How To Harness Your Body’s Natural Energy systems to Reach Your Goals

The cells in our muscles tap into three different exercise energy pathways, each tuned for efficiency over three different time frames: (1) instant-on; (2) short-term; and (3) long-term.

We can tap into a similar sequence of energy systems in the real world.

Let’s start with a quick high school biology refresher, and take a closer look the three phases of energy production going on in our cells:

Instant-On Energy

The first energy system is the anaerobic a-lactic system, also called the phosphagen or creatine phosphate system.  This system initially kicks in when a lot of energy is needed in a very short amount of time. It doesn’t involve oxygen, but converts the creatine phosphate in your muscles into energy.

Our muscles don’t store a lot of phosphate, so the fuel for this system is exhausted after only about ten seconds.

Short-Term Energy

The second energy pathway is the anaerobic lactic system, otherwise known as glycolysis. This system converts carbohydrate from the muscles into energy, and can deliver power for about two minutes. The anaerobic lactic system bridges the time period between when muscles first begin working, and when the body can begin to deliver oxygen to the muscles via the aerobic system.

Long-Term Energy

The final energy system is the aerobic system, which depends on a continuous supply of oxygen to convert blood glucose, glycogen and fat into energy. Remember your high school biology class? This is mitochondria being the powerhouse of the cells.

This energy system can go all day, and is what powers most of our day-to-day bodily processes.

The Big Picture

So that’s what your body is doing at a microscopic level in your cells, in order to move you. But what happens at a macro level to move you?

This is where we find the beautiful parallel.

Just as in our cells, there are three distinct energy systems at the macro level which operate over different time frames in succession. These are (1) motivation; (2) discipline; and (3) habit.

Let's look at each one.

Motivation

This energy system is what initially stirs within us, calling us to move from where we are currently, to where we want to be. Motivation is the drive that directs our gaze to the mountain on the horizon, and moves us to head towards it.

But like the phosphagen in our muscle cells, motivation is in short supply. It provides a great initial burst of energy to overcome momentum and set us in motion. But unless a different energetic pathway is recruited to keep the ball rolling, motivation will soon fade away. A longer-term energy source is needed, to take over before we stall.

Discipline

Grit, determination, perseverance. Discipline takes over once the terrain starts to get difficult, and the initial jet fuel of motivation has been burned up. Discipline is really important, and can be developed. But like motivation, we only have a limited supply of discipline. Motivation and discipline can be enough to get us to the base of the mountain, but to get to the top requires the third and most important energy system: habit.

Habit

Routine and habit might not sound like winning strategies, but this slow-burning spiritual fuel can last forever.

While motivation pushes us into motion, and discipline gets us to the base of the mountain, getting to the top requires taking your eyes off the summit and looking down at your feet. One foot after the other is the only way to get to the top, and habit is the system that works best here.

Putting It All Together

Like the ‘coupled reactions’ that occur at the microscopic level in our muscle cells, we can use each of these macro phases in turn to carry our momentum all the way to the top.

Here are the steps:

Our initial motivation feels like explosive jet fuel, pushing us off the mark. But what you might not realise is that jet fuel is basically kerosene. That’s right, kerosene – which is actually a lot more like the boring, slow-burning fuel that is habit.

It’s all about how you use what you’ve got.

If one goes climbing in the Alps, one is probably led to do so in the first instance by the beauty of the mountains. When one starts to climb, however, one finds it is a matter of working one’s way along patiently, step by step, progressing with great care and caution....  It is the same with Zen. We take it up in search of the meaning of life, or in hope of solving the problem of our existence, but once we actually start, we find we have to look down at our feet, and we are faced with practice followed by more practice, training followed by more training. It must be done patiently and seriously.

Katsuki Sekida, "Zen Training: Methods and Philosophy"

Intentionality (noun): the fact of being deliberate or purposive.

Intentionality is a type of mindfulness that I practise often.

The thing I love about it is that it can be a purely internal state. It's a way to frame whatever I'm doing in a positive way, and one that doesn't necessarily require me to choose or change the activity.

Having intentionality lays guardrails around whatever I'm doing. It can help me to adjust and align the practical details of the activity with its context. Or if no adjustments are needed, it simply adds clarity and drive.

Intentional cycling - an example

Perhaps the easiest way to describe it is with an example: I love riding my bicycle, and in the summer months I go on long bicycle rides at least three times a week.

I like to ride with intention every time I go out. My intention for a particular ride might be to lose some body fat. Or it might be to get some conditioning into my legs. Sometimes my intention is simply to keep up with my cycling buddies, or it might be to unwind and clear my mind.

I'll often make certain adjustments to stay aligned with my intention for that outing. So for example if my intention for a particular ride is to lose body fat, I might do that ride in a fasted state. On the other hand, if my intention is to keep up with a bunch who are generally faster than me, then I might align to that intention by having a big high-carb breakfast beforehand.

Those examples are fairly obvious, but there is a more subtle aspect to intentionality.

On a given day of the week I'm usually following the same route on my bicycle, with the same cyclists, at about the same time as the week before. The routine might be identical, but my intention for that ride defines my why. This in turn might influence some of the what and how - as in my earlier examples - but it doesn't have to.

Sometimes the only thing that changes with intentionality is, well, the intention! And that's fine. In fact, to me that's the cool thing about intentionality - it doesn't have to influence the activity in any overt way, it may simply frame it in a way that aligns everything to your goals and desires.

Try it yourself

When you wake up tomorrow morning, before you get out of bed, think about your intentions for the coming day. What's your plan? Why? How do you want to feel? What do you want to get out of the day?

After you've mentally outlined your intention for the day, silently count backwards from 5 to 1, and then get your feet on the ground and go get it!

It may be that none of that results in any specific changes to your plans, schedules, or activities. However you'll feel better having thought about why you're there in the first place, and how your plans align with that.