A week ago, Patrick Mahomes, quarterback of the Kansas City Chiefs, displayed a remarkable clutch performance against Buffalo Bills. Mahome’s trainer famously revealed that Mahome’s heart rate SLOWED when he had the ball, because he was then in a flow state.
Yes, as Flow state progresses, your HR decreases. But at the beginning of a Flow state, your HR spikes due to the release of dopamine and norepinephrine in your brain to heighten your senses.
Once you gain control, just like Mahomes did with the ball, the body enters a ‘release state’, releasing endorphins and anandamide to make you feel confident and calmer, lowering your HR. This is the core phase of flow.
After completing your task/performance, the ‘rest’ neurochemical, serotonin, is released, signaling your body to further lower your HR.
A flow state is the ONLY time these 5 performance enhancing neurochemicals occur simultaneously in the body, proving that being in flow directly leads to extraordinary performance.
