Measure Your Brain Waves In 5-Minutes to Enhance Your Health And Performance

We often direct our energy solely towards dieting and exercising to give our physiology a face-lift. However, we are quick to blame a personal trainer or dietician when our desired results suddenly hit a plateau. This then prompts us to consider a new training regime and eating plan from elsewhere – only for the cycle to repeat itself.

Contrary to popular practice, performing and feeling your best (physically and mentally) requires more of an internal focus than an external one. We need to measure our unique physiology to address the root of our dysfunction – and modern health assessment technologies are making this possible.

On this week’s Wellness Wednesday, we interviewed Dr. Costa Kapnias, founder of Ready Room. This visionary medical doctor and scientist helps all sorts of people to achieve optimal performance and health holistically by turning inwards. This way, we can better understand the source of our well-being misfortunes.

Gain an in-depth view of your body, heart, and brain in only 5 minutes

Normally we train, eat, and sleep a certain way as an act of preparation to be able to perform. This can involve losing weight, executing better in sports, or recovering from an ailment. But sometimes this preparedness does not necessarily determine our readiness to perform.

According to Dr. Kapnias, the state of our physiology regulates our ability to carry out a task. Effectively, physiology refers to all the chemicals, nerves, and biological functions that work together to get you to achieve something. Therefore, we need to measure how our bodies (or parts of our bodies) are functioning if we want to boost our implementation of a particular action.

Typically, we are inclined to rely on external factors to correct our failure to “perform” in a specific manner. We may take a pill or yield our pantry and fridge to the instructions of a particular diet, for instance. However, we need to look internally instead, using what Dr. Kapnias refers to as our “ancient human technology”. This comprises the entirety of what makes up our bodies.

“I want to measure what’s going on in your body because that will tell me what your outcome and output is going to be,” revealed Dr. Kapnias.

Humans are in a more hypervigilant state today than they were in ancient times

We know by now that our physiology naturally oscillates between our “fight or flight” and “rest and digest” states – except we live in the former most of the time. Our hunter-gatherer ancestors did not experience a chronic activation of their stress response. It only switched on when actual danger (like a lion or bear) approached.

“Nowadays, our ‘lion’ is load-shedding, rent we can’t pay, retrenchments, deadlines, etc. that linger around us consistently. So, we live as if there’s a lion around us all the time – often appearing while we are sitting behind our desks. This means that our adrenaline and cortisol (the stress hormone) remain high – and this has a consequence,” discussed Dr. Kapnias.

Factors such as chronic stress, high glycemic index foods, and a decreased amount of sleep contribute to high cortisol levels. Consequently, the increased production of this hormone leads to fat storage. This is due to our ancient biological response to perceived threats.

In other words, our bodies demand more calories, and hold onto them, to help us better cope with the stress at hand. After all, we cannot evade the ‘lion’ without energy or fuel – our ‘survival’ takes precedence. Ultimately, no matter what you eat or take, it will have no effect if your body is not operating from its locus of healing. On that note, it’s essential to ascertain whether our physiology is operating from a position of restoration or affliction in our pursuit to accomplish something.

Measuring blood pressure is not enough to indicate physiology gone awry

Traditional doctors typically measure blood pressure, glucose, cholesterol, and body mass index. Naturally, these systems of measurement are relevant for multiple purposes. Nonetheless, they are outdated when it comes to accurately identifying the root of an imbalance in the body.

Dr. Kapnias emphasized how it’s imperative to gauge the right things, namely: your brain, heart, and heart rate variability. These components can illuminate how stable or in flux we are internally. What’s more, an awareness of this can support us personally and professionally.

It’s no secret that our shortcomings, health-wise, can encroach on our job execution. Accordingly, Dr. Kapnias carries out a “company wellness index”, where he quantifies the physiology of everybody in a firm. This generates the status of the stress levels, brain fatigue, and overall well-being of the company’s workforce.

In essence, these metrics can offer insights into what can happen on an individual- and company-level, in terms of health, absenteeism, productivity, etc. Even so, the results can invite an opportunity to course-correct in a way that everyone benefits.

Our physiology determines the outcome of everything that we do

So, how exactly can Dr. Kapnias measure our physiology? Well, he uses Omegawave diagnostics which provide measurements of that which is relevant to an individual’s physiological condition. This non-invasive technology completes the following in 20 different formats in only 5 minutes:

• An EEG (electroencephalogram) of the brain (it records your brain activity).
• An ECG (electrocardiogram) of the heart (it records the electrical activity of the heart).
• An HRV (heart-rate variability) of the heart (a special way of looking at how your heart beats, which is indicative of the division of your autonomic nervous system that’s in the driver’s seat).

“In 5 minutes, I will know how fatigued your brain is, and whether it’s ready to manage bodily functions like regulating hormones or losing weight. 90% of people who we test have brain fatigue and are highly stressed – and that includes kids. We did some studies at schools, and 90% of 13-year-olds and up have severe brain fatigue. So, what does this translate into? Well, concentration, memory, and behavior problems. So, we need to use this to understand what’s happening inside,” explained Dr. Kapnias.

Moreover, science backs this advanced equipment. Research has confirmed that Omegawave delivers a precise proxy of one’s inner workings. A  2018 study on digital-based performance training suggests that coaches may be able to observe an athlete’s recovery state in real time using this technology.

How can we use these diagnostics to enhance our physiological performance?

A chronic influx of cortisol can impact us negatively. But Omegawave technology can identify exactly how riddled our bodies are with this hormone. From there, we can implement the necessary steps to optimize our health and performance. Dr. Kapnias described how he’ll use the results from an Omegawave assessment to steer the conversation with the client toward isolating the problem.

Case in point: let’s say the evaluation indicates brain fatigue. Dr. Kapnias will ask questions about your psychosocial circumstances (like going through a divorce), sleep, and information load to detect the origin of your troubles. From there, he’ll prescribe actions that can help your brain to better manage. In this situation, a good omega-3 supplement and a mindfulness practice (like breathwork or grounding your feet in nature) would be applicable. Finally, he’ll perform a follow-up test, after a few weeks, to see whether improvements to your physiology were made.

The bottom line

Dr. Kapnias told us on how we need to probe our internal landscape more if our mental and/or physical performance feels weary. It may be worth receiving an Omegawave test from the Ready Room if it seems like you embody distress or dysfunction regularly. That way, you may discover that the only physiological change you needed was more diaphragmatic breathing…and not another pill.

Want to know more?

HelloCoach®️ has recently partnered with the ReadyRoom. Together, they bring a scaled physiological coaching solution that will transform how organisations prioritize employee well-being.

Their collaboration empowers organisations to proactively address the root causes of underperformance among not only leadership, but all employees by providing a comprehensive Company Wellness Index.

After conducting the physiological tests, HelloCoach®️ steps in to provide personalised, one-to-one online coaching. Their team  “of expert coaches” help individuals regain their health and balance by offering practical corrective and preventative tips.

This collaborative partnership is committed to helping employees thrive both professionally and personally.

Watch the full interview on Instagram. 

 

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A post shared by Gisèle Wertheim Aymes (@gisele_wertheimaymes)

References

Van Der Valk, E.S.; Savas, M.; et al. (2018, April 16). Stress and Obesity: Are There More Susceptible Individuals?. National Library of Medicine. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5958156/.

Yan, Q.; Liao, T.; Zhang, Y. (2018, April 16). Digital-Based Performance Training: Concepts, Advances and Applications. Chinese Institute of Sport Science. https://www.omegawave.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/2018-China-Inst-of-Sport-Science-Digital-Based-Performance-Training-Cryo-and-DC.pdf.

Article Image Source: Dr. Costa Kapnias