage stress isn’t to reduce or avoid it, but rather to rethink and even embrace it... Embracing stress changes how you think about yourself and what you can handle... It changes how you cope with the challenges in your life."
A tool relevant to the daily niggle stressors and the big stuff.
So bitta stress? Soak it up. Might be good for ya.
🥑 App: Supermarket swap
How’s this:
"Organic products intended for the Australian market don't need to meet a particular standard or be certified to be labelled ‘organic’." – ACCC
Bit on in our supermarkets.
Chemicals, additives, preservatives, fertilisers, processing aids...
All in big words no one can understand.
Supermarket Swap is an app that helps you decode it.
Enter an ingredient or food code, and it’ll give you the rundown.
Plus it has a library of recommended products (without the crap) from Aussie supermarket shelves.
Handy. Check it out here.
(Insta page also a good follow)
😮💨 Podcast: The Breathing Expert James Nestor
Quickly becoming my favourite podcast host, Steven Bartlett chats to author of “Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art”, James Nestor.
I've written about the power of nose breathing before.
But this episode really drove home the dramas of mouth breathing during sleep:
- 🦴 Functional, postural and biomechanical problems
- 🧬 Chronic disease
Not sure if that's you?
Usually a dry mouth on waking + poor quality sleep are signals.
Otherwise most wearables track your respiratory rate (RR). If you're fit and healthy but your RR is on the higher end (~18+), that's probably also a sign.
For some it's not this simple, but most will find a quick fix from sleeping in a nasal strip + mouth tape.
Either way highly recommend a listen
That's it!
Have a great weekend 🤙
Matt
P.s.
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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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