Circadian Rhythm.   Biological Rhythm.    Body Clocks.

We’ve heard the words. We might use them in casual conversation. We might even preach to our clients the importance of them. But if put on the spot, would we be able to accurately and specifically define them? How about effectively adding them into a program or workup for our patients or clients?

All of those words and more stem from the overarching area of Chronobiology.

Would it surprise you to learn that you could supercharge your client’s results just by sprinkling in a bit of timing know-how?

Let’s take a look:

Chronobiology is a multidisciplinary field of study where scientists research the rhythms of living organisms. Oddly, prior to the last few decades, much of the work revolved around plants. Since it branched out to animals, and finally humans, our understanding of the effects of the physical, solar, lunar and environmental cycles has skyrocketed. 

Here’s the rundown.

As humans, we have a circadian master clock which runs on a 24 hour cycle based on light and dark information. This clock resets when sunlight hits the eye. That’s why blue light limitation has become so popular for maintaining our sleep cycles, and thus, our better health. 

So, we have this master clock which is a group of cells called the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) housed in the hypothalamus of the brain. As it goes, when we name something the “master”, it usually follows that there are other pieces of the puzzle which are less masterful. This is no different with our body clocks

These “less-masterful” entities are called peripheral clocks and reside in every tissue in the body. They oversee things like insulin release, fat storage, energy production and body temperature. Many of them both receive as well as send messages back to the SCN. All of them interact with our behaviors and the environment around us such as food intake, physical movement and body temperature. Among other things, they wake us up, send us to sleep, make us grow, tell our bodies to recover, assist movement, and help us digest.

Why do we care?

Okay, we’re talking clocks, right? 

Lots of clocks. 

Imagine an entire shop filled with hundreds of clocks. When they tick along in sync with each other under the direction of the master clock, the shop is filled with a melodious tick-tock song. When one or two get behind, it’s distracting to the ear. Add in a few more and the cacophony will send you running out the door. 

In our bodies this chaos is called circadian desynchrony (CD). Obviously, this is not a desirable state of being in a body that strives for homeostasis, balance and harmony.

Let’s talk about you…

Whether you realize it or not, you probably use chronobiology every day. Think about any client you have. When they first walked through your door, you noticed many things in an instant including their age and what they were wearing.

Their age told you of their journey through the years. (Circannual rhythm.) 

Clothing (and a glance out the window) told you of the season. Both of these fall in the category of chronobiology called infradian rhythms which have a cycle of more than 24 hours (monthly biannually or yearly) 

You invite them to sit down and you discover a bit more. You might ask about their eating habits, energy levels and what kind of work and exercise they do. From those things you know their rhythms of digestion, hormone release, productivity/focus, and energy production.

These are a second aspect of chronobiology called Ultradian cycles or things that happen multiple times in a 24 hour period. 

And lastly you might ask about their sleep and wake cycles. These bring us back to that 24 hour circadian rhythm and the all-important master clock.

Here’s what you might be missing:

Still thinking of that client…

What might not be outwardly apparent is that most people on the planet since the invention of the lightbulb are desynchronized with their master clock due to artificial light. Add to that a few irregular meal times, some weird sleep patterns and even an air conditioner over their desk at work and their internal clock shop sounds like a 5th grade orchestra warming up. Not only does the noise make you want to run for the hills, desynchronization has been correlated to everything from metabolic disease to neurological disorders to cancer. 

What can you do about it?

Meet the givers of time: …light…food…exercise

Okay, we’ve established that timing is everything. We have the master clock that sets the rhythm based on light. Then we have our peripheral clocks that listen to the master clock, but they also take cues from our behavior; how we eat and exercise. 

Back to our clock shop.

The tissues involved in digestion (stomach, endocrine, gut, etc.) have an optimal operating rhythm that is in sync with the master clock. When an individual eats at those specific times, the digestive system is ready to work and everything is primed for performance. Digestion is super efficient, delivery of nutrients to tissues is optimal, energy production is peak.

The result is a bevy of clocks in sync which is a beautiful thing!

But say, we skip meals and have midnight snacks. Skipping meals tells the body a story of scarcity (not a great thing unless you want to pack on the pounds). Then, that doughnut at midnight sets off a series of events. Not only is the digestive system not primed for food, but the alarms go off and the tissues report back to the master clock that it’s daytime. The master clock, getting its information from the eye says, “Nope.”. Suddenly our clocks are out of sync. 

Same goes with exercise.

Studies show that if you exercise out of sync with your natural rhythm, it actually has adverse effects like increased insulin resistance, decreased focus and coordination leading to higher possibilities of injury and even delayed melatonin release.

But how do you line up those clocks?

Here’s where true personalization comes in:

As a health professional, you already recognize that every client is an individual with different histories, present habits and future goals. What the study of chronobiology adds is that each person is endowed with a unique set of rhythms.  Their clocks tick in a completely personal way. Therefore, synchrony creates a distinctive song in each body. 

What does this mean?

Every person has certain times in the day where they perform mental tasks better or are more ready to move or digest. Add to that the times of day when they most need to socialize or be in nature or rest and the possibilities for pinpointing the precise intervention for that specific person unfold. When you understand the chronobiology of a client, you get a glimpse into the timing of their hormone release. Then, you can synchronize specific activities with the correct hormone release for that task and BAM! Success is simple!

Let’s get specific:

Say your client’s cortisol peaks super fast in the morning and their body temp is up super quick after rising. Essentially, they are ready for action. If you recommend exercise, hard mental tasks and complex productivity steps early in the day, they will ride the wave of their hormones, thus working with their natural rhythms.

Another client’s melatonin sticks around a bit longer in the morning, pushing that cortisol peak later in the day. These things, along with a natural drop in insulin sensitivity and greater cardiovascular efficiency in the afternoon, prime them for a trip to the gym later in the day.

And this is just the beginning. There are as many configurations as there are hormones in the body and people who walk in the door of your practice. 

But the same caveat applies: 

When your program harnesses the power of clocks ticking in sync, your clients feel strong, strive toward their goals with ease, enjoy life more and stick to it. They excel…and all things improve.

A final note:

Our desire is to create the perfect plan for each client to achieve their desired results in the shortest amount of time possible with the least effort expended. That is true efficiency. Adding the chronobiological component into our already effective programs takes our client/practitioner success to the next level. And who doesn’t want to do that?

To learn how to apply precision methods and technology solutions to your service offering and effectively add chronobiology and more to your practice, check out our Level 1 Course for Health Professionals.

References

Circadian disruption and human health: A bidirectional relationship – PMC (nih.gov) 

Abbott SM, Malkani RG, Zee PC. Circadian disruption and human health: A bidirectional relationship. Eur J Neurosci. 2020;51(1):567-583. doi:10.1111/ejn.14298

Article with tons of notations on studies of circadian desynchrony 

The suprachiasmatic nucleus controls the circadian rhythm of heart rate via the sympathetic nervous system – PubMed (nih.gov)

Warren WS, Champney TH, Cassone VM. The suprachiasmatic nucleus controls the circadian rhythm of heart rate via the sympathetic nervous system. Physiol Behav. 1994 Jun;55(6):1091-9. doi: 10.1016/0031-9384(94)90392-1. PMID: 8047576.

https://www.pnas.org/doi/full/10.1073/pnas.1006749107

Christian Cajochen, Jakob Weber, Alejandro F. Estrada,Kumpei Kobayashi,Virginie Gabel,

Circadian and homeostatic sleep-wake regulation of secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA): Effects of environmental light and recovery sleep, Brain, Behavior, & Immunity – Health, 19, (100394), (2022).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbih.2021.100394

Impact of the human circadian system, exercise, and their interaction on cardiovascular function

Circadian rhythm disruption and mental health – PMC (nih.gov)

Walker WH 2nd, Walton JC, DeVries AC, Nelson RJ. Circadian rhythm disruption and mental health. Transl Psychiatry. 2020;10(1):28. Published 2020 Jan 23. doi:10.1038/s41398-020-0694-0

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0306452210011103?via%3Dihub

1. Shuboni, L. Yan,

Nighttime dim light exposure alters the responses of the circadian system,

Neuroscience,Volume 170, Issue 4,2010, Pages 1172-1178,  ISSN 0306-4522,

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroscience.2010.08.009.

https://academic.oup.com/jcem/article-abstract/106/3/e1373/5922806?redirectedFrom=fulltext&login=false

Leilah K Grant, Charles A Czeisler, Steven W Lockley, Shadab A Rahman, Time-of-day and Meal Size Effects on Clinical Lipid Markers, The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, Volume 106, Issue 3, March 2021, Pages e1373–e1379, 

Time-of-day and Meal Size Effects on Clinical Lipid Markers 

https://diabetesjournals.org/care/article/40/11/1573/36945/Influences-of-Breakfast-on-Clock-Gene-Expression

Daniela Jakubowicz, Julio Wainstein, Zohar Landau, Itamar Raz, Bo Ahren, Nava Chapnik, Tali Ganz, Miriam Menaged, Maayan Barnea, Yosefa Bar-Dayan, Oren Froy; Influences of Breakfast on Clock Gene Expression and Postprandial Glycemia in Healthy Individuals and Individuals With Diabetes: A Randomized Clinical Trial. Diabetes Care 1 November 2017; 40 (11): 1573–1579.

https://journals.physiology.org/doi/full/10.1152/ajpregu.00355.2002

Exercise elicits phase shifts and acute alterations of melatonin that vary with circadian phase

Orfeu M. Buxton, Calvin W. Lee, Mireille L’Hermite-Balériaux, Fred W. Turek, and Eve Van Cauter

American Journal of Physiology-Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology 2003 284:3, R714-R724   

https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/20/7/1597/htm

Maury, E. Off the Clock: From Circadian Disruption to Metabolic Disease. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2019, 20, 1597. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms20071597

 Circadian rhythms and athletic performance : Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise (lww.com)

WINGET, CHARLES M.; DEROSHIA, CHARLES W.; HOLLEY, DANIEL C. Circadian rhythms and athletic performance, Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise: October 1985 – Volume 17 – Issue 5 – p 498-516

RELATIONSHIP OF ENDOGENOUS CIRCADIAN MELATONIN AND TEMPERATURE RHYTHMS TO SELF-REPORTED PREFERENCE FOR MORNING OR EVENING ACTIVITY IN YOUNG AND OLDER PEOPLE – PMC (nih.gov)

Duffy JF, Dijk DJ, Hall EF, Czeisler CA. Relationship of endogenous circadian melatonin and temperature rhythms to self-reported preference for morning or evening activity in young and older people. J Investig Med. 1999;47(3):141-150.

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fendo.2018.00219/full

Lin Hui-Hsien, Farkas Michelle E.Altered Circadian Rhythms and Breast Cancer: From the Human to the Molecular Level  

Frontiers in Endocrinology VOLUME=9   2018  10.3389/fendo.2018.00219   ISSN=1664-2392 

Want to lose weight? Exercise and eat healthy.

More energy? Simple, eat right and exercise. 

What about reducing the risk of chronic disease? Duh! Move your body daily and increase your veggies. 

The starting point for most health professionals when it comes to helping their clients achieve goals is nutrition and exercise. Two absolutely foundational pieces of the health puzzle. But did you know there are other areas you could address that can in some cases, have just as much of an impact on our clients overall health as a change in activity and nutritional intake?

Let’s explore the uncommon areas of your clients’ lifestyle you might be leaving on the table in your consultation room and how to address these in your next session. 

Environment 

Assessing your client’s indoor places and outdoor spaces.

Why?

Because dampness in a home can cause molds harmful for health and clutter can restrict air flow, causing build up of dust and other allergens. In the outdoor setting, particularly if you live in a city or built up area, you have to consider air pollution which can contribute to heart disease and respiratory conditions such as Asthma, as well as noise and light pollution which can interfere with circadian rhythms and sleep cycles.

What can you do as a health professional?

Assess your clients’ indoor and outdoor environment to see if there are any potential stressors or factors that could be influencing their quality of life. Recommend frequent bouts in nature for those who live in built up areas and support the reduction of light and noise pollution to improve down time and sleep patterns.

Seek to increase your understanding around environmental issues relating to health so that you can better support your clients to make changes to their environment.  

Work

83% of US workers suffer from work-related stress, with 25% saying their job is the number one stressor in their lives. For many it is work that is the cause of poor health habits and the frustration for many health practitioners as it gets in the way of positive behaviour change. Whilst it may seem like the only solution you can provide to your clients is for them to ‘leave their job’. There are many things you can do to help reduce stress at work and actually use it as a place to practice healthy habits.

• Feeling a sense of purpose

When was the last time you sat with your client to discuss their deeper why? Working with clients on finding a sense of purpose can be a powerful way to increase motivation and increase feelings of both physical and mental wellbeing. When they are able to tie this sense of purpose into the work they do, it may help to reduce stress associated with their job, or it might just show them that what they are currently doing is not right for them. Either way it can open a positive conversation to take action on improving their feelings around the work they do.

• Becoming aware of natural strengths

Some of the major contributors to work stress are; poor team cohesion, lack of clarity, insufficient support and poor management/communication. Whilst you may not be able to control the work environment when it comes to management, you can support your client in ‘controlling the controllables’ by increasing awareness of their natural communication styles vs others to help foster better relationships and communication pathways. As well as creating more awareness around their natural strengths (and weaknesses) so that they can meet daily tasks with greater feelings of self-efficacy and clarity.

• Planning and Time-management

Gaining an understanding of your clients typical day at work can help you when it comes to setting realistic and achievable health goals that can work into the demands of the work environment. Supporting your client to plan these health goals into their working day and keeping them accountable to them may also naturally start to help create more structure and routine in other areas of their work schedule as they aim to add new healthy habits into their to-do list.

Workplace wellness has become a hot topic due to the significant risks associated with both physical and mental health. As a practitioner it is important that you have the tools to support people in all walks of life.

Social 

Wide-ranging research suggests that strong social ties are linked to a longer life. In contrast, loneliness and social isolation are linked to poorer health, depression, and increased risk of early death.

As a result, assessing a client’s social life and relationships should be as high up the list as looking through a diet diary or exercise history. Does your client spend quality time with friends, family members/loved ones? Are there any relationships that are currently causing stress? Does your client feel loneliness or isolation?

If diving deeper into relationships is not within your skillset or scope of practice, seek out a strong referral network with a psychologist or counselor, so that when you do begin to assess the social aspects of a person’s life, you can safely support your client by referring them to an expert to help deal with any deeper issues should they arise. 

Remember, ALL aspects of the environment can influence gene expression and consequently affect health. Just because a person is exercising regularly and eating healthy does not mean your work is done. Sleep, work, stress, social life, the environment all have important roles to play in the overall health picture. It is your duty as a health professional to understand the bigger picture of your clients lifestyle to formulate a personalized and integrative health program, which can and should of course involve other expert practitioners within your network to support as needed.

This is the future of client-centered, precision health care.

Want to learn more about assessing and managing these areas of your clients lifestyle AND join a network of health, fitness and medical professionals who practice with precision? 

Enroll in the PHA Level Course, details on the next intake can be found here

Poor sleep, or more specifically, circadian alignment can contribute to many different health risks due to its impact on both the physiology of the individual and the lifestyle patterns they undertake as a consequence of irregular sleep habits.

The more significant problem with poor sleep hygiene has to do with biology. The body operates on a 24-hour cycle, or circadian rhythm, governed by the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) that serves as both the ‘master clock’ and regulator of peripheral clocks, located in various organs around the body. The central and peripheral clocks work to ensure the body maintains alignment with the natural changes in daylight and darkness. It is this rhythm that tells us to wake when it is light and rest when it is dark and supports the many hormonal and physiological functions that need to occur in order to support the body throughout.

This disruption of the natural circadian cycle affects how the body functions and interferes with the natural release of hormones and other processes within the body, leading to potential problems of the cardiovascular system, metabolism, digestion, immune system, mental health and even fertility and pregnancy.

So given the importance of not only sleep but alignment with the natural 24-hour light/dark cycle, what does this mean for clients who find it difficult to change their sleep patterns due to shift-work?

In this scenario, much of the advice given is unrealistic and impossible to implement, leaving many health professionals feeling like they are unable to tackle any issues surrounding sleep. Instead they choose to ‘park’ such goals and focus on areas of lifestyle that are easier to control. Whilst this may be a valid short-term coaching strategy, there comes a point where sleep hygiene must be addressed, particularly as the health risks associated with prolonged shift work are actually quite alarming. 

In shift workers, research shows a 30-40% increase in risk of chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes and interestingly, the longer you do shift work, the higher your waist circumference and risk of obesity. In fact, 4 days of disrupted sleep due to shift work can push your physiology into a pre-diabetic state and one night of sleep under 4 hours can reduce immune function by 70%. Shift work is also correlated to inflammatory bowel disease, ulcerative colitis, lower energy levels and mental health conditions such as depression

So, aside from asking clients to give up their jobs, what else can we do as health professionals to support those who work shifts? We asked chrono-expert and PHA lead educator, Dr. Cam McDonald to share his top tips. 

1. Re-establish normal patterns of sleeping, eating and exercise as soon as possible after night shifts are over

The body likes to follow predictable patterns in alignment with the 24-hour circadian rhythm. The more you mismatch daily lifestyle habits with this rhythm, the more stress it creates on the body. Once a period of working shifts is complete, supporting your clients to quickly establish a routine of eating, working out and sleeping in alignment with the natural light-dark cycle should be of highest priority. 

2. During shifts, minimize food intake throughout the evening, focus on low/non-caloric fluids and aim to have all meals through the daylight hours. Try to keep your meal timings on a consistent pattern.

Much of the metabolic risk of shift-work comes from the irregularity in meal timings and quality of food. Put simply, the body likes to keep processes on a consistent rhythm and is not designed to digest large meals in the middle of the night. Here you can support your client by helping them to establish a consistent pattern around meal times each day, and ensuring they find easy to digest, low calorie meals such as soups or broths to consume during the night, keeping the consumption of main meals to the daylight hours.

3. Aim to use light movement, warm drinks, healthy crunchy snacks as ways of staying awake to reduce caffeine consumption as much as possible overnight.

Many shift workers use caffeine to give them more energy during the night. As previously mentioned, the body should be resting during this time and is already under a level of stress from being awake and at work. Using caffeine to get through the shift will only add more fuel to the fire through the release of stress hormones. Support your clients to find alternative ways to help them during the shift that do not involve the use of caffeine or other stimulants. Warm caffeine-free herbal teas can support alertness without the added stress and healthy foods that provide a crunch can help to increase alertness naturally. 

4. Support ‘morning sleep hygiene’ 

Improving overall sleep quality, regardless of the time you go to bed, will still be one of the most impactful things you can do to reduce the negative effects of shift-work. Here are some additional tips to support quality of sleep during the daylight hours.

• Create a ‘morning’ bedtime routine to prep the body for sleep
• Have a hot bath, practice meditation, breathing techniques, or stretch to calming music
• Use block out blinds or curtains in the bedroom with dark shades or a sleep mask
• Limit the use of electronics before falling asleep
• Wear blue light blocking glasses during work, on the way home from work and around the house before bedtime
• Consider using a white noise machine to block out any daytime noise that may affect the quality of your sleep

As you can see, all is not lost for those who work shifts. There are many strategies we can look to implement to offset some of the negative effects of circadian stress. If you would like to learn more about sleep, circadian rhythms and the practical application of chronobiology, check out this free webinar from Dr. Cam Mcdonald here.

References

Shift-Work Morbidity and Mortality

CVD – https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29929393

CVD – https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29247501

CAD – https://www.karger.com/Article/FullText/481088

Clock genes and cancer – https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5410358/

Mental health – https://www.nature.com/articles/ncomms10889

Desynchrony and it’s effects 

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S105381191300921X

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3654533/

What would you say if I told you that some people are designed to be obese, and it actually is very healthy for them to register as obese?

Have you ever thought that there might be an incredible and useful reason why some people store and conserve body weight more easily? 

And are you aware that the reason some people hold weight is the same reason that many of us are actually walking around on the planet and didn’t die in the last famine?

Different bodies are DESIGNED to be a different size, some skinny and lean, others lean and muscular, some tall, some broad, and some are actually designed to be a certain height and weight that registers a higher BMI!

The key to understanding the body in front of you, and how to help it reach it’s personal potential is to know that:

1. Every ‘BODY’ is different.
2. There is a very good reason why some people find it easier to store weight compared to others. 
3. Understanding this will allow you to have a greater insight into every area of your clients’ lives and create positive change that is lasting.

Let’s take the typical obese body – the type of body that has been protecting our community as long as we have evolved! They have thick joints, wrists, neck, ankles, they have significant muscle mass covered by a significant layer of fat tissue as well. Generally, they are a stout body and have always been that way. Genetically, they were born with a predisposition to have a stronger and thicker skeleton, more muscle tissue AND a greater capacity to store fat tissue; throughout their life, they have been fighting a losing battle with the fat tissue (or so the skinny culture would make them feel).

In order to develop a bigger body, compared to a skinny body you need a very different physiology to create bigger structures and a different metabolism. Higher levels of prolactin, more sensitivity to insulin and more IGF-1 (both growth factors) are needed. Prolactin helps you gain weight, and produce breast milk when appropriate (pro-lactation), but it’s also found in both healthy guys and non-breastfeeding women. In higher amounts, it not only adds weight but naturally makes you focus on everyone else’s goals and not focus on yourself – i.e. you put others’ needs first.

Essentially, prolactin makes you more nurturing…

If you are finding this conversation interesting and want to know more about the role of prolactin both physically and behaviourally, as well as how to get a result and motivate people that have naturally bigger bodies, you can read the rest of the article over at the FITREC website here.

A big thanks to our partners FITREC for having us join the conversation and supporting the fitness industry in raising the bar through education and support networks, something we strongly align with. 

Whether you have noticed this with your clients, friends, and family members or even on your own personal health journey. This post is guaranteed to shed some light on why this may be and importantly, insight on what you can do about it…

Have you ever had that feeling where the health thing you are doing, or the way you are going about it, just doesn’t feel right for you?

It may have been a particular exercise at the gym, a way of eating, or even a style of meditation. It’s one of those situations where you look around at other people doing the same thing and they seem to be getting triple the benefits and enjoying it 10 times more.

And because of this, you persist – you push through assuming it’s your body’s fault, your trainer blames you for not doing the program well enough, and over time, it can lead to the opposite of inspiration to continue

The good news…it is not your fault. It has far more to do with your parents and the environment in which you developed… and this article is a tribute to you as a unique individual with unique needs that, when met, will allow you to realize your full health and potential, and love the process along the way.

To read the full article, click here and learn about: 

• The Personalised Health Revolution
• Shifting from Generic to Precise 
• Real Life Case Study 1: A Personal Trainer’s Weight Loss Journey 
• Real Life Case Study 2: Menstrual Cycle Improvements through Personalisation 
• The Future in Precision Health 

A big thank you to the Vitamin C Blog team for having us along for the conversation.