Top-Down and Bottom-Up Regulation
Pair cognitive reframing with body-based signals of safety
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Time to result
- ~weeks to results
- Steps
- 4
- Confidence
- 90%
Asked how she works with elevated cortisol in athletes, Zal separates regulation into top-down and bottom-up approaches. Top-down work recruits conscious thought and the prefrontal cortex to examine the alarm and choose a response. Bottom-up work uses the senses and body to create cues of safety through practices such as breathwork, meditation, walking, hiking, dancing, or other rhythmic movement. She gives resonance breathing as one example: a five-second inhale and seven-second exhale, repeated at about six breaths per minute for 10 to 20 minutes. The proposed mechanism is improved balance between sympathetic activation and parasympathetic recovery. Because she notes that practices fit people differently and that some exercise can itself raise cortisol, the framework requires observation and personalization rather than a universal prescription.
Origin
Extracted from The Diary of a CEO
Core principles
- 01Stress regulation is not purely cognitive
- 02Top-down work uses conscious interpretation and choice
- 03Bottom-up work uses sensory and bodily cues of safety
- 04The right practice depends on the individual response
How to run it
- 1
Map the alarm
Notice when activation appears and what thought, event, sensation, or schedule accompanies it. Distinguish a recurring pattern from an isolated stressful moment.
Pro tip Include context such as travel, sleep, workload, and training intensity.
Watch out Do not infer a cortisol disorder from feeling stressed alone.
- 2
Apply a top-down response
Use conscious reflection to examine the meaning assigned to the situation and choose a more useful next action. Keep the response concrete rather than trying to think all stress away.
Pro tip Write the feared interpretation and the available evidence in separate lines.
Watch out Zal explicitly argues that cortisol patterns are not always solved by thought alone.
- 3
Add a bottom-up cue
Select a safe sensory or movement practice such as slow breathing, meditation, walking, or rhythmic movement. Use the practice to give the body a repeated signal of safety.
Pro tip One transcript example is a five-second inhale followed by a seven-second exhale.
Watch out Breathing exercises can feel uncomfortable for some people; stop if symptoms worsen.
- 4
Measure fit
Repeat the paired practice consistently and observe stress, sleep, mood, symptoms, or clinician-guided measures. Replace a poor-fit practice rather than forcing it.
Pro tip Compare similar work or training days where possible.
Watch out Persistent endocrine or mental-health concerns need qualified care.
In the wild
Zal describes athletes facing travel, back-to-back games, and a high stress load. A player could identify travel-day thoughts that increase alarm, use a brief cognitive check, then practise resonance breathing or meditation for 10 to 20 minutes and observe recovery indicators over repeated trips.
→ The athlete tests a repeatable two-channel recovery routine instead of relying on willpower alone.
Common mistakes
Trying to think stress away
The model includes cognition but also requires attention to bodily and sensory regulation.
Assuming every movement calms
Zal notes that running can act as a stressor and may raise cortisol for some people.
Is it for you?
Best for
It is best for people who want a repeatable stress-regulation practice and can safely experiment with breath, meditation, or gentle movement.
Not ideal for
It is not a standalone treatment for trauma disorders, endocrine disease, or symptoms requiring medical assessment.
From the transcript
“there's the top down approach, which is cognitive”
“there's more of a bottomup approach which is using your senses to create safety”
“a 5-second inhale, 7-second exhale, six breaths per minute”
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