Getting Your Head Right For Training
A perfect training session is a rare thing. If you are a competitive powerlifter then you may well be working around an injury, having to do an exercise or session you hate but need, or even just plain tired. These are all part and parcel of the sport. If you aren't pushing you're limits then you're best is still out of reach, so its a fine line that we walk between being in good shape and over doing it.
Some days you can be low on energy for no good reason. You might even turn up feeling great but all you're lifts are down. Unless this happens frequently you shouldn't read too much into it, other then you need more recovery. Other days its the energy in your head that is lacking. Mental energy. The problem I find with myself and those that I train with is that this can turn into an ongoing issue, which is the focus of this article. A drop in confidence, low moods, not wanting to train, or even avoiding the gym.
Often this can be related to stuff going away from training, in other parts of your life. If that's the case it can be really hard to get your mind right. In the current economic climate it would be understandable if things like finances or job security are playing on your mind. But what can you do about it? There's no miracle cure, and I am certainly no psychologist, so what I offer here are simply ideas that have worked for me, or I think have worked for others I train with.
Firstly, getting into the gym and shutting out everything about the outside world helps me no end. The day I started turning off my phone in the car park, my lifts went up. And I don't turn it back on until I'm back in the car. I don't want to associate any negative calls or messages with my training.
Something else that helps is getting around people that won't complain between sets. Even if its jokingly. That sort of talk may influence that subconscious parts of your brain. I can't prove it, but I believe it. Once I told the guys around me not to whine or be negative between sets, and stopped it myself, our training improved. The extra reps that weren't there on previous sessions were getting banged out, attitudes changed and more weight got lifted. Guys were turning up on time and enjoying their training more. Going to the gym went from something that had become an act of "going through the motions" to something we would look forward to in the same way we did as kids.
Watching videos before going to the gym is another idea I use. I watch lifters with great technique (which I know, without a doubt, helps my own), or even movies like Pumping Iron. Anything that helps flip the "On" switch.
Personally I've had a rough 2009. At times training and competing were turning into chores for me. At times I didn't want to lift, help anyone else, or be a part of my club. But I changed my training through the year to use more reps, and go up a weight-class (put on more muscle). This change of focus gave me a massive mental boost and I realized that after 3 years of doing the same type of training I needed a change. My life didn't get any better, and I still had an injury to cope with, but I did start to find that being stuck under a bar for 12 reps as opposed to 2 or 3, trying to make sure I ate enough and got enough sleep, distracted me from the rest of the mess that was going on around me. I even found at what was the lowest point that I felt safer under the bar then anywhere else.
Recently I had to cope with low mental energy again, but thankfully its been due to over-training. My simple solution for that is to reduce training to fun stuff, and spend the rest of my allocated gym time helping others. I think a great way to recover and regain the drive to train is by helping out guys who are both stronger, and weaker then yourself. The stronger guys motivate you, while the weaker guys will show you why having a big ticker (heart) is important.
I know that many people like to get out of the gym all together for an extended period to help them recover. I agree with that and do it once or twice a year. These are just a few things that I've found helped me immensely, as strange as they might sound. I believe the key isn't what you do, but finding different things that work for you and learning how to use them. I see it as a tool box I go to when the signs start to show. For me, its a vital part of my overall approach to training.