My experience from working with organisations for 30 years is that high performers are not lacking in ability. What's often missing are the strategies that allow success with sustainability. And this is essentially what my latest book - The Performance Prescription: The Science of Healthy High Performance – is about. Through my work, including personally advising more than 8,000 business professionals and executives, I have seen up close how easy it is for people to be ground

I was at a wedding at the weekend. The mother of the bride was a good friend of mine from medical school. A few years ago, she commented that I was literally the last person in our year who she would have anticipated ending up doing the job I do. It was a fair comment indeed, as for many years, I lived a famously unhealthy and hedonistic lifestyle. One example of this was the fact I was a 30-a-day smoker. I actually started smoking when I was 13, and by the time I was 15 I wa

We're encouraged to drink plenty of water, but why? OK, we're mainly water, but beyond that, what does ensuring proper hydration do? Hydration is important to maintain our circulation. It's important for detoxification of the body through, for example, sweating. There is even some evidence that it helps the uptake of fuel into our cells, which may help energy production and metabolism. And it's critical for mental functioning - even mild dehydration has been found in studies

My experience is that there are basically three sorts of ‘exercisers’. 1. Those who prioritise exercise and have a consistent exercise habit that pretty much survives whatever else is going on in their lives. 2. Those who are chronically inactive (I’m honestly not judging). 3. Those who vacillate between periods of activity and inactivity, with the spells lasting from a few weeks to a few months. My experience also tells me that the last group is the biggest one. What’s going

Short sleep and sleep deprivation have been linked with a variety of mental deficits (including problems with decision-making and memory) and physiological changes too, including an increase in levels of inflammation in the body [1]. Inflammation in the body may contribute to impaired function of hormones such as insulin (insulin resistance) and leptin (leptin resistance) – both of which are implicated in obesity. In one study, just one night of about 4 hours sleep was enough

Most people will not feel great or perform optimally in a room that feels ‘stuffy’ or ‘airless’. In this situation, someone may well feel compelled to open a window or door ‘to let some air in’. Actually, the relief that comes from increased ventilation is less about what it brings in than about what it lets out. This is because it’s not so much a lack of oxygen as a buildup of carbon dioxide that causes the feeling of stuffiness. Outdoor air generally has a CO2 level of ar

I am a big believer in walking as a form of activity and exercise. The evidence links it to improved physical and mental wellbeing, but I also like that it’s relatively kind to the body and can often be sustained well into later life. Another thing I like about walking concerns its impact on thinking. I have noticed that when faced with an issue that requires creativity, I am usually better off taking a walk than mulling it over at my desk. I have noticed that not just me but

I gave a keynote last week for a client, and during the Q&A at the end, I was asked about sleep tracking. The person wanted to know whether she should track her sleep or not. As is often the case, the answer I gave was, “it depends.” The Benefits of Sleep Tracking First of all, what do I like about sleep tracking? While it may not be as accurate as attending a sleep lab, it does establish a decent baseline. From there, we can gauge our sleep and see how our lifestyle impacts

One of the most common complaints I hear from clients is that their mind is busy with all the things that remain to be done and cannot be forgotten. Intrusive thoughts can affect every aspect of their lives, causing them to flit mentally (and sometimes physically) from task to task, or take their attention away from a conversation around the dinner table. A lot of people find that even long after closing the laptop for the day, their mind remains a whir with ‘stuff’. There is

I’m not a fan of bread. Don’t get me wrong, I love to eat it, but from a nutritional and health perspective, I’m less than enthusiastic. One issue relates to the fact that bread tends to release sugar (from starch) relatively rapidly into the bloodstream. This can cause the body to over-compensate via a surge of the hormone insulin that may drive blood sugar levels to sub-normal levels about 1-3 hours later. Bread-based lunches can easily cause a mid-afternoon lull in energy

I am a big fan of walking as an activity for both the body and mind. However, the research suggests that more strenuous exercise is likely to have additional benefits for fitness and health. One option for those wishing to step up exercise intensity is to incorporate some jogging or running. At various times in my life, I have been quite an avid runner. But, over the years, I have also suffered from a succession of running-related ‘over-use’ injuries that have made, for me, t

A lot of people find that external distractions can be a major impediment to getting things done. And a major source of frustration for many of us is the mobile phone. Alerts and messages are part of the problem, but so are those social media apps that are literally designed to get our attention and hold it for as long as possible. If you have never experienced losing a decent chunk of time to mindless, almost endless scrolling on your smartphone, then you are a better person

Over the last decade or so, there has been increasing interest in the role that sunlight plays in health. It’s well known for its importance in bone health, but evidence also supports its role in various processes, including mood regulation, muscle function, and immune system efficiency. The summer offers us an opportunity to reap the benefits of vitamin D, but it’s also a time when people may find it easier to be more active and perhaps regain some fitness lost during the da

A lot of us live with a hum of anxiety in our heads. And whatever the precise root of this appears to be, a common theme is concerns about the future. Specifically, something that we don’t want to happen. Maybe it’s the fear of missing a deadline, displeasing a senior colleague, losing our job or having our partner leave us. Some evolutionary psychologists argue that we are hardwired to be vigilant to potential threats. Unfortunately, the modern-day equivalents of predatory a

Sometimes a coaching client will express to me a concern that they have about their drinking. The story is not usually one of a need to drink alcohol every day. There is no hint, either, of a desire to drink in the morning or afternoon. The typical cry is that they sometimes find themselves almost irresistibly drawn to alcohol, and perhaps a lot of it, whilst on other days, sometimes the majority of them, they don’t even think about alcohol. In fact, last week, I had a coachi

Last week’s blog post focused on why sleeping on our sides is generally preferable to back-sleeping, and also practical steps that help keep us from rolling onto our backs during the night. This week, I want to focus on another factor that can have a perhaps surprising impact on sleep quality – the air that we breathe through the night. It is well known that a build-up of the gas carbon dioxide in our immediate environment can cause our surroundings to feel ‘airless’ and ‘stu

My experience is that 20 years ago, hardly anyone talked about the importance of sleep. Now, it seems, sleep advice is everywhere. Getting enough sleep is something that I covered in a previous newsletter. But, while quantity of sleep is important, so is its quality. There are several factors that have relevance here, one of which is sleeping position. While a small number of people opt to sleep on their fronts, I’ve found the great majority of people actually are side- or ba

Proper hydration is an important element in wellbeing, particularly in terms of mental functioning and even mood. I was recently driving and accompanied by a friend. As I drove, I was occasionally drinking from a water bottle, and my friend commented that she should really drink more. She said the problem for her was that she "hates plain water". I asked if she liked sparkling. She said she did, but imagined it was somehow unhealthy. One common thought here is that the carbon

‘Deep work’ is a term coined by author Cal Newport in his book of the same name to describe work that is cognitively demanding and requires solitary, focused concentration, usually for extended periods of time. In his book, Newport makes the point that the ability to do deep work is especially important for knowledge workers, as it helps them acquire knowledge and develop skills that can then drive meaningful output and productivity. Deep work is usually required to solve com

I was recently having dinner with a friend, and the topic of my stopping smoking many years ago came up. A critical catalyst here was reading The Easy Way to Stop Smoking by Allen Carr. Here are three things that stuck with me from the book: 1. Addiction to cigarettes is more psychological than chemical. 2. It’s critical to focus on what we’re getting out of not smoking (and not dwell on what we’re ‘missing out on’). 3. How we talk about ourselves and to ourselves is importan