Why “Deloading” is the Next Big Thing You Need to Try

Last week, I started my Monday with no coffee, no work, and no gym. It was amazing and completely intentional. And here is exactly why I did it.

We’re seemingly in the midst of a “hustle culture” storm, and it’s becoming increasingly ludicrous. Who can wake up the earliest, who can sleep the least, who can work the longest hours, who can make the most money, who can show off the most aggressively superfluous lifestyle. The relentless output from influencers on how they “level up” in the absence of any real life context is frankly tiresome and I would bet hard cash on how many of them actually stick to their publicised routine. The reality is that none of this is truly sustainable when working an actual job that doesn’t involve influencing for a living.

Having recognised this reality, I have focused on creating a sustainable routine that provides efficiency but also durability. Like many people, I’ve had my fingers burned in the past when I’ve attempted to sustain an unsustainable routine. I would start the routine in earnest, taking inspiration from unrealistic expectations, then something happens and suddenly it all falls apart. Fitness is the best example of this for me: I get into the swing of a decent routine, push myself hard, see some results, and then suddenly I become ill, injured, or overwhelmed by shift work, and all progress grinds to a halt as if I’d never even started.

We’re seemingly in the midst of a “hustle culture” storm, and it’s becoming increasingly ludicrous. Who can wake up the earliest, who can sleep the least, who can work the longest hours, who can make the most money, who can show off the most aggressively superfluous lifestyle.

A career in healthcare is notorious for inflicting a paradoxically unhealthy lifestyle on those who work in the field. Early starts and late finishes, shift work and high stress, little time for a breaks and haphazard meals all result in a constant state of physiological strain. Any ability to form a healthy routine is hampered by this restrictive paradigm, contrasting acutely with the nauseating display of a seemingly unwavering commitment to fitness and productivity that is inescapably brandished in our collective countenance by gleefully self-satisfied and painfully ignorant social media personalities. If you work a confined schedule such as set shifts or in an environment where there is no option than to physically be present i.e. no flexible working or work from home option, then it is impossible to just nip to the gym or go on a long run during the shift. I can’t just descrub and head for an ice bath halfway through an operation because I’m trying to “level up my hormone profile” for optimal quadricep growth. Exercise and healthy eating stops being a choice and becomes a luxury when under that much strain, especially with children, family, exams and ongoing professional requirements added to the mix.

Then come the hunger pangs. They are the worst and everyone knows when you’re tired, stressed, and undernourished (by that I mean actual high quality nutrition, not BMI), then you instinctively reach for food that’s often processed with a high calorie count, thus providing essential energy to keep you going. It’s unbelievably difficult to adhere to a healthy diet when you’re tired and hungry and cannot be sure when the next time you eat will be. Comfort food plays a major role in this aspect, and I for one am definitely a comfort food eater at times of high stress.

So, this week, I finished working the weekend and was done with it all. I felt mentally and physically exhausted and needed some time off. It was time to initiate Project “Deload”.

Let’s enter into some backstory. I had created and committed to a 12 week productivity plan at the beginning of February (and coincidentally with the commencement of my current 6-month training rotation as well as Less Than Full Time (LTFT) training) comprising a weekly exercise routine, tighter eating habits, and better task organisation. I found that I was becoming increasingly frustrated with my apparent propensity for injury and general sense of unfitness. I was frustrated with my stop start workout regime as well as the stagnation in my fitness progress. Long working hours and a continuous, treadmill-like working pattern meant it required some hardcore planning in order to turn things around.

I accordingly decided that initiating a 12 week plan would provide me with the best chance to commit to a routine that could instigate change. I’d been winging it for a while with mediocre results so I conceded to take action. My aims were the following:

• Refine my ability to work efficiently and effectively as a surgeon
• Improve my study habits
• Make time for business development
• Lose body fat whilst becoming cardiovascularly fitter
• Make time for socialising and spending time with friends and family

For interest purposes, I’ve included a rough template below of my training, food, and work split over an average, non-shift-work based week:

Whilst this routine was highly effective and I would thoroughly recommend utilising a structured approach in a heartbeat, the reality was that I felt exhausted as I approached my final week of the 12 week plan. I’d completed a stint of 4 busy night shifts over the Easter bank holiday weekend and entered straight into another set of normal days which culminated in another weekend of work. Two weekends in a row can seem doable, but the rest days post-nights are really just spent trying to readjust to a normal, daytime circadian rhythm; the “rest” is therefore not actually restorative. The sleep quality is poor culminating in cumulatively much less sleep over a week that leads straight into another weekend of work. This, on top of trying to gym, run, and keep up with work related admin meant it was safe to say that I felt pretty flattened.

However, I was keen to continue the progress I had accumulated over the 12 weeks, having worked hard for the results I sought. It would have been a shame to slip back into old habits or undo the improvements I had made, so I felt compelled to continue as I meant to go on despite the tiredness…

And this is exactly where “deloading” comes into play. I can’t lay claim to this concept as it’s been around for ages, and, despite the grammatical insensibility, I wanted to discuss it in this post because it plays such a valuable role in creating a durable routine. It ensures you can keep progressing and producing results that are important to you on a long-term timescale, as opposed to a peak and crash routine.

The “deload”, in essence, is where activities that act as major central nervous system stressors are reduced in order to facilitate recovery and rejuvenate performance. The recovery is multifold – the central nervous system has a chance to reset; the physical musculoskeletal system, including muscles, joints, tendons, and ligaments, has a chance to repair; and the mind has a chance to be somewhat alleviated of a mental burden. Once the “deload” is over, the idea is that you are able to return to the routine or activity with renewed vigour, which in turn ameliorates your performance and development. It also ensures you can sustain a gruelling routine over a longer period of time rather than burning out. As we know, the definition of burnout is where you temporarily or permanently lose the ability to participate in a certain activity at the same rate or level that you used to.

A good example of “deload” and avoiding burnout is sport. Often, in sports where progressive overload is utilised to develop performance, a certain portion of time is dedicated to reduce the load on the body in order to facilitate recovery. Conventionally, a “deload” is strategically implemented prior a race, usually termed “tapering”. The load is reduced, the rest period is prioritised, and suddenly on race day you arrive well rested and pumped to perform to your best ability. If you continued to train at the same intensity, then tiredness sets in, recovery is compromised, and injury occurs.

To further contextualise this, I’ll share my own strategy. Last week, I totally deconstructed my routine. I cut out weight-based gym sessions for the whole week and only retained a couple of gentle cardio sessions for whenever I felt up to them. I allowed myself to be intentional with what I wanted to do, for example, the freedom to reduce discipline and do what came naturally. The most challenging aspect for me was feeling content in not working out. I’d always felt like I lost progress when I took time off so it took some reminding that this was all intentional and it’ll help. I’ve learned from past lessons where I haven’t rested and lost progress as a result. The bottom line is, I removed any specific agenda outside of my job plan and reduced the physical stress on my body to let my central nervous system recover.

So, having enjoyed a week of intentional stress reduction to boost my productivity, I feel much better and genuinely looked forward to returning to my routine with renewed vigour and energy. Results don’t have to come at the cost of our health and sanity and “deloading” is by far one of the most powerful techniques I’ve ever used in order to guarantee longevity and lock in progress.

Feel like trying it? Drop me a message on Instagram or on here and tell me how you get on!