It really sounds like you are doing great!! All those areas of improvement sound really fabulous.

I don't know if you have ever done sports training before? I haven't done much myself, but I understand there is something called interval training. They push you up to the top limit of what you can do, then you slow down *a bit* to recover and then speed back up to the top limit. Over time, this increases your top limit.

For someone who is training to run, for instance, you might jog, then sprint for a short while, then jog again to recover, then sprint again. You wouldn't stop and lie down on the pavement in between sprints; that wouldn't help increase your conditioning over time. Of course you feel winded and worn out while you're jogging -- you've just been sprinting! But over time it will gradually increase your capacity so that you'll be able to run faster and farther.

So maybe what they are asking you to do is to let your brain "jog" or "walk" in between work sessions instead of lying down on the pavement?