I’ve always been fascinated by how our minds work (and their flaws!). I loved studying Psychology at A Level and I specialised in Sports Psychology in my degree. As time goes on, I’m realising just how powerful the mind can be, and am learning more about neuroscience, psychology, and other related sciences. Then of course there’s my own personal experience to draw upon, and there’s a lot I don’t understand (but try to decipher!).
I recently joined my local sports centre and started out with swimming, then added exercise classes, and now I use the gym too and have a personal programme set up (I’m a bit obsessive and I always favour my latest craze so the last two weeks I’ve been to the gym seven times but haven’t been swimming at all – that’s a whole other topic though!).
Today I’ve been thinking about how powerful our mind can be in affecting our behaviour. My previous two workouts have gone really well. I’ve been pleased about that, but being me I can’t just accept that; I’ve been trying to figure out why so I can make the most of my future workouts. Some reasons I considered included:
- Time of day – late afternoon rather than morning (when I tend to have more energy)
- Food consumption – after breakfast and lunch rather than just breakfast (and time for nutrients to get into my body)
- Clothing – shorter leggings and a breathable top so I didn’t feel like I was sweating as much
- Mood – I’ve been feeling a bit down and usually find I benefit more from utilising physical energy (maybe pent up frustration?)
- Fitness – second week of the gym so my fitness may be improving
- Familiarity – getting into a routine and getting used to the different machines so I can focus more on the exercises themselves
- Time pressure – I’d committed to attending a class at a set time after the gym workout so was motivated to finish it in a certain timeframe
I’ve just finished today’s workout and it went OK but I don’t feel it went as well – particularly in the cardio sections. Now it could be nothing to do with any of these factors, but some of them were playing on my mind whilst I was working out (it’s earlier in the day, I’ve only had breakfast, I did the exercise class before rather than after so might be more tired and don’t have any commitments straight after so there’s no pressure, my t-shirt isn’t a breathable one, etc etc… little insight into my mind for you there!). As these were running through my head I became aware that I was struggling more than I had in my previous workouts.
Was this a result of ruminating on why I might not do so well? If I’d have gone in feeling confident that I was going to smash it would I have not struggled as much? Can I alter my mindset going in to the gym to help me make the most of my workout?
Has anyone else experienced this where their expectations affect their behaviour and result in a potentially different outcome? Or am I trying to give meaning to something that is mostly down to other factors?
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There’s supposed to be this technique where you visualize yourself succeeding in the task that you’re concerned about, and that’s supposed to help you reach your goal. If I were to offer any advice, it would be this; not every day will work. Sometimes you’re really, really good and at other times you’re not. There’s no particular reason for this, it just happens that way. You can’t control everything, and sometimes just have to accept that certain things will happen, like it or not. One of the things that I hadn’t realised until very recently was that for many people dealing with depression a need to control everything is a common symptom. How about not looking at how well or badly you’re doing something, and just do it for the sake of doing it? Measuring yourself against yourself isn’t ever going to work, because all you can do is get better now and then, and for the most part manage the same or worse, if that makes any sense. Just an opinion; feel free to ignore it completely. 🙂
That’s brilliant, Phil – thank you. The visualisation is a technique used a lot by elite athletes. I however am not an elite athlete and don’t even have any specific goals (other than enjoying exercising and hopefully getting a bit fitter and feeling better about myself). Thanks for the reminder to just enjoy the moment and accept and appreciate however the workout goes each time 🙂
Have you ever tried yoga – where the focus is very much on accepting how you are that day rather than on achievement? As an ex high level athlete in my younger days, and a “serious” road runner in more recent decades, moving my focus away from “competitiveness” (either with myself or others) was a revelation. Yoga and meditation help me enormously.
Still living with depression and perhaps not a total control freak, but definitely a routine freak!
Thanks Ruth. Yes – I do enjoy yoga. Not done any for a while but I do practice mindfulness which is a great help for bringing me back to the present.
Phil’s comment made me think of the awesome lady who teaches my favourite gym class, who often uses the phrase “just this” to help encourage us to focus solely on what we’re doing in that moment. I don’t know if that’s helpful in your situation, but I’m finding it really useful both to help keep me in the flow of the workout, and also outside the gym when I’m letting concerns or distractions impede my focus on whatever it is I’m trying to accomplish.
Thanks Emma. I do find it helpful to do that in many areas of my life. I found Eckhart Tolle’s The Power of Now useful for helping with living more in the moment. Perhaps next time I should turn off the display so I’m not seeing the figures and trying to do better than last time! It can be helpful sometimes to have the competitive part of me satisfied, but I agree that sometimes it’s good to just focus on the current situation.