As a wise man once said: “The things we search for might be right in front of our own eyes, hidden in plain sight”. I completely agree. This parole applies to sports too. How exactly are we to cope with bringing this to our attention? Hopefully, this article sheds some light on the topic of getting back on the right track during your workouts.
The Idea
Namely, here is my point. It just so happens that we go to the gym, training or fitness center with a clear goal on our minds – improvement. Making our muscles grow, setting new personal records, achieving some kind of progress in the things we’re so passionate about. However, something happens, a distraction of a sort, and after it, we lose focus. Suddenly, we shift our priorities for a few minutes and we forget why we came for a workout in the first place.
This is nothing new under the Sun, as the Bible says. We’ve all got a limited attention span and there isn’t much we can do about it. Our focus is like a muscle, it requires practice. Hours and hours of it. Whatever the distraction might be is not so important at this very instance, what is important is the following.
When going for a workout, try to dedicate that time of the day which you’ve set aside and think only about what you’re doing at the given moment. It does sound silly and redundant to say it but live in the moment, at least while you’re at it. It doesn’t matter whether you’re lifting the barbell on the bench press, shooting the basketball or running sprints.
What’s on your mind?
Think about the muscles involved, the contractions taking place and feel your body putting in the work. It’s a key element to perfecting your form, regardless of your preferred hobby. Take into account every single detail surrounding you. The way you position yourself, how you take your stance, the sweat coming out your pores and the heartbeat running wild. We often disregard these details. However, we firmly believe that a workout depends on our mental readiness as much as it does on our physical strength. Without it, you will not achieve the goals you’ve set ahead of you.
Remember, however, that your mental standpoint could break you if you let it. It is a two-fold thing, just like most of the powerful tools we’ve got at our disposal. On the one hand, if you doubt yourself, you will struggle with accomplishing your goals. On the other, if you push yourself way beyond your limits because of an overconfident or cocky attitude, the consequences might be severe, even irreversible.
Therefore be smart, be patient. “Know thyself” as the old Greek saying goes. The smartest thing you can do is take calculated risks.
Risks? What kind of?
What exactly does that mean to take a calculated risk? Simply put, according to your previous performance, make a clear and objective judgment on whether or not you’re capable of performing something new or breaking your plateau. If the thing which lies between you and your new personal record is a sliver of effort then for heaven’s sake go for it.
Let your body talk to you. If your body is giving you the right signals do not ignore them. Our bodies are doing most of the work on auto-pilot for a purpose. Why? Because it knows what it can and cannot do. If you have a gut feeling that today might be the day you might ace the drill you’ve been trying to ace for weeks, then try it again. If it isn’t, try perfecting yourself in other fields and then come back later.
Giving yourself a hard time over several failed attempts won’t help you out, unfortunately. Our bodies simply aren’t made to “shine” every time you go for a workout. Understand that you cannot do more than your nature allows you to, regardless of what your ego is telling you. Most of the successful athletes don’t give their 100 % when they go for a workout. It is not a sprint race, so to say. Rather, achieving greatness lies in the realization of one key thing – consistency. Calm down, there is tomorrow.
Leave your phone
One thing which might come as useful is putting your phone down. You don’t need it when you’re going for a workout. Your friends, family, and Instagram can wait for an hour or so. It is one of the things which can easily distract you and you don’t need much effort to get rid of it.
Don’t get stuck in your thoughts
Thinking too much about the past or the future will certainly come across your mind at a certain point in time. Our consciousness simply works that way.
There are several methods you might try to focus on when that occurs. One of the things is breathing. Just concentrate on inhaling and exhaling. Take a deep breath and try counting the seconds as you inhale and do the same when you exhale. This might help you in letting go of the thoughts in your way. Repeat it several times and you might start rethinking about the job which is right in front of you.
Stop talking too much
Try not to get into too long conversations with those around you if people are surrounding you. Do what you came to do and afterward chat for hours if you wish to do so. Way too often do those small talks transform into a proper conversation and that is wonderful, but not really when you came for training. Procrastination is not going to get you far.
Keep track of your workouts
Lastly, keep track of your progress. This point gets taken out of the picture way too often even though it is quite important. Not only will this make you think about how much you’ve done so far, but it will also push you to think about how much you still got left. Also, you will see where you can make a change, where there is room for improvement, etc.
Remember, every change starts within. You once had a thought, an idea of what you want to become or who you want to be. Now that you are manifesting that idea into reality do not let anything else distract you. As long as you wish to be the best version of yourself you can do just that. It takes effort, but nothing good and worthwhile ever came easy.
Stay healthy!
