Stay Focused During Your Workout : Mind-Muscle Connection

I totally lost my focus today at the gym because some guy decided to curse his business partner out for 45 minutes over his cell phone while he attempted to workout. It seemed everywhere I went, every machine or dumbbell rack I went to…there he was. Loud and unavoidable. It annoyed me, yes, but it got me thinking…does this guy really think he’s getting a good workout while he’s got his head cocked towards his shoulder to hold the phone in place? Is he counting his reps while he has a full blown conference call? It was all I could do not to approach him and ask…

Then I look around and I see people everywhere are unfocused…on the cell phone while squatting, reading a novel while cycling at a snails’ pace on the stationary bike, or just plain day dreaming and mindlessly lifting. I had a boss who used to tell us before every meeting to, “be here now”, he meant mentally, of course. Focus on what you’re doing at that moment. I think a poster with this same quote should be posted to the walls of gyms everywhere.

There is a huge connection between the mind and the muscle. If you want any results from your workout, weather it be for muscle mass or performance, you must be focused and intense about it.

Next time you workout, train like you mean it! Try the following to see the best results from your workout.

• Put the cell phone and the magazine down. In fact, try leaving your phone in your car so it’s not a distraction.
• Before you perform an exercise, think of the exact muscles you’re trying to work and focus only on those muscles.
• Throughout the workout, imagine those muscles contracting and expanding with every rep.
• Visualize your goal. If you’re training for a bodybuilding competition, imagine yourself on stage, posing, flexing, then winning. If you’re training for a race, imagine your speed increasing, the wind whistling past your face, then being the first across the finish line.
• Get in the zone. Get yourself to a trancelike state where your breathing pattern and lifting speed blend into a perfect cadence.