Why You Should Deliberately Stress Yourself

Why You Should Deliberately Stress Yourself

if you're somebody who struggles with energy and alertness, it can be beneficial to have some sort of protocol built into your day where you deliberately increase your levels of epinephrine and your levels of cortisol - AH

When something increases your cortisol and epinephrine, we call that Stress. Some say it's good, some say it's bad, but to the body, it's just stress. No matter the cause. Stress from an annoying family member is the same as stress from a cold shower.

Now that was unexpected! Even more unexpected is that you must put yourself under stress. The healthy increases in adrenaline and cortisol improve your immunity and teach you to be less affected by other stressful events. Keep in mind, this doesn't relate to chronic stress or tragic events. These raise your agitation too much to handle.

So how can you create a healthy deliberate stress protocol?

You can still do go for having an argument, but there are ways that have less side effects. These are the top 3:

• Cold Showers. Ah yes, the dreaded cold shower spikes your adrenaline instantly

• High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT). You can do this with body weight, weights, or even running.

• Cyclic Hyperventilation. Basically, the Wim Method. 20-30 strong breaths with a hold at the end. 1-3 rounds.

I think the last one is best for most people. It takes a tiny bit of time and can be done anywhere at any time. Here is the audio of Wim walking you through the exercise. Just do the first round. It's 3 minutes! No reason to skip over this one. If you're in public, you can still do it with light, quiet breaths.

Alright, hope that wasn't a stressful email. Actually, I hope it was :)