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How To Build A Winning Culture: 1% Better Part I

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By Jason Shea M.S., CSCS, PICP IV and Lauren Corthell NSCA-CPT, Wellness Manager, Hampden County Sheriff’s Department

What do you know about British Cycling?

Unless you are a big fan of international cycling, the answer is most likely not too much.

Here’s a quick back story about the British Cycling Program introduced in James Clear’s excellent book Atomic Habits.

From 1896 to 2004, the British Cycling team won a total of ten Olympic gold medals, with five coming in 1908. A sixth-place finish in the 1962 Tour de France was their best result. The team was so bad, the British bike manufacturer who sponsored them did not want to renew its contract.  In 2003, they decided they needed to make a change. They hired new Performance Coach Dave Brailsford.

Looking for areas they could make improvements, Brailsford took a deep look into every aspect of cyclist performance. The cyclists traded their outdoor cycling suits for lighter and more aerodynamic indoor suits. They experimented with different massage gels to improve muscle recovery. They even put rubbing alcohol on the tires for better road traction. 

But the performance coach and his team didn’t stop there. Rider sleep habits were evaluated. They tested and determined the best mattresses and sleep positions for each. A surgeon was hired to teach the cyclists how to properly wash their hands. It got to the point where the insides of the bike transport vans were painted completely white. Why? So, they could find any specks of dirt or dust that could get into the mechanical parts of the bike.

Brailsford’s goal was to create what he called “the aggregation of marginal gains”. Where could the team make minor, 1% improvements that would add up over time? 

The result of these “marginal gains”? The British Cycling team has become an international powerhouse. From 2012 to 2018 they won six Tour de Frances with three different riders. They have dominated both Olympic and International competition. Of the fifty medals they have won since 2008, 28 of them have been gold.

What does this have to do with this article? This is an example of how the smallest improvements in areas of your life can have the greatest impact on your mental and physical health.  According to Clear, over a period of a year, 1% improvements can add up to gains of nearly 37%.

What marginal, 1% improvements can you make for yourself, your home, your team, or your work environment starting today? What areas, both personally and professionally, can you make 1% daily improvements moving forward? 

Once implemented, the 1% “aggregation of marginal gains” mindset can become contagious throughout an organization. Each team member begins to look for and share ways in which marginal 1% improvements can be made.

Here are numbers 1-25 of our list of 100 1%ers:

25 1%ers to Start Your Day Off With a Win

1. Your first Test

What is the first test you face every day?

In their must-read book Extreme Ownership former Navy Seal Commander and founders of Echelon Front Jocko Willink and Lief Babin give great insight into the importance of your alarm clock. “Discipline starts every day when the first alarm clock goes off. There is no excuse for not getting out of bed, especially with all that rests on that decisive moment. The moment the alarm goes off is the first test: it sets the tone for the rest of the day. The test is not a complex one: when the alarm goes off, do you get up out of bed, or do you like there in comfort and fall back asleep? If you have the discipline to get out of bed, you win – you pass the test. If you are mentally weak for that moment and you let that weakness keep you in bed, you fail. Though it seems small, that weakness translates to more significant decisions. But if you exercise discipline, that too translates to more substantial elements of your life (33).”

2. Your Second Test

A 2015 article titled “People who make their beds in the morning are happier and more productive” explains the importance of this one, simple task. “Naval Admiral William McRaven nails it in his commencement speech at the University of Texas, Austin: If you make your bed every morning, you will have accomplished the first task of the day. It will give you a small sense of pride and it will encourage you to do another task and another and another. By the end of the day, that one task completed will have turned into many tasks completed. Making your bed will also reinforce the fact that little things in life matter. It helps with the clutter and visual appeal of your room. This is an obvious one, but way overlooked. Your room is your sanctuary, and a decluttered space is proved to reduce stress (19).”

3. Drink a 160z Glass of Water with Half a Squeezed Lime and Pinch of Himalayan Sea Salt

According to author of The Permanent Pain Cure, Ming Chew, “research shows we can increase energy expenditure by as much as 30 percent simply by consuming 16 ounces of water (6).” Adding salt can help improve hydration, immune function, digestion, and detoxification, while adding lime gives you a dose of vitamin C for your immune system.

4. Bulletproof Your Coffee

No sugar. No artificial flavors or sweeteners. No insulin-spiking “low fat” or fat free creamers. Just some good old fashioned organic coffee, grass-fed butter, MCT (medium chain triglycerides) oil, and Ceylon cinnamon. The grass fed butter has something in it called butyric acid (butyrate) which protects your blood brain barrier. If you are fat adapted, MCT oil can help with ketone production. Brain Octane is a good brand. The Ceylon cinnamon is very high in antioxidants and can help blunt insulin response and improve blood sugar.

5. Avoid Social Media

Studies have shown that social media can be addictive, depressing, lead to restlessness and self-imposed comparison stress, decreased productivity, narcissism and more. Quick Tip: Take a moment to honestly calculate how much time you spend (or have spent) per week, month, or year logging onto or scrolling social media?

6. Read Something Educational or Motivational

Here are a few books to get you started:

7. Write in a Gratitude Journal

Studies on gratitude have shown positive impacts on blood pressure, cardiovascular reactivity, decreased heart rate, increased levels of happiness, better sleep, greater life satisfaction, decreased stress, emotional regulation, mood, productivity, and more. Rather than focusing and seeing what we don’t have (i.e.; social media-induced comparison stress), practicing gratitude creates a positive mental state by allowing us to reflect on what we do have.

8. Do PosturePro Eye Exercises

Just how impactful can these eye exercises (and frequency insoles) be? We have been working closely with Annette Verpillot and her team at PosturePro to implement these incredible methods into our training with law enforcement, military, marksmen, and athletics. We have seen nearly instantaneous changes in grip strength, standing blood pressure, posture, weight distribution, standing energy expenditure at rest, and simulation shooting accuracy. Below is a small teaser of the results we have been seeing with her.

You’ll notice in the top left of the image, the standing posture, grip strength, and blood pressure pre- and post-eye and therapeutic insole intervention. Below that is the pre- and post weight distribution between and throughout the feet measured on force plates (with eyes closed). The image of the feet at the bottom is a visual representation of the force plate readings with eyes closed.

In the top right, the readings provide information several factors including oscillations and energy expenditure at rest. Think of standing posture as in how you are fighting gravity. If your posture is altered, as you can see in the images, your body may be using more energy to fight gravity. thus taxing your system (pre- top arrowed number). If your posture is good, your body may be using less energy to fight gravity, thus, conserving energy (post- top arrowed number). Look at the difference between the pre- and post arrowed numbers in that chart.

If we are seeing these types of results in an activity with such a small margin of error (firearm shooting accuracy), imagine the potential for basketball shooting, golf swing, baseball/softball pitching and hitting, and more?

Stay tuned for much more on this and be sure to check out Annette’s website Posturepro.co or her popular Ted Talk here.

9. Do Egoscue Posture Exercises

We are not certain how Pete Egoscue puzzled the human body’s fascial network together to come up with these exercises, but thank goodness he did. The Egoscue E-cises are an excellent resource for pain management and improving. The Egoscue Static Back may be one of the best therapeutic exercises for acute and chronic low back pain. The Egoscue Supine Foot Circles and Point/Flexes are great for minimizing risk of shin splits. And the combination of 40 clockwise/40 counterclockwise Egoscue Standing Arm Circles, 20 Egoscue Standing Elbow Curls, and a 60s Egoscue Standing Overhead Extension is a must for getting your body balanced and ready to start your day. For more on the Egoscue Method, check out their website or pick up a copy of Health Through Motion and/or Pain Free.

10. Kong Ball, Lacrosse Ball, or Spiky Massage Ball the Bottom of Your Feet

There are over two dozen acupressure/reflexology points on the bottoms of your feet. Rolling these can have a stimulatory effect throughout our system. For an even greater impact, try using a vibrational foam roller.

11. Do Some Dynamic Leg and Arm Swings

Warms the body up, gets the blood flowing, increases dynamic flexibility, and more. According to a 2017 Fitbit blog post, “Richard Hansen, sports chiropractor and coach of the elite Roots Running Project in Boulder, CO, adds to the list of benefits. “Leg swings create a pumping mechanism, helping move fluid in and out of your joints while stimulating blood flow in the surrounding tissue to improve not just flexibility of the joint capsule, but also of the tissue that you’re going to be using for performance—whether that’s running, walking, or going up and down stairs (4).”

12. Do ELDOA Hip Flexor Stretch

ELDOA was created by world renowned physiotherapist Guy Voyer. It is an acronym for Elongation Longitudinaux Avec Decoaption Osteo Articulaire. In other words, using fascial stretching techniques to improve pain, posture, and alignment by widening the space within the vertebral and pelvic joints.

Dr. Voyer is known for his saying “you are your own best therapist”. Here is a very informative instructional video of the ELDOA hip flexor stretch to get you started.

13. What is Your Why? Watch this Motivational Video

“If you don’t know what your why is, and your why isn’t strong, your gonna get knocked down every single day”. This quote is from the story of Buster Douglas’ WHY when he fought and knocked out Mike Tyson.

14. Use Biofeedback to determine your physical readiness and workout accordingly Using Daily Flexible Nonlinear Periodization

Looking at the Oura Ring app pictures, which day would you push yourself in a workout? Thanks to wearable technology like the Oura Ring, we can track our physical readiness, sleep quality, nervous system recovery, HRV, and more.

Heart Rate Variability (HRV): Your nervous system consists of the Parasympathetic and Sympathetic Nervous Systems. The Sympathetic increases your heart rate while the Parasympathetic slows it down. HRV is the variability between each heartbeat, which is under the control of the PNS and SNS. The healthier, fitter, and more resilient to stress you are, the higher the variability. The less resilient you are at dealing with stress and pressure, the lower the variability. 

This method of monitoring resilience has been used for over 50 years, with some of the original measurements taken in astronauts to see how they dealt with the stresses of space travel. It has since been used by professional and Olympic athletes, military and special forces, SWAT, cardiologists, and more. 

The Oura Ring is a great, non-invasive wearable option that provides valuable biometric information on how to recover muscles faster after workout.

What is Daily Flexible Nonlinear Periodization (DFNP)? It is a training concept developed by Dr. William Kraemer and Stephen Fleck. (You probably remember Dr. Kraemer from his days at UCONN when they were winning National Championships in both Men’s and Women’s basketball.)

Aside from several research studies on the topic, they put together the excellent book Optimizing Strength Training. This book takes you through the ins and outs of DFNP, teaching you how to implement it into your own training. In simplest terms, think red light, yellow light, green light training.

Green light: your nervous system is optimized and recovered (90% and higher) and you can throw the kitchen sink at yourself for a workout.

Yellow light (80/85-90%): something is off, and you may need to back off or slow down a bit. Perhaps a less taxing workout on your system.

Red light: The overheating light on your engine just went off. Your body needs a break before you breakdown. You may want to work on rest and recovery methods.

15. Perform a Glute Activation Sequence

Get your glute muscles firing for the day. Try this:

A1: Prone Glute Contraction: Lay on your stomach and contract (squeeze) your glutes for 3 ten second repetitions.

A2: Prone Single Leg Hip Extension: Laying on your stomach, keeping your hips down and flat (ensure the working side doesn’t rotate upward), contract your glutes again, and extend your hip slowly raising one straight leg up behind you (using your glute). Try to focus on your glute muscle doing the work, minimizing low back and hamstring activity. Perform 6-10 reps on one leg with a 1-2 second hold at the top of each rep. Then 6-10 on the other.

A3: 4-Point Hip Extension: Hop on your hands and knees, with knees directly below hips and hands directly below shoulders. Keeping your back and hips flat, raise one knee about an inch off the ground. Using your glute muscle on that side, keeping your back and hips flat, slowly begin to extend your leg behind you (dragging your toe lightly along the ground) until you have fully extended your leg behind you. Then begin to raise your leg/foot off the ground behind you using your glute muscle. Raise as high as you can until your back/hip posture begins to change (avoid arching/rotating). A good tip is to put a half full 8oz plastic water bottle across your low back. If it begins to fall off, you will know if you are rotating. Perform 6-10 controlled reps on one leg, then 6-10 on the other.

A4: Pole Squats: Position yourself with your feet roughly three to ten inches from a vertical pole/column that you can hold on to. Point your toes anywhere from straight ahead to roughly 20 degrees outward. The key here is to make sure your knees track/point in the same direction as your toes throughout. Hold onto the support pole with both hands roughly sternum height. Keeping your posture neutral/slightly lordotic (chest out/butt out) begin squatting, keeping your weight throughout your foot (don’t let your heels come off the ground). Squat straight down and do not try to sit back to far. If healthy, allow your knees to travel over the shoelaces toward the toes while you squat. Ensure that your torso stays flat, chest out, eyes straight ahead, and knees tracking in the same direction as the toes. Ensure that your knees to do not track/collapse inward. Squat as low as you feel comfortable (healthy knees, back, and hips dependent). Hamstring to calf or “el burro a el césped” (“ass to grass” in Spanish is ideal). Perform 6-20 slow and controlled reps, contracting your glutes as you raise from the bottom.

A5: Step Ups (with high knee kick/paused hip extension): Using a staircase (or bench) place one foot on the platform/step and keep one on the ground. Keep your torso high, rigid posture, and avoid leaning forward or to the side. Keeping the knee of the working leg tracking in the same direction as the toe, step up and through by extending the knee and hip, driving the opposite side knee upwards to hip/belly height. Feel free to hold onto a wall or support if you are worried about balance. Pause at the top, holding hip extension and glute contraction for 1-2 seconds, then repeat for other leg. Perform 6-10 per leg.

If you have time, feel free to do this a few times.

16. Practice Some Mindfulness Work

How do you respond when you can’t find your keys? Do you instinctively react and lash out or intentionally respond and stay calm and focused?

Going back to high school biology class, do you remember learning about an area of the brain called the prefrontal cortex? The prefrontal cortex is like the brain’s CEO, responsible for executive decision making. Under high levels of duress, this area of the brain can be “hijacked” by another area of the brain called the amygdala. Excessive cortisol may also elevate the risk of this “amygdala hijack” (26).

In his book One Second Ahead, Rasmus Hougaard refers to mindfulness as “an active intervention that changes the neural networks in your brain. It simplifies the pattern of your thoughts and reactions (11)”.

A 2019 study found that subjects who did mindfulness training had more gray matter in the frontal cortex area of their brain (14). Mindfulness training has been shown to positively impact the architecture of the brain, strengthening areas associated with focus, memory, empathy, emotional regulation, and perspective taking (7).

A recent study found that 8-weeks of mindfulness training boosted the immune system to fight off illness, lowered heart rate and blood pressure, reduced chronic pain, and alleviated gastrointestinal issues (31).

Mindfulness is “awareness that arises through paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment, non-judgmentally” according to Jon Kabat- Zinn, Founder of Mindful Based Stress Reduction (MBSR).  The most common practice of mindfulness is meditation and breathwork.

Just a few minutes per day of mindfulness training can increase concentration and mental clarity, improve self-control and decision making, cultivate positive emotions, and improve officer resilience.

An example of mindfulness training is the breathing technique utilized by the Navy Seals called Box Breathing. The Box Breath is a short and simple technique that can have a significant impact on one’s mental and physical health during high stress situations.  The technique is simple: 

  • Sitting in a comfortable position, breathe in through your nose filling up your lungs and stomach for 4 seconds
  • Hold your breath for 4 seconds
  • Exhale all the air through your mouth for 4 seconds
  • Hold your breath for another 4 seconds.

Repeat this cycle for as long as you need to help you feel more relaxed and in control.

Another simple mindfulness tip is walking, preferably outdoors in nature. A 2016 study found that Master athletes who walked thirty to fifty minutes multiple times per week could improve blood flow to the brain by up to 15% in three months. The Master athletes who did not exercise saw up to a 30% drop in blood flow to the brain after roughly two weeks (1).

17. Do some Wim Hof Breathing

You may have heard of Wim Hof. He is the guy who climbed up to base camp of Mount Everest in nothing but shorts and open toes sandals. He also swam under a frozen lake. He’s also the guy who ran a marathon in a desert with no water. And if that weren’t enough of a list, he also holds the Guinness world record for sitting in an ice bath, at one hour and 52 minutes and 42 seconds. So, how does he do it?

Through a combination of Wim Hof Breathing, Meditation, and Cold-Water Immersion training; The Wim Hof Method.

A group of researchers wanted to see how it worked and what was going on in his brain. So, they put him in a special temp-controlled cold suit, almost like a dive suit with temperature controls. They then monitored what was going on his brain using fMRI and PET scan technology. As they dropped the temperature of the suit, he then started doing his Wim Hof Breathing and Meditation techniques. As the temps dropped to extremely cold levels the researchers found significant activation in the areas of the brain associated with pain suppression, self-reflection, and well-being. In other words, he was able to regulate his body’s physiological response to the extreme stress (20).

Is Wim Hof just a physical “freak”, or can others be trained to do the same thing? A group of researchers set out to put this to the test. They injected twelve Wim Hof Method trained subjects and twelve controls with a mild endotoxin that would induce flu-like symptoms and inflammation (Sounds like fun, right? injected with a mild endotoxin. Sign us up!) The Wim Hof Method group saw significantly less flu symptoms, lower levels of inflammation, and increased levels of epinephrine compared to the control group. In essence, the Wim Hof Method group were able to control their nervous system response to the endotoxin in order to modulate the immune system response (13).

For much on the Wim Hof Method, check out the website here. For a great tutorial on Wim Hof Breathing check out the section of the website on breathing (includes a guided tutorial video).

18. Enjoy a Tablespoon of Olive Oil

Mediterranean diets are high in omega-3 fatty acids, which have been associated with improved executive functioning and lower risk of cognitive decline (17). These diets are also high in fish, cruciferous vegetables, and olive oil.

Aside from its effects on testosterone and cortisol levels (21), olive oil has been found have potential brain benefits. A 2017 paper found that “consuming olive oil reduces inflammation, stimulates autophagy, supports the growth of new neurons, helps regrow dendritic structures that form neural networks, and protects your brain from the negative effects of any amyloids that don’t get washed out at night. (25).”

Quick Tip: If you buy Olive Oil at your regular grocery store here in the States, grab the Organic brands made in California.

19. Cold Water Immersion or a Cold Shower

A study titled “The Effect of Cold Showering on Health and Work” found a 29% reduction in work absence due to sickness in subjects who ended their showers with cold water. When subjects combined the cold showers with regular physical activity, that number jumped to 54% reduction in sickness absence (5).

According to a more recent study out of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, “several studies have suggested that cold water swimming has a wide variety of health benefits, including changes in hematological and endocrine function, fewer upper respiratory tract infections, amelioration of mood disorders and general well-being (12).”

The same study goes on the state that the “benefits of cold-water swimming include decreased triglycerides and blood pressure, improved insulin sensitivity, decreased norepinephrine, increased acute cortisol, antidepressant effects, improved immune function and fewer infection (12).” 

20. Try brushing your teeth with your other hand

This can stimulate your brain, creating new neural networks. It also trains your attention, forcing you to really focus on the task at hand.

21. Skip Breakfast

Intermittent fasting is a method of eating that has grown in popularity over the last few years. Several studies have shown that intermittent fasting may have positive impacts on energy throughout the day, longevity, mental health, inflammation, metabolic risk factors, brain health, and stress resiliency (9,10,15,16,22,24,28,32,34).

We learned a simple tip to start intermittent fasting from Longevity Diet author and expert, Dr. Valter Longo. He recommended to begin by cutting daily eating periods by 2-3 hours. For example, if your first meal is 7:00AM and your last meal is 9:00PM, that is a 14-hour eating period. Cutting that back by three hours means first meal might be at 8:00AM and last meal at 7:00PM. You may also try to start the eating period later with first meal at 9:00AM and last meal at 8:00PM.

Alzheimer’s expert, Dr. Dale Bredeson also taught us a great tip for healthy brain aging. He calls it Ketoflex 12/3. “Ketoflex” stands for ketogenic flexibility; the ability to switch from ketones to glucose as a fuel source. The “12” stands for a 12-hour fast between meals. The “3” stands for refraining from eating within 3 hours of going to bed, to allow for the brain’s waste clearance system to do its job more efficiently.

22. Grab a Spoonful of Coconut Oil

Coconut Oil is high in something called MCT, Medium Chain Triglycerides. These are fats that can boost fat burning and energy expenditure. They can also help with brain function and the production of ketones to be used by the brain as fuel.

Coconut oil also contains lauric acid which can be converted into monolaurin. Monolaurin is known for its antibacterial and anti-fungal properties.

Coconut Oil has also been shown have benefits for skin, hair, oral health, brain health, inflammation, and more.

23. Get up and go supplements

Here are a few good supplements for energy and brain function:

Acetyl L Carnitine

  • Supplement form of amino acid carnitine
  • Antioxidant that plays a significant role in energy production in the mitochondria of the cells.
  • Has also been shown to have neuroprotective properties (8)

Alpha GPC

  • 2015 study found that subjects taking Alpha GPC supplement had greater improvements in vertical jump power and Serial Subtraction Test Scores (23).
  • Another study found that 6 weeks of Alpha GPC supplementation “significantly improved recent verbal memory and executive function” scores (19).

Huperzine

  • Huperzine A is a natural chemical compound derived from the Chines club moss plant.
  • A recent 2020 study found that Huperzine supplementation may lead to improvements in memory, cognition, and behavior (27).

CoQ10

  • CoQ10 is an antioxidant used by the mitochondria to produce energy.
  • CoQ10 has been found to have positive benefits on cardiovascular health.
  • It may also be beneficial for memory, cognition, and brain health (18,30).

Vitamin D

  • Vitamin D plays a role in the clearance of the amyloid plaques found in Alzheimer’s and dementia patients (2,3).
  • Vitamin D plays a role in the buffering of calcium, which if levels are left unchecked, can lead to anxiety, depression, and other mood disorders (2,3).
  • Vitamin D also has been linked to nervous system function and overall health (2,3).

24. Improve Cognitive Fitness with Crossword Puzzles and Sudoku

Are you looking for ways to keep yourself mentally sharp?  Try brain games like crossword puzzles and sudoku to improve cognitive functions such as memory, attention span, logical thinking and reasoning.  

25. Wake Up earlier and Set the Tone for The Day

“How you start your day is how you live your day. How you live your day is how you live your life.”- Louise Hay

If you often find yourself having no time for yourself, rushing out the door or feeling disorganized or overwhelmed consider getting up earlier. If you follow tip #1 “Your First Test” you may be able to easily gain 10 or more minutes. Getting up earlier than normal allows you to prepare your day, get everything together for the day and start your day calm, clear minded and organized. This change may not only benefit you. If you constantly find yourself in panic mode while rushing out the door, chances are others who live with you may also be affected. Start your day on your terms and set the tone for the day.

Thank you for reading!

Stay tuned for numbers 26-50 of our list of 100 1%ers. These include productivity, stress management, and workday tips!

References

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