CHAPTER 28

BUILDING A BETTER ATHLETIC BRAIN

What is the brain? The simple act of reading those four words requires he work of hundreds of millions of brain cells (called neurons).

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Though the brain weighs less than 5 percent of total body mass, it controls nearly every bodily function, from holding this book to going up a flight of stairs. The brain uses between 20 and 50 percent of the oxygen we breathe.

Our everyday tasks are achieved with the brain’s arsenal of more than 100 billion neurons and 100 trillion interconnections—greater than the number of stars in the universe—existing between those neurons. The brain is more complex than the greatest supercomputers, and this makes the organ truly magnificent, almost beyond our comprehension.

 

 

 

For endurance athletes, there are three important factors to consider regarding the brain. The first is the brain’s overlooked role in training and racing. The second is how to improve brain function through biofeedback stimulation—a simple process that you can perform on your own. Third, a variety of lifestyle habits will help you develop and maintain a better athletic brain.