> Is this how any great scientist, athlete, artist produce their works ?

I've never seen an athlete that goes 100% all the time your body just simply cannot take it. Hell someone who always trains at 95% multiple times a day is pretty sure to take some PEDs to help with the recovery.

I know a guy who does strongman competitions for a living. He never gives his 100% outside of competitions (3 to 5 times a year) The guy sleeps like 12 hours a day minimum (~8h at night and 3 or 4 naps), spends more time eating and then training and once he is nearing competition and going for that "peak" performance for a competition training after warmups might mean doing one single rep of deadlift as the whole days routine (probably takes a good 2 or 3 days to fully recover from that with his muscles). There are just some very real limits to the endurance of a human being. (the brain is also an organ just like muscles and has limits and needs rest etc.)

I think that trained athletes actually know better of their limits and when to not push for the maximum intensity than “regular office worker” in their corresponding field. The fatigue and risks of near future subpar performance are more concrete than with office work.

Also in any field, it ofcourse requires time, work and experience to become actually good enough to give yourself some slack.

I agree athletes train to maximise their performance on the games that matter.

I'm not sure what the equivalent is for the office worker.

When the boss is watching...

Yes, actually. For athletes especially, you need to rest because that is when muscle growth occurs. Have you ever looked at a training regimen for a marathon? The longest practice run is usually 21-22 miles, not the full 26.2.

You might find looking into this question interesting.

It's not universal, but a surprising number of the greats in all fields work less, not more.