Sigmund is a valuable Performance Coaching tool.

The relationship between a human’s emotional state and peak performance is a well-studied topic, often explained through frameworks like the Yerkes-Dodson Law and modern psychology. Emotional states influence focus, energy, and decision-making, all of which are critical for performing at your best. Generally, peak performance—whether in sports, work, or creative pursuits—occurs in a “sweet spot” of emotional arousal and affects both mental and physical performance.

Too little emotion (like boredom or apathy) can leave you disengaged and sluggish, while too much (like overwhelming anxiety or anger) can cloud judgment and disrupt execution. The Yerkes-Dodson Law, for instance, suggests an inverted U-shaped curve: performance improves with emotional arousal up to a point, after which it declines if the intensity gets too high.

From a mental perspective, imagine a calm chess player versus one trembling with nerves—moderate excitement sharpens focus, but panic scatters it. Positive emotions, like confidence or enthusiasm, tend to broaden your attention and boost resilience.

From a physical perspective, the Yerkes-Dodson Law ties directly into physical performance by showing how arousal—essentially your body’s emotional and physiological activation—affects how well you move, react, and endure. It’s the same inverted U-shaped curve: too little arousal, and you’re flat; too much, and you’re a mess. But with physical tasks, it’s less about mental clarity and more about energy, coordination, and muscle efficiency.

At low arousal, your body is not primed. Think of a runner slouching to the starting line, half-asleep—heart rate’s low, adrenaline’s MIA, muscles feel heavy. Reaction times lag, and effort is weak. Studies on athletes (like sprinters or weightlifters) show that without enough activation, power output and speed suffer. You’re basically stuck in neutral.

Crank arousal to moderate levels, and you hit the gold zone. This is where athletes often describe feeling “ready” or “dialed in.” Physiologically, your sympathetic nervous system kicks on—heart rate rises, blood pumps to muscles, adrenaline sharpens reflexes. Research, like from the Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology, shows this sweet spot optimizes motor skills and endurance. A basketball player nailing free throws or a swimmer pacing perfectly—they’re aroused enough to be explosive and focused, but not so much that they’re jittery or tense. For simple physical tasks (say, deadlifting a max weight), this peak might lean toward higher arousal, since raw energy trumps finesse.

Push past that into high arousal, and things unravel. Overactivation—think panic-level stress or uncontrolled adrenaline—throws off coordination and wastes energy. Your muscles might tense too much (like gripping a tennis racket so hard you choke the swing), or you might overthink mechanics and stumble. Studies on “choking” in sports—like golfers missing easy putts under pressure—link this to excessive cortisol and a flooded nervous system. Fatigue sets in faster too; you’re burning fuel inefficiently. Ever seen a sprinter false-start from nerves? That’s the downside of the curve.

Task type tweaks the equation. Simple, strength-based stuff (e.g., powerlifting) tolerates higher arousal—anger or hype can even help. Complex moves (e.g., a gymnast’s routine) demand lower arousal for precision and timing. Coaches use this all the time: psyching up a football player with loud music versus calming a diver with breathing drills.

So, for physical performance, the key is regulation: elite performers often excel because they’ve mastered channeling emotions rather than being ruled by them.

For both physical and mental performance, people who can dial in their emotions to match the task outperform those who can’t. And high-resolution “dialing in” involves a well-informed starting point. Sigmund understands.

Performance Coaches ordering Sigmund on a client’s behalf are entitled to a referral fee of 35% (where allowed).