High Performance Breathing: What It Means and How to Access It Consistently
High performance isn’t hustle.
It isn’t late nights on your laptop.
It isn’t success at the expense of your relationships.
High performance is a dynamic balance between challenge and recovery. It’s a place of growth, flow and self-awareness.
It’s not mystical. It’s not reserved for an elite few.
It’s attainable, reproducible and trainable.
Here’s how.
What High Performance Feels Like Under Pressure
You’ve felt it before.
You’ve had access to clear thinking even as chaos surges around you.
You’ve had energy levels that stay stable while you meet the challenges of the day.
You’ve consistently executed on the short-term goals that bring your long-term aspirations closer.
You’ve woken up refreshed and excited.
You’ve felt compassion for the people around you and acted with grace while pressure pushes your patience.
You’re operating from a space where your skills are being tested but you’re not overwhelmed. You’ve found an edge that harnesses all of your current ability while unlocking more of your potential. You’re tired, but still inspired. Stretched but not burnt out.
High-performance is about balance. Watch a gymnast on a balance beam. There’s a constant quivering in their feet and body as they adapt in real-time to their environment. They’re never really still, even though it seems so at first glance. It’s effortful effortlessness. And it is no accident. They’ve trained diligently to ensure their body and mind can completely engage with their task.
You can learn to do this too.
Why Breathing Is the Foundation of Consistent High Performance
“The present moment is where high performance is expressed.”
Dr Michael Gervais, high-performance psychologist
How do you most effectively drive your attention to the present moment?
Your breath.
Breathing for High Performance at Work and in Life
Your breath is uniquely positioned for bringing your attention to the here and now.
Your breath is always present – it’s happening whether you’re aware of it or not. This is important for two reasons.
- By simply bringing your awareness to your breath, moment to moment, you access the present.
- Your breath influences your energy, mood and clarity of thought. Many people do not breathe in a way that supports high performance under pressure. Becoming aware of your breath unlocks the next step – modifying how you breathe to boost your mental and emotional state.
“The breath is the fastest way to calm the mind and bring yourself back to the present moment.”
George Mumford – Mental performance coach to NBA stars Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant
A Simple High Performance Breathing Exercise
- Sit upright but not uptight
- Relax your shoulders. Rest your tongue on the roof of your mouth.
- Close your eyes if you can.
- Take an easy nasal breath and focus on the flow of air through your nose. Notice the temperature of the inhalation and exhalation.
- Begin to gently slow and deepen your breath. Prioritise using your abdomen and lower ribs as you breathe in rather than your shoulders and chest. Keep it light, not forced.
- Take at least five, focussed breaths.
Now notice how your state has shifted.
You may feel calmer, more poised, more aware of your thoughts and environment.
Come back to this simple practice as often as is practical throughout your day.
Why This Breathing Exercise Improves Performance
The above technique isn’t just about briefly feeling better. It creates clinically measurable changes that help to:
- reset over-arousal in your nervous system
- optimise oxygen delivery to your cells
- promote efficient recovery and sleep
Sustaining High Performance Without Burnout
High achievers tend to be fascinated by optimisation. You may find yourself constantly looking to squeeze efficiency and productivity out of everyday tasks.
But you’re only as effective as the systems that your performance rests. And those systems are biological. Performance breathing techniques upgrade your biology like no other tool.
If you want to get the most out of your mind and body so you can excel in your work, your breath is the smartest place to start.
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