PHYSIOLOGY PLAN Goal - High Performance Academy

HPA MASTER’S COURSE
MODULE #2: PHYSIOLOGY PLAN
Goal: A healthy and energized body is a rested, hydrated, fueled, and loose yet strong body.
This goal sums of 16 years of my personal experience, academic research, and coaching practice. With this goal in mind, this
document contains my general guidelines to reach high performance health. These suggestions are meant to guide you in
formulating your own personal plan. Please know that these guidelines are advanced – we are trying to get to high performance
health not just average health – but you should always start where you are, do what’s appropriate for your physical condition and
health, and always consult your doctor or licensed health advisor before making any radical changes to your diet or exercise
routines.
Before we get to the guidelines, complete the sentences below:
1.  If I had to describe my overall physical energy and health right now, I would describe it this way…
2.  If I’m being honest, the reasons my physical energy and health are at there current levels are because…
3.  The reason I’m committed to reaching my optimal health are…
4.  The things I need to stop doing that are hurting my physical energy and long-term health are…
5.  The things I need to start doing to improve my physical energy and long-term health are…
6.  My goal in starting a new health program for myself is to…
7.  The ways I’m going to keep myself on track and committed to living a more high performance health lifestyle include…
8.  The ways I might get others involved to support my goal might include…
“Only two things change your life: either something new comes into your life, or something new comes out of you.”
– Brendon Burchard, Founder of High Performance Academy. Not an HPA Master’s Course member? Get free videos at HighPerformanceAcademy.com.
HPA MASTER’S COURSE
HIGH PERFORMANCE HEALTH PLAN
Daily Checklist
1:9 Ladder
Physical Engagement
Nutrition
ü  Sleep 8-9 hours per night.
If you miss that target, nap
during the day to catch up.
ü  Do “breath scaling” 3 times
daily. This means doing an
escalating series of breath
where you breath faster
and deeper, without
hyperventilating, focusing
on cleansing and
energizing your body with
breath.
ü  Have a green-based diet
heavy in organic plantbased foods.
ü  Drink 5-7 liters of water
(assuming you are active).
ü  Eat 4-5 small meals (see
nutrition recommendations
in the Nutrition column
and next page).
ü  Exercise! (HPA plan is 3-5
times per week. See next
page.)
ü  Take a break every 45-60
minutes. Get up and move,
drink some water, change
your mental focus for a
few minutes.
ü  Take a multi-vitamin as
well as supplements for
vitamin D, calcium, and
Omega-3 fish oil.
ü  Eat gluten-free.
ü  Do “body buzzing” 3 times
daily. This is the Qigong
activity demonstrated in
the video for this Module.
ü  Drink health shakes for
breakfast or snacks.
ü  Speak and gesture with
more passion.
ü 
ü 
ü 
ü 
ü  Stay standing more often.
ü  Hug and engage others
physically more often.
Don’t drink milk.
Don’t eat cheese.
Don’t eat sweets.
Don’t drink your calories;
avoid sugary drinks,
alcohol, and caffeine
(green tea okay).
ü  Limit intake of white
starches and heavily
processed breads/carbs.
Avoid white bread,
croissants, potato chips,
muffins, etc.
“Only two things change your life: either something new comes into your life, or something new comes out of you.”
– Brendon Burchard, Founder of High Performance Academy. Not an HPA Master’s Course member? Get free videos at HighPerformanceAcademy.com.
HPA MASTER’S COURSE
HIGH PERFORMANCE HEALTH PLAN
Recommendation Detail - Exercise
In our video, I recommend exercising up to 5 times per week, but that comes with many caveats and needs for clarification. As to
the caveats, you should work out to the level appropriate for your current physical condition. This may mean starting slow and
working your way up to greater levels of exertion. As always, consult your doctor or health care advisor before changing your
health routines. To clarify my recommendations and provide further detail, here is the high performance routine:
Once per week:
Take a 45 minute walk outside. Easy. And, yes, the walk should be outside, rain or shine.
Twice per week:
Do a full hour of cardio exercise. This may mean a brisk walk for you, an hour of a cardio class, or it may mean an intense run,
bike, swim, etc. The point isn’t what activity you do; it’s to sustain an aerobic state for up to an hour. Your goal is to finish the hour
not completely spent or depleted, but to feel you gave 60-70% exertion capability. There is no hard numbers or right answers here
-- just finish the hour feeling like you had a great workout that was sustained for an hour. To address those who say an hour is
not necessary – well, you’re right. Nothing is “necessary” in the health world per se. This hour recommendation is given not for a
specific targeted goal of weight-loss, strength training, etc., but rather to get the one thing we’re after – heightened levels of
sustained energy throughout life. I’ve found that two one-hour cardio routines per week opens the lungs, builds stamina, and leads
to longer senses of heightened energy over the long-term.
Twice per week:
Do a 15-30 minute strength-based training. This may mean doing a few sets in the gym, kettlebells, or an intense routine like P90x,
TRX, or other popular more anaerobic higher-intensity-based routine. The goal, again, isn’t what exercise you do, but rather to
ensure you sustain 15-30 minutes of strength-based weight training, regardless of whether the weight comes from dumbbells or
simply supporting your own physical body (plyometric/isometric). Be sure to do a 5-7 minute cardio warmup before an intense
strength routine.
Resources
There are hundreds of great books and websites to help you pick and learn any exercise you wish to try. If you are new to working
out, or you are looking to advance very quickly, consider getting a fitness trainer at your local gym. (Note: their recommendations
may differ from mine, and that’s fine, though ultimately there aren’t many things in this plan that are controversial so you might
as well give this a try). You can also certainly workout from home without any weights or equipment at all.
For cardio exercises or strength-based training, I recommend – gasp! – visiting YouTube and watching videos to see what exercises
most resonate with you. Mainstream magazines like Men’s Health and Women’s Health also have great resources and workout
routines on their websites. Personally, I like to swim, spin, or bike for my hour-long cardio routines. For my shorter intense
workouts, I like kettlebells, P90x, Insanity, or online videos by sixpackshortcuts, charliejames1975, or anyone doing insane kettlebell
workouts (warning: all these folks are intense and not for everyone). The great thing about our world today is there are infinite
activities and tutorials online. The GOAL is to do the exercises consistently. Don’t get stuck on what to do – get addicted on just
doing something consistently. Five times per week as described above. That’s your challenge. Go at an exertion level appropriate for
you… consult your doctor if needed… but just GO!
“Only two things change your life: either something new comes into your life, or something new comes out of you.”
– Brendon Burchard, Founder of High Performance Academy. Not an HPA Master’s Course member? Get free videos at HighPerformanceAcademy.com.
HPA MASTER’S COURSE
HIGH PERFORMANCE HEALTH PLAN
Recommendation Detail - Food
This plan calls for a green-based diet, which means 60-75% of your diet should consist of organic and healthy whole-food, plantbased foods. This isn’t hard to accomplish. If you have a plant-based health shake in the morning (see below), a salad for or with
lunch, and a dinner consisting of a salad and a plate that is 1/3 vegetables or more, you’re pretty much there. I recommend
decreasing your overall caloric intake if you are overweight in whatever way is appropriate for your health and weight-loss goals
(again, consult your doctor). I also recommend decreasing your intake of red meats; if you do eat meat, stick to fish or “white”
meats like organic lean turkey or chicken. If you need a protein supplement, see below for a healthy plant-based alternative.
Healthy shakes are a big part of my food recommendations. I suggest you have a shake for breakfast every morning, and instead of
snacking on bars or other things, having a shake for a snack as well. All the ingredients I recommend for meal shakes or snack
shakes are below. All ingredients are available at Whole Foods and/or the website listed below.
Meal Shakes (for breakfast):
•  Handful of spinach.
•  Handful of blueberries.
•  1 whole fruit of your choice (pears, peaches, apples, banana, etc).
•  1/2-3/4 scoop Vega One (Vanilla Chai, also available other flavors on myvega.com). Scoop sized based on how much fiber you
want. OR try 1/2-3/4-scoop Amazing Grass Green Super Food (Original flavor, also avail. other flavors on amazinggrass.com).
•  ½-scoop Vega Sport Performance Protein (myvega.com). 1 scoop if you are working out heavily or need additional protein.
•  1 tablespoon of Amazing Grass Super Food (amazinggrass.com)
Snack Shake:
1 serving Vega Energizing Smoothie (myvega.com), OR 1 serving Vega One, OR 1 serving Amazing Grass Amazing Meal,
with ½ cup coconut water and three cups of water.
Recommended reading:
In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan
The China Study by Campbell/Lyman/Robbins
Thrive by Brendan Brazier
Change Your Brain Change Your Body by Daniel Amen
Clean by Alejandro Junger
Staying Young by Mehmet Oz / Michael Roizen
The Best Life Diet by Bob Greene
The Complete Idiot's Guide to Plant-Based Nutrition by Julieanna Hever M.S. R.D. C.P.T.
Great Recipe/Cookbooks:
ANY vegetarian or vegan cookbook (don’t worry, if you’re not a veg-head, then follow their recipes and toss in a chicken breast!)
Forks Over Knives: The Plant-Based Way to Health by Gene Stone, Dr. T. Colin Campbell and Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn Jr.
Thrive Foods: 200 Plant-Based Recipes for Peak Health by Brendan Brazier
Change Your Brain Change Your Body Cookbook by Tana Amen
A Life in Balance: Delicious Plant-based Recipes for Optimal Health by Meg Wolff
“Only two things change your life: either something new comes into your life, or something new comes out of you.”
– Brendon Burchard, Founder of High Performance Academy. Not an HPA Master’s Course member? Get free videos at HighPerformanceAcademy.com.
HPA MASTER’S COURSE
HIGH PERFORMANCE HEALTH PLAN
Recommendation Detail - Supplements
As soon as someone recommends a supplement, controversy ensues. There are as many studies that recommend them as those
that don’t, just as some studies say eggs are good for you and others do not. But hey, that’s the way of the world – some people
say wine and chocolate are good for you, too, but obviously each carries it’s own problems. The good news is with general vitamin
supplementation there is little evidence that taking them at recommended levels is harmful, though as always you should consult
your own doctor or health advisor.
My work has led me to believe that one should take a multi-Vitamin each day as well as supplementation for vitamin D, calcium,
and Omega-3 fish oil. Below are the brands we recommend for each. Also below is an “energy boost” section for those who feel
their energy and mood is too low and want to raise it in a healthy way. (However, please know that nothing will increase your
energy more than working out regularly and adopting a healthier diet as recommended earlier).
Multi-Vitamin
Rainbow Light Certified Organics Men’s or Women’s Multivitamin (made w/ organic fruits and vegetables). 2 with breakfast, 2 at
3pm. If using another multi-vitamin, just try to find one that is in par food-based rather than all chemical.
Vitamin D
Pretty much any D supplement is fine. Take a minimum of 2,000 IU per day, unless you are outside more than 90 minutes
everyday. I take 1,000 in morning, and 1,000 at 3pm with my multi-vitamin. For those who never see the sun, go up to 4,000 IU per
day.
Calcium
The best calcium supplement is a better diet, consisting of more broccoli especially. (Sorry, but calcium absorption from milk or
dairy products is very poor). Try for 1200 IUs per day, or 1500 per day if over 50. Try to use food-based calcium supplements
(Rainbow Light also offers these).
Omega 3-Fish Oil
I’ve tried just about every fish oil out there, and I haven’t seen a big difference between all the brands. Obviously, you want safe,
effective, and concentrated fish oils. I like Rainbow Light products and have also had Nordic Naturals and a few others available at
Whole Foods.
Energy Supplements
Some people want to pound an energy drink each day to feel better, but I don’t recommend that. If your exercise and nutrition
plan is smart and consistent, your energy will naturally rise. However, if you find yourself in a pinch, try incorporating any or all of
the following into your daily routine:
The Amen Solution “Brain and Memory Power Boost” Supplement (store.amenclinics.com/supplements)
FRS Healthy Energy drinks (frs.com)
Vega Sport Preworkout Energizer (myvega.com)
Organic Green Tea
“Only two things change your life: either something new comes into your life, or something new comes out of you.”
– Brendon Burchard, Founder of High Performance Academy. Not an HPA Master’s Course member? Get free videos at HighPerformanceAcademy.com.