Training Load vs. Cognitive Performance
From the beginning, I’ve treated running, calisthenics, and mobility as an investment in health.
These are not just workouts, but part of my daily framework designed to regenerate the brain and sustain intellectual performance.
When balance breaks
I’ve noticed this three times already: when training intensity goes too high (as it is now in week 12 of Amy’s plan), things start to fall apart:
- brain fog — harder to enter flow,
- fewer deep work sessions, and the ones I do manage are shallower,
- even NeuroForge, which normally gives me a huge cognitive boost, doesn’t help this time.
It’s not just a subjective feeling. The body also signals overload:
- HRV fluctuations — values lost their stability,
- heart rate drift — less control at given paces,
- sleep not fully restorative — hours in bed are there, but recovery is incomplete.
Takeaways
This confirms that excessive physical load drains mental fuel.
The point is not to avoid intensity, but to seek symbiosis: physical activities should support intellectual ones, not exist at their expense.
What’s next?
I’ll finish Amy’s plan — three weeks left.
After that, I’ll take two weeks of deload and move into a very easy base and technique phase.
The goal for winter is to create a system where running, calisthenics, and mobility are a natural support for mental work, not a drain on the nervous system.