The M3 Model
Categorizing Performance Longevity Indicators
In the world of health and longevity there are a nearly infinite number of indicators we can choose to put on our dashboard (For more context check out my post from last week: A Dash of Data). So how can we make sense of all of these options in the sea of data? What indicator will give me the most useful information from which I can make decisions that actually improve my quality of life? Enter the M3 Model. The M3 Model is an easy way to bucket different types of indicators and tools for measuring and improving performance longevity.
The three categories are MIND, MVMT, and MTTR. Each represents a distinct bucket of indicators (and tools) we can dip into in order to build our dashboard. While these categories do represent some generic individual characteristics ultimately they are part of one holistic system. The ripples from a stone dropped in any of these ponds will find their way through all three of these categories.Human biology is vastly more complex and integrated than our M3 Model but it can help to have a framework that gives us shortcuts to finding solutions.
Let’s talk about MIND first.
For our purposes, MIND refers to the fundamental layers of our nervous system and how they coordinate to produce the ways we think, feel, and act. By no means does this encapsulate all of the substance and meaning of a topic this large but it’s a good place to start and gives us the most opportunity to find variable to measure and change. MIND is further divided into three subcategories based loosely on evolutionary narrative. The layers are - Autonomic (the oldest), Emotional or Limbic, and the Cognitive or Cortical. While these layers are not anatomically precise and most certainly co-evolved to some degree, they are good enough for us to wrap our heads around.
The Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) is devoted to the basics of biology: survive and replicate. Meaning “self-governing” the Autonomic is comprised of the stuff we never have to think about. It manages the chemistry set of the human body. Bodily functions like heart rate, breathing, blood pressure, and digestion are all orchestrated by this reptilian piece of our physiology. An important idea for later: it’s also the accountant for all physiological stress regardless of our perception. The ANS can be an incredible interface for helping us step outside of the limits of our own narratives and let the body kick us the real truth.
The Emotional System may not be what you think at first glance. It’s not like,”I’m sad because my Instagram post didn’t get as many likes as I wanted,” emotions. But more in reference to fundamental drives and keystone circuitry found in all mammals that drive our social and learning behavior. I know “Facts>Feelings” is the meme of the day for some but if each of us looks close enough much of our behavior is driven by how we feel.
Emotions are hubs in the center of our behavioral wheel so to speak. When we “feel” a certain way it’s like a piano playing chords of behavior. When I felt like this before what relieved this pressure? How do I act when I feel safe? Afraid? Frustrated? Humans like to think we are so darn special, and in some ways we are, but when it comes to how subconscious cues and behavioral loops drive us we are woefully similar to the pets we keep.
Lastly, we have the Cognitive. This represents the “I”. The cortical structures of the brain are the administrators of the body, the conductors of the orchestra. While the gray matter of the brain represents a variety of conscious thoughts and activities most of which are outside of the scope of this article and my particular expertise we’ll focus on a couple that are not. In this part of the brain reside our imagination and our sense of time. These two components are especially important because they can have extraordinarily positive or negative effects on our quality of life.
On the plus side we can create hopes, dreams, and visions for our future. Then we can generate a plan and act it out. On the downside we can ruminate on possibilities for negative outcomes that freeze our progress and creates chronic distress. Additionally, in the Cognitive layer of MIND lies the ability to redirect how we react to stress signals from the body. Specific parts of the cortical areas have the job of modulate how we react to normally automatic reactions from the more base areas of our nervous system. This fundamental fact, is a core tenet of all strategies that drive stress relief. A topic that will be a central theme in this Substack.
MIND certainly covers more than I’ve provided in this brief overview. What we have now is good place to start thinking about what kinds of indicators we might pick to keep track of these functions and what kinds of tools we may use to maintain their function or get them back on track. In the next article we’ll take a look at the indicator bucket of MVMT or how the body moves in space.
Can you think of a situation where you ignored the indicator light for how you were thinking, feeling, or acting?
What signals were coming from what layers?
What early signals (leading indicators) are you attending to start a new trend?
I look forward to your thoughtful comments.
Thanks for reading,
Rob
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