I’m Not Tired!: Fatigue and Central Governor Theory
“Fatigue makes cowards of us all” - Vince Lombardi
“Tired is only in the mind. If you tell yourself you’re tired, you’re going to be tired” - LeBron James
An Epidemic of Fatigue
Everyone I know is tired. Whether it’s pandemic fatigue, Zoom fatigue, or exhaustion from the relentless pace of life, family, and work. Being tired negatively impacts the quality of our performance and our levels of fulfillment. As football coach Vince Lombardi famously said, “fatigue makes cowards of us all”.
Well, what if being tired is less of a physical state than we think and you actually have more energy?
The Classical Theory
Our understanding of how fatigue works is based on studies of athletes. It holds that we get tired when our bodies hit their physical limits (i.e. when our muscles run out of oxygen or start getting damaged by toxins like lactic acid). This triggers pain and fatigue forcing us to stop exerting until we recover. We get fatigued when we run out of energy. So after a long day of working hard and the kids want to play, we are tired. Makes sense, right? Well, it might not be so simple.
The Central Governor Theory
Tim Noakes, a South African sports physiologist and his colleagues offer a different explanation of fatigue, which has important implications for how we think about our energy levels. Noakes ran a series of experiments which debunked the model of energy exhaustion. When subjects were pushed to exhaustion they did not find that they were running out of oxygen, exhausting their muscle fibers, or didn’t have enough fuel inside their muscles (glycogen, fat, ATP). And, when they put runners in hot or oxygen deficient conditions the runners slowed down before any physiological damage took place.
This convinced Noakes that our system works in anticipation and the feeling of fatigue is imposed by a “central governor” in the brain. The Central Governor theory holds that our brain makes us feel tired to conserve energy for later use and to protect our bodies from real damage. Our brain is telling us we are tired when in fact we have more energy.
While the Central Governor Theory has not replaced the classical model there is growing belief that the brain plays a more important role in fatigue than previously thought. The theory is being applied to treat conditions like Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, where the hypothesis is that the central governor has got it’s settings wrong and is overestimating how fatigued people with this condition are.
The Impact of Perception on Performance
According to the Central Governor Theory, when we are under duress our brain makes the following calculation: “Is the discomfort I’m feeling worth the effort I’m putting in?” When our answer is “no” the central governor kicks in, we feel our limits approaching and give up. This moment is often referred to as “hitting the wall.”
In one experiment when subjects saw that they were losing a race to someone else their performance dropped by 2% as compared to when they were competing by themselves.
When we feel good about ourselves and what we are doing we perform better, even when we are working harder and exerting more energy. Our attitude and emotions affect our energy and performance.
What’s Got you Tired?
Some aspects of your life leave you feeling more tired than others. Chances are your attitude isn’t helping. Make a list of these for yourself. For example, all day one-on-one zoom meetings followed by play time with the kids after work. Next, ask yourself, is there a Central Governor trigger at play (a perceived need to conserve energy, protection from perceived exhaustion)? From the example above, knowing that I have to play with my kids after a full day of zoom calls kicks in energy conservation, and not getting sufficient sleep the night before has me feeling exhaustion. But this doesn’t have to be how it is.
Get More Energy
Studies by Naokes and others have shown that by shifting our perception of fatigue we can change how tired we feel and improve our performance and enjoyment. Here’s how:
Mind over matter
“You don’t have to believe what you are feeling,” suggests Noakes. You have more energy than you think, even if it doesn’t feel that way. When you are just feeling wiped out say to yourself, “I don’t have to listen to what you’re telling me. You’re making it up to try to get me to slow down and I’m not going to slow down. I don’t need to stop, I can keep going.” Ashton Eaton, the 2016 Olympic Decathlon Gold Medalist told himself during his 1500 meter race, “if I have to run to put myself in the hospital, that's how hard I have to run."Get more confident. How you feel about what you’re doing impacts your energy levels and your performance. When we feel confident, the Central Governor will not step in as readily. In one study, cyclists were given a placebo they believed would enhance their performance. They cycled on average 2-3% faster (the difference between a gold medal and failing to place). The best way to gain confidence is through preparation and conditioning. So make sure you put in the work and create a solid foundation for the demands on you including getting the right amount of sleep, exercising regularly, nutrition, and hydration.
Be present. When we think about the next thing we have to do and the thing after that, it’s no wonder the Central Governor wants to jump in to conserve energy. Schedule high-energy tasks when you won’t need additional energy afterward. If you’re running a 10K don’t have a list of things you have to do after the race. If you have to give a major presentation, don’t schedule important work that day. If it’s not possible to clear your schedule, take things one at a time and don’t worry about what’s up next. Give everything you have in the present moment.
Activate your Relaxation Response. This is the physiological process which sends signals to your nervous system that you can relax. When the Central Governor knows you are safe it will allow you to use more energy. For example, in tennis practice I feel great, but when I play a tournament match my legs get heavy and can barely see the ball. One good way to relax is through breathing (full exhalations will activate the Relaxation Response). Reframe obligations into challenges you are looking forward to. Instead of approaching things with an “I have to...” attitude try out “I get to...”.
Boost your motivation. The more motivated you are to do something the more energy becomes available. This gets to purpose, your why for doing things. Purpose gives us a powerful override of the Central Governor. The brain makes energy available for our highest priority tasks. And the deeper meaning of what we’re doing allows us to endure more discomfort. When I don’t think I can do another push-up, I remember my promise to my daughter that I’ll be able to carry her for as many years as she wants me to and that helps me power through. Consistently remind yourself of your why when what you’re doing requires significant energy.
Re-train the Governor. Athletes use High Impact Interval Training (HIIT), short sprints of all out exertion followed by recovery periods. This form of training signals to the Central Governor that pushing to the limit was ok and it’s safe to do a little more next time. In areas of your life where you need more energy push yourself to your limits for short periods followed by recovery. If you’re a CEO raising money and after four pitches in one day you are wiped out, schedule a day with five pitches and then only three the next day. Do that a few times until five becomes the new norm.
Trick the Governor. Remember, your Central Governor is trying to conserve your energy for everything you have to do. Breaking tasks down into smaller milestones is a technique you can use to trick it into releasing more energy. If you’re running a marathon think of it as running one mile twenty-six times. If you’re that CEO do one pitch five times instead of five pitches.
Whatever you do, don’t quit
I know you feel tired. But don’t give up. It’s only a feeling and you have more energy. Quitting strengthens the Central Governor by validating that it was correct in its assessment of your need to conserve energy. When everything is telling you to quit, use the tactics above to keep going.
If you want to learn more about the Central Governor Theory and other forays into the mind-body connection check out Jo Marchant’s fascinating book Cure: A Journey into the Science of Mind Over Body.
Let me know what you think and send to a friend
I would love to hear your thoughts or questions on approach to thinking about your energy and if you’ve applied any of the suggestions above (or others) to increase your energy.
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