Bonus: How do CEO’s stay fit?

What It Covers

Nicolai Tangen, CEO of Norway's sovereign wealth fund, compiles wellness routines from 13 global executives including Bob Iger, Jane Fraser, and Jack Dorsey, revealing how leaders across industries structure sleep, exercise, nutrition, and mental recovery to sustain peak performance across demanding schedules.

Key Questions Answered

• •Nervous System Management: Novartis CEO Vas Narasimhan structures his entire wellness approach around four pillars — mindset, movement, nutrition, and recovery — specifically because leadership decisions suffer under high sympathetic nervous system activation. He targets seven-plus hours of sleep nightly using tracking technology and supplements, noting these habits compound over time to sustain executive energy.
• •Caffeine Nap Protocol: Author Dan Pink describes a scientifically optimized 25-minute nap that doubles recovery benefits: drink coffee immediately before lying down, set a timer for exactly 25 minutes, and use noise-cancelling headphones. Caffeine takes roughly 25 minutes to enter the bloodstream, so you wake simultaneously refreshed from sleep and energized by the caffeine hit.
• •Deliberate Discomfort Training: TKO CEO Ari Emanuel combines 20-minute sauna sessions with 3-minute ice baths daily, plus quarterly 3-day fasts, arguing that training the mind to tolerate physical discomfort directly strengthens business decision-making. Enduring controlled suffering builds the psychological capacity to sit with uncertainty, aggravation, and prolonged pressure without reactive choices.
• •Recovery as Performance Strategy: Former IKEA executive Jesper Bodine and ex-national rower Karin Nordstrom both identify recovery as undervalued relative to output. Nordstrom practices a weekly written reflection — documenting what happened, what she felt, and what she learned — then shares it with an accountability partner, using the ritual to consciously release the workweek before weekends.
• •Breathing as Portable Meditation: Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser uses diaphragmatic breathing as her primary stress-regulation tool, learned from a coach. The technique requires sitting upright with feet flat, spine aligned, and breathing into the lower abdomen rather than the chest. Chest breathing signals physical tension, while belly breathing activates the body's relaxation response and restores focus between high-pressure interactions.