Mental Agility for Peak Performance
Let’s discuss the benefits of boosting and biohacking your mental agility. Photo by Bryce Koch
Are you ready to fine-tune your mindset?
You’re reasonable. You’re rational. Your brain is awesome! Too bad it doesn’t always help you follow through with your intentions. Fortunately, you can grow and enhance your abilities. That’s right. You can consciously alter your mindset and body chemistry to influence your mind. After that, you can reach any goal you set your mind to. So, why not push your limits?
Mental agility lets us think rapidly and solve problems. Better. Faster. Stronger. Doing things we normally can’t. People with superior mental agility have a talent for thinking and understanding new things quickly and easily. On top of that, they often maintain a flexible mindset that helps them deal with change and challenging times.
Some of this involves self-discipline and personal willpower. And ambition helps. Your brain is more eager and willing to support you if you are already chasing your passion.
So, why not strengthen your mind and boost performance? You are capable of doing the impossible. And yet, with all I’m about to suggest, don’t forget the natural order of things. Intelligence beats physical ability. Creativity beats intelligence. Determination tops everything else.
Don’t just hope for something. Set a goal. Choose a clear target. Establish habits that push you toward your goal. Make progress. Shake off adversity. Never quit.
Photo by Elena Mozhvilo
Here’s the plan
I’ve used three methods to strengthen cognitive health and mental agility. The first involves several practices that might help you get organized and ready to focus. Second, binaural beats can help set a frame of mind equal to your intended direction and goal. Third, our bodies are already on hot standby to cook up any number of helpful, feel-good neurochemicals. Why not learn to generate them at will and set them to good purpose?
I’m not going to recommend mind-altering drugs, as I still prefer working within the confines of my rational mind. Also, while meditation may be another advanced practice, I’ve yet to get a good feel for the basics.
Maximizing performance: intention setting, mindful attention, and focus.
On my best writing days, I focus rapidly and get everything done relatively quickly. I can then move on to a second project, train my dogs, or continue my savage war with the invasive buckthorn trees in our extended backyard. If I’m not careful, it can be too easy to give in to one of the cute puppies and go off wrestling or on a walk when I should stick with my usual priorities.
Here are a few habits that help boost productivity:
Especially when attempting to remain resilient and resourceful, the brain uses a lot of energy, so eat well and take care of yourself. A healthy diet supports mental health, brain health, and boosts cognitive performance.
Get plenty of exercise. Fresh air and exercise boost mood and reduce stress.
Exercise your brain daily by challenging yourself with puzzles, brainteasers, creativity exercises, or problem-solving tasks. Try to learn something new every day.
Get plenty of sleep. The right amount of sleep always boosts resilience and helps an agile mind.
Collaborate with others. This can help ease you out of your normal, daily mindset.
Reduce mental clutter (especially things with a negative outlook) by cutting news consumption and/or social media scrolling.
Don’t live your life in the comfort zone. Keep learning and, when choosing reading material or what to watch on TV, lean toward creativity and imagination.
Remove your ability to do anything else but today’s desired task. (This includes letting family members know how long you would like to remain undisturbed.)
Remember to focus today’s work session on areas you can control and ignore those you can’t.
Decide which part of your project deserves your mental energy and deliberate concentration.
List everything you intend to get done in, for example, the next few hours.
Have a note app open where you can write stray thoughts so they don’t pull you off course.
Be direct and deliberate. Don’t try to multitask. When switching tasks, your brain has to stop and redesign your intentions.
Seek Flow: an optimized state of being (where we expand our range of mental reception). See more about Flow HERE.
Keep nurturing your internal motivation with curiosity, passion, purpose, autonomy (control of your own life), and progress toward mastery.
Photo by Greg Rakozy
Brainwave entrainment!
While adopting a puppy can be a great joy, it is also a huge productivity killer. (Example: why not take a quick gander at Ruffian’s life right now?) Okay, you’re back. Thanks. But, see what I mean? Before adopting this silly golden doodle, I routinely progressed on three major projects each day. I helped narrate books in the morning. I regularly hit my writing target each afternoon. Late afternoon and evenings let me deal with research or all the invasive buckthorn trees choking out everything else in our 6-acre honeybee sanctuary.
But all of that has been, uh, less true for the last couple of months! So, how am I getting back on track? One method includes the occasional use of music with binaural beats.
[Wait! First, a WARNING: Do not attempt brainwave entrainment if you are prone to seizures. Just as some TV shows warn viewers about a program’s flashing lights, some people can have problems with repetitive sounds.]
Brainwave entrainment boosts different states of mind by pulsing electromagnetic fields, light, or sounds. The pulses encourage your brainwaves to align to the frequency of a given beat. And these frequency ranges correspond to different levels of brain focus and activity.
Electromagnetic entrainment uses pulsing electromagnetic fields to interact directly with specific areas of your brain. Light and sonic entrainment use light or sound to tune the rhythm of your brain waves. While monaural methods use single pulsing clicks, isochronic tones embed regular electronic pulses in a single track or narrow audio bandwidth of your music.
Does that sound complicated? Fortunately, it is a lot easier to find examples of binaural beats. Where? Check out YouTube and mess about until you find something pleasant to try.
But how does it work? First, you have to wear headphones. Different frequencies play in each ear, so one side might run at 310 Hz and the other at 320 Hz. The difference produces a 10 Hz beat frequency. Faster than you might expect, your brain activity matches the beat frequency and helps dial in your desired mental state.
The brain’s frequencies!
From lowest to the highest, the following frequencies each aid or deliver something different.
The DELTA frequency (0.5-4 Hz) will help you enter deep sleep or a waking dream state. Dial in this frequency when you wish to:
Meditate
Seek pain relief or heal an injury
Achieve deep sleep
Better access to your unconscious mind
At 4-8 Hz, THETA patterns offer access to:
Deep relaxation
Lucid dreaming
A more aware sense of meditation
Creativity
Intuition
Rapid-eye movement (REM) sleep.
While ALPHA (8-14 Hz) encourages relaxation and delivers a creative, restful state, it also:
Reduces stress and anxiety
Helps bring your mind to a state of Flow, where you are more productive and focused
Brings out inner information and insight
Helps you switch from negative to positive thinking
Opens you to more learning opportunities
BETA frequencies (15-30 Hz) are what we usually run at while awake. It offers:
Alert concentration
Active analytical thinking
Problem-solving skills
From 30-100 Hz, GAMMA frequencies promote:
Bursts of added cognitive strength
Memory recall
Your ability to narrow your focus to a task’s smallest details
Added creativity
I’ve experimented with these (and, really, so have you). Anyway, as you look at the different listening possibilities on YouTube (or iTunes), please start off slow. For example, I’ve used 6.5 Hz to bridge my left and right brain hemispheres (corpus callosum bridging) for better creativity. And 8 Hz often helps deliver Flow. But watch out for headaches. Start with 15-minute sessions and ramp up from there.
Neurochemicals
Remember high-school chemistry class? I was a terrible student that year, even though I’d always loved science. Then, in college, I tried again but without a helpful lab session (which wasn’t required for physics majors). I wasn’t grabbing those great A-plusses until graduate school when it all finally made sense. But I never really understood the last little bits (of 100-level chem) until I had to teach it.
Similarly, I’m still running at fairly basic levels when it comes to altering my neurochemicals. Wait a minute. Do we really have access to some of the chemical messengers our brain makes? Some of our body’s natural control mechanisms?
Sure. Why not? Neurochemicals (neurotransmitters) allow nerve cells to exchange messages and are essential for regulating mood, stress, and anxiety. And when balanced, they can regulate mental agility, boost productivity, and help unlock your full potential. In this next chunk of our discussion, I’d like to describe several neurochemicals, what they do, and how to control them. I’m not a doctor, so you’ll want to supplement the following with your own research.
ACETYLCHOLINE
What it does: our chemical motor neurons use acetylcholine to release and activate muscles. It dilates blood vessels and can slow your heart rate. It helps sustain focus and helps engage your senses as you wake.
How do you feel if you don’t have enough? Your arms, legs, hands, and fingers can feel weak. Your short-term memory might lose efficiency. You might have difficulty recalling the right word when speaking or writing.
How can you get more? Eat whole eggs, meat, fish, spinach, and whole grains. Reduce exercise. Snack on pumpkin seeds, cashews, and blueberries. Magnesium, manganese, and zinc support acetylcholine levels.
But don’t overdo it. If you do, you might feel weak, endure cramps, or have blurry vision.
BDNF (Brain-derived neurotrophic factor) is a growth protein.
What it does: supports cognitive function, and aids learning and memory by creating, healing, and nurturing neurons. Promotes synaptic connections.
How do you feel if you don’t have enough? Learning can feel slow. Your memory might not work as well as you would like.
How can you get more? Try some physical exercise, especially outside in sunlight and open air. Drink coffee. Eat dark chocolate, blueberries, and use extra-virgin olive oil. Maintain a high-protein diet. Fast (occasionally). Magnesium and zinc support BDNF levels.
But don’t overdo it. If you do, too much excitability in your learning circuits can actually reduce mental agility.
CORTISOL (a stress hormone)
What it does: Manages stress and anxiety. In and out of danger, it helps activate and control your fight-flight-freeze response. Boosts blood pressure.
How do you feel if you don’t have enough? You may experience weakness, fatigue, and low blood pressure.
How can you get more? Get plenty of sleep, exercise, maintain a hobby you enjoy, and reduce your caffeine levels. Eat more beef, eggs, shellfish, and tree nuts.
But don’t overdo it. If you do, you might experience rapid weight gain, muscle weakness, and you might bruise easily.
Photo by Chen Mizrach
DOPAMINE
What it does: associated with pleasure and reward, it aids motivation and productivity. It can also increase your energy level and create a sense of high intelligence. Helps deliver clarity out of ambiguity.
How do you feel if you don’t have enough? Unmotivated, bored, and joyless. Listless, sad, and apathetic.
How can you get more? Exercise, have a regular sleep routine, listen to music, meditate, eat more protein and fewer saturated fats. Cut back on processed sugars. Try eating more almonds, yogurt, and chicken. Then try fresh tuna, avocados, lean beef, blueberries and strawberries.
But don’t overdo it. If you do, you might feel like you’re experiencing poor impulse control and taking unnecessary risks. You might feel too competitive or aggressive.
ENDORPHINS (hormones)
What they do: reduce pain and produce feelings of euphoria. With a sense of well-being, your mind will naturally remain sharp and agile.
How do you feel if you don’t have enough? You might feel depressed. You might have unexplained pain or a low tolerance to pain. Some people cry without a logical reason. You may find it difficult to feel happy.
How can you get more? Try a new sport. Eat spicy food. Search for things that make you laugh. Meditate. Try different kinds of chocolate. Drink red wine. Get some sun. Listen to music. Try hot yoga.
But don’t overdo it. If you do, you might feel too relaxed for the situation you’re in. Too much endorphin can block your perception of pain.
EPINEPHRINE (Adrenaline) … a hormone
What it does: epinephrine is involved in focus and concentration, as well as alertness and energy levels. Your body releases this in response to excitement or stress. A part of your “fight or flight” response.
How do you feel if you don’t have enough? You can feel depressed and anxious. You might be irritable.
How can you get more? Exercise. Enjoy and reward small accomplishments. Listen to music. Eat chocolate, bananas, and citrus fruits.
But don’t overdo it. If you do, you might feel nervous and unable to sleep. Your blood pressure could be too high. With too much epinephrine, you might ignore or not feel pain. If you feel you have too much, try yoga or tai chi. Meditate or try deep breathing exercises. Keep a journal or talk to a friend about things that trouble you.
Photo by Tommy Lisbin
GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid)
What it does: inhibits nerve activity, helping to promote relaxation and calmness. Reduces anxiety. This can boost your mental agility by reducing stage fright or performance anxiety.
How do you feel if you don’t have enough? You could feel sleepy throughout the day. You might crave sugar and feel anxious for no apparent reason. Some people have to deal with short tempers, insomnia, and migraines.
How can you get more? Exercise. Avoid junk food and alcohol. Meditate. Eat spinach, peas, buckwheat, and vegetables like broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower.
But don’t overdo it. If you do, you might feel overly anxious. Too much GABA can cause digestive problems and issues similar to general neuropathy.
HISTAMINE
What it does: regulates pain, body temperature, and appetite. Rising levels can boost long-term memory.
How do you feel if you don’t have enough? You may feel fatigued. Low histamine levels can also cause sinus issues, headaches, and migraines.
How can you get more? Eat bananas, tomatoes, beans, citrus fruits, aged cheeses, pickled foods, and chocolate.
But don’t overdo it. If you do, you might have to deal with watery eyes, fatigue, itchy skin, and headaches.
NOREPINEPHRINE
What it does: involved in alertness, energy, focus, and concentration. Increases blood pressure (by narrowing your blood vessels). Aids memory recall. Boosts endurance and determination.
How do you feel if you don’t have enough? You might feel like your blood sugar is low. Some people experience anxiety, depression, and problems sleeping.
How can you get more? Exercise. Listen to music. Meditate. Get plenty of sleep. Eat apples, kale, onions, as well as grapes and berries.
But don’t overdo it. If you do, you might feel jittery or have to endure chronic stress. You may have intense headaches and a rapid heartbeat.
Photo by Mike Erskine
OXYTOCIN (the neuropeptide of trust)
What it does: aids kindness and satisfaction, and is sometimes referred to as the “molecule of motherly love and attachment.” It is the antidote to adrenaline.
How do you feel if you don’t have enough? Lonely. Withdrawn. You might not feel a sense of trust or that everything is going to work out.
How can you get more? Oxytocin is released through touch, warmth, and almost any affectionate connection. Mothers (and babies) gain this through breastfeeding. Hugs work, and so does petting an animal. You can even boost oxytocin by thinking about someone you care about. And try this: there are neural cells around your heart, so you can boost oxytocin just by placing your hand over your heart. Wild, right? Oh, and you can eat fatty fish, peppers, spinach, tomatoes, and avocados.
But don’t overdo it. If you do, you might feel overly sensitive to other people’s emotions.
SEROTONIN
What it does: regulates mood, anxiety, and motivation. Increases mental agility and aids focus. Can increase BDNF. Helps create a sense of well-being and happiness.
How do you feel if you don’t have enough? Some people feel unusually irritable or depressed. Others report sadness, hopelessness, and anger. Anxiety can also accompany chronic fatigue. Low serotonin levels can make some people strongly self-critical.
How can you get more? Exercise. Helpful foods include eggs, brown rice, cheese, salmon, pineapple, turkey, and nuts. Stay away from junk food, white bread, cookies, and sugar. Get out and enjoy a sunny day. Drink plenty of water.
But don’t overdo it. If you do, you might feel confused and restless. Some people feel agitated and can experience nausea.
Those are just eleven out of the 100-plus neurochemicals in your brain, and almost all play a role in mental agility.
Final thoughts
Now that you know the benefits and importance of mental agility, I hope you enjoy improving your memory, creativity, and problem-solving skills!
And yet, self-limiting can be all too easy. So, one of my Navy friends reminded me of her 40% rule. Human beings are capable of more than they think. When your mind and spirit tell you to give up and pack it in, you’re really only 40 percent done. Mindset matters! Keep pushing for that extra 60%!
So, try giving yourself more inspiring commands. Be more productive and creative. [Here’s a link to my Creativity article]. Remove distractions. Find a challenge matching our just exceeding your skill level. Set a goal. Focus with confidence, excitement, and total immersion.
If you worry about failing, that’s a negative expectation. So we need to change what you expect. Trade fear for excitement by choosing a more positive expectation.
And last, I want to leave you with a motivating stanza from one of my favorite songs (check out the full tune here):
With the moonlight to guide you
Feel the joy of being alive
The day that you stop running
Is the day that you arrive
— Enjoy the Ride (Morcheeba) from the album Deep Dive
Photo by Brett Jordan
