How we can measure and manage stress in order to optimise training and performance. Dr Bernadette Dancy

Many of us will admit that we use training to de-stress, an outlet that we need in order to get away from the stresses of daily life. However is that always the right thing to do?

In todays episode we're joined by Dr. Bernadette Dancy (Stress Management Coach) who has been studying the science and psychology of stress, health and human performance for over 15 years.

We talk about:

What stress is? Why we need stress - but also how dangerous it can be Heart Rate Variability - is it a useful metric? Measure stress and adjusting your training accordingly (00:00) Podcast intro (02:40) Stress basics explained (05:12) Recovery over stress (06:21) Training load reality (07:55) Sleep and adaptation (11:08) Beyond the numbers (12:42) Measuring stress well (19:50) HRV and the vagus (22:53) Trends not triggers (26:18) X-ray of your life (28:41) Tracking Recovery Trends (31:12) Stress And Getting Sick (32:05) Self Awareness Adjustments (33:21) HRV App Recommendation (37:00) Why Stress Breaks Training (39:33) Four Pillars Framework (43:28) Exercise As Coping Tool (47:04) Olympian Burnout Case (53:00) Where To Find Bernie

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