We all have different zones of tolerance for stress and activation that allow us to perform at our best whether we are on or off the court. Some of us perform our best when we are calm, others of us find more focus with a little more fire and urgency. Figuring out our individualized, optimized state for our best performance is key to any athletic journey. Learning to recognize, respond, and calibrate based on the state of our nervous system is a powerful tool for an athlete to have to enhance performance and find more flow state in life. In this video, Amanda explains the difference between our sympathetic nervous system (fight or flight) and our parasympathetic nervous system (rest & digest) and how too much time spent in the sympathetic state is not conducive to good health or performance. In modern life, we have far fewer experiences where our sympathetic nervous system activation is necessary but in order to find the balance between fight or flight and rest and digest, we have to be able to recognize our state. Amanda explains how awareness is the first step to employing techniques like the breath to movement yoga or acupuncture to help us maintain an optimized nervous system. Amanda Lee Murphy, an incredibly insightful, intelligent, and compassionate acupuncturist, recognized as a Top 25 Yoga Influencer by LA Entrepreneur Magazine and based in Manhattan Beach, CA. Her contributions to the local volleyball community help keep athletes performing at the top of their game and her insight helps align mind, body & spirit that creates amazing athletes and even better human beings.