Understanding what’s really draining your energy (and how to take it back)
The 6 Sources of Stress Nobody's Talking About...
You don’t get burned out because you’re weak. You get burned out because your stress bucket’s overflowing with sh*t you’re less than enthused about.
Just yesterday I hosted a chat for members at my home base Goodlife Fitness in Northland Village here in Calgary all about the 6 sources of stress we accumulate from various areas of our life… at least 4 of which people had no clue about. 😳
Most people only think of work or training as stress, and… your body is unable to differentiate between emotional, physical, or chemical stress. It all hits the same system.
You’ve heard it before: “Stress is the silent killer.”
But let’s be real—stress *isn’t* the villain.
It’s just feedback.
Your body’s way of saying,
“Hey, brother, you’re spending more than you’re earning.”
We live in a culture that worships the grind and poo-poo’s the recovery.
We track our steps, our macros, our followers…
but not our nervous system.
That’s where HRV… Heart Rate Variability comes in.
And if you’ve never heard that term before, I gotchu...
Let’s make it simple. 👇
🎶 HRV: The Jazz of Your Heart
Your heart is *not* a robotic metronome.
It’s a jazz drummer.
When you’re calm, creative, and in flow,
your heartbeat dances
each beat a little different, like an improvisation.
That’s high HRV:
Your nervous system is relaxed, adaptive, responsive.
You can handle chaos with rhythm and grace.
When you’re stressed, anxious, or run down,
your drummer stiffens up.
Every beat hits the same, machine-like, predictable.
That’s low HRV: your system’s stuck in survival mode.
Think of HRV as your body’s musicality.
The more rhythmically free you are,
the better you perform, recover, and create.
✋ The Six Sources of Stress
To really understand what shapes your recovery,
we need to look at the whole hand.
Because stress doesn’t just come from work or workouts—
it comes from every part of life touching you at once.
Trace your hand.
On each finger, write one of these six sources of stress.
Thumb – Physical Stress
Your grip on life: training load, posture, sleep deprivation, under-recovery.
Index Finger – Emotional Stress
Your “pointer of blame”: anxiety, resentment, guilt, comparison, relationships and finances especially…
Middle Finger – Nutritional Stress
The gut check: processed foods, dehydration, inconsistent fueling.
Ring Finger – Chemical Stress
The commitments you make to what you consume: alcohol, caffeine, toxins, wear aluminium deodorant, brush your teeth with flouride toothpaste, bathe/shower in chlorine, wear makeup with heavy metals, take medication.
Pinky – Electromagnetic Stress
Your connection (or disconnection) from nature: Wi-Fi, 5G, screens, EMFs, constant notifications.
Palm – Thermal Stress
Your comfort zone: too hot, too cold, too much screen light at night.
Each finger adds pressure to your nervous system.
One finger might not break you.
But close the hand into a fist… and that’s when you start to feel trapped.
Are You Shoulding On Yourself?
Most stress comes from what we think should be happening.
“I should train harder.”
“I should eat better.”
“I should sleep more.”
Sound familiar? Try this instead:
Write down one thing you should do to recude your stress levels… Use the “Handy” guide above to see where the gaps are in your life…
Once you’ve got it… read it out loud, take a deep breath in, slowly exhale and see what comes up. What sensation do you feel in your body? Where does it show up and on a scale of 1 to Justin Bieber, how intense is that sensation (11 is maxed 2017 Biebs… 😉)
Then… if you’re open to it…
Replace “should” with “could.” For example… 👇
“I could rest tonight.”
Take a deep breath in. Exhale. What comes up when you read that aloud?
Anything change…?
Notice what comes up and if you wanna go further… replace could with “can”…
Take another deep breath in…and exhale.
Anything change…? Make note.
Then, add “because….” and finish the line.
“Because” sells you on your choices… critical for creating calm conviction in your life. And calm conviction creates recovery.
The Beat Goes On…
If you’ve got a WHOOP band, you’ve got the data you need.
Track the rhythm.
Notice what raises or lowers your HRV.
Start treating stress more like a teacher, less like an enemy.
The goal is less about avoiding stress. It’s good in small doses.
It’s more important to stay in tune with it.
When you find that groove - your heart, your mind, and your body can start playing in time again. That’s typically a better way to “serve the song”…
Train with heart. Play with rhythm.
That’s how we turn stress into strength.
According to the Hand example, which finger are you currently stressing out most…?