About Biorhythm
The biorhythm theory by Swoboda and Fliess states that a person’s physical and mental performance, as well as emotional state, are governed by specific biological rhythms. These rhythms are identical for all individuals and begin at the moment of birth. Each of the three biorhythms—physical, emotional, and intellectual—starts with a positive wave in its first cycle, then dips below the midline (also called the zero line) halfway through its period, entering a negative phase. At the end of each cycle, the rhythm returns to the positive zone. Days on which the biorhythm waves (also called biorhythm curves) cross the midline are considered critical days. If all three rhythms cross the midline on the same day, this may, according to biorhythm theory, lead to crisis-like effects. When the rhythms overlap in the positive zone, it can result in particularly favorable days—whereas their convergence in the negative zone tends to have adverse effects.
Since all three biorhythms have different cycle durations:
- the physical cycle lasts 23 days,
- the emotional cycle lasts 28 days,
- the intellectual cycle lasts 33 days,
...throughout a person’s life, countless biorhythm constellations emerge—yet they can be precisely calculated in advance for the entire lifespan.
Calculating a biorhythm requires only the person’s date of birth and the target date.
Biorhythm theory also explores interpersonal compatibility, suggesting that two people are most likely to understand and get along well with each other when at least one of their biorhythms runs in sync. This concept may help explain the popular saying “riding the same wave.” People born within a short time span often appear to be a good match from a biorhythmic perspective, as all three rhythms tend to run nearly parallel. A slight phase shift of a few days is considered beneficial, since it prevents both individuals from experiencing critical rhythm constellations at the same time.
If you’d like to explore the topic of biorhythms in more depth, you’ll find plenty of additional resources online.
Today, there are already numerous web applications and mobile apps that allow users to calculate the biorhythms of up to two individuals.
I’ve been considering whether, in certain cases, it might be useful to take a holistic view of the biorhythms of a larger team—especially when the goal is to tackle a demanding task together. One example of this would be a football match.
To explore this hypothesis further, I’ve developed a web app that I’d be delighted to introduce to you here.
Football Oracle App
The app calculates the biorhythmic constellations of up to eleven players for a given match day and presents the results as percentage values. The higher the percentage, the higher the biorhythm wave lies above the midline—indicating a positive form. Negative values suggest the opposite: a wave below the midline points to a potentially weaker daily form.
When the score is zero, the biorhythm wave intersects the midline—marking a critical turning point between positive and negative phases.
Warning: Critical Day!
The arrow next to the number indicates whether the wave is currently rising or falling.
In the “TeamForm” section, the team’s current average values are displayed.
The following illustration shows how to interpret the percentage values using the emotional biorhythm wave as an example.
Click or tap to view a larger version
For quicker access, you can install a shortcut to the web app directly from your browser menu or add it to your device’s home screen—across platforms.
Please note, however, that my app cannot directly answer the question: “Who will win the football match?” And that biorhythm theory has unfortunately not yet been scientifically confirmed. Maybe together we can help spark some movement in the research 😊
And ultimately, many other factors also play a role in influencing success.
The goal is to explore the extent to which biorhythms can influence a team’s chances of winning.
