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By
Charles Staley, B.Sc, MSS
Director, Staley Training Systems |
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Your mental climate during workouts
is one of the most significant factors (if not the most significant
factor) that will determine the level of success you'll experience
from that workout. What follows are my favorite tricks and
tactics for more productive gym sessions:
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Let Go Of Results
And Simply Do The Right Thing
Sometimes the desire to get a result
interferes with the desire to do the right things. If you're learning
how to squat for power meets, one of your goals must be the ability
to hit parallel. It's the right thing to do. You should never let
your desire to hit a big number interfere with getting to parallel.
If you're learning ho to do full ("squat") cleans or snatches,
you can't let the desire to make the lift interfere with squatting
under. Instead the goal should be to squat, whether you make the
lift or not.
The "right thing" is a premise:
"If I do "A" it should result in "B." Then
you test the premise by doing "A" and checking your results.
If the results aren't there, your premise is flawed and is in need
of revision. If your premise is sound, you got the predicted result.
By the way, one of the best premises
you can adopt is: "If I put in the work, good things should
happen." Try it.
Tighten Up Your
Shoelaces
If I knew where I picked this up I'd
tell you, but I honestly can't recall. The idea is simple- when
you're getting revved up for a big lift, tighten your laces. They'll
serve as a visceral reminder to tighten yourself up. I've been using
this little cue for years, so I guess it must be serving me in some
way.
Be Careful Of What
You Allow To Define You
We all have flaws and limitations.
It's important however, not to give these imperfections too much
credit. After all, you're equally defined by your strengths as you
are by your weaknesses. I'm personally very careful about labeling
myself as old, a geek, slow-twitch-dominant, lazy, or whatever rationalization
I've been stewing over. The reasons for why you can't are valid
and they'll always be there if you need an excuse. The reasons why
you can are just as valid, although most of us don't call upon them
as often as we should.
Lowered Expectations
One of the most consistently rewarding
mindsets you can employ is that of "lowered expectations."
I know, it doesn't sound like anything you'd pick up from a book
on high-performance psychology, but allow me to explain: Sometimes,
expecting a lot out of yourself, especially when you do it all the
time, can hurt more than it can help- if you frequently fail to
hit the mark, mounting frustration can seriously sideline your motivation.
I'm all for a hard-charging "take no prisoners" attitude,
but to be honest, it often pays to give yourself a break sometimes.
Anytime you can exceed your expectations (even if they're low expectations)
can really generate a lot of enthusiasm to fuel your gym sessions.
Find a happy medium when it comes to your expectations.
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Have A
Routine, Then Break It
It's vitally important to
have a set methodology in the gym- the way you mentally
psyche yourself, the way you warm-up, the way you take weight
jumps, how you deal with misses, and so on.
It's equally vital however,
to conscientiously break your routine so that you don't
become overly-dependant on it. If you always use chalk,
go without it once in a while. If you always use the same
exercise order, break that pattern from time to time. If
you always train in the morning, do an occasional afternoon
workout. Get away from needing everything to be perfect
all the time. Place yourself under some unfamiliar adversity-
you'll be better off for doing so.
If you've got a few tricks
of your own to share, we'd love to hear them! Just hit the
"discuss" link below.
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About
The Author
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His colleagues call him
an iconoclast, a visionary, a rule-breaker. His clients
call him “The Secret Weapon” for his ability
to see what other coaches miss. Charles calls himself
a “geek” who struggled in Phys Ed throughout
school. Whatever you call him, Charles’ methods are
ahead of their time and quickly produce serious results.
His counter-intuitive approach and self-effacing demeanor
have lead to appearances on NBC’s The TODAY Show
and The CBS Early Show.
Currently, Charles competes
in Olympic-style weightlifting on the master’s circuit,
with a 3-year goal of qualifying for the 2009 Master’s
World Championships.
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