Exercising right goes way beyond the physical act of working out.  In order to achieve a beneficial fitness program, you must train your mind along with your body.  Remembering that working out is a mind-body experience enables you to not only increase your fitness results but to also lead a balanced life.  A positive mental attitude (PMA) is important when it comes to working out whether you are stretching, doing cardio, weightlifting, or practicing any sport.  Below I will focus on the basic ingredients for a positive mental attitude in the gym.

In order to achieve your fitness goals self control and determination are necessary.  For many of us, a strong will power develops from incentives like summer season, wedding, New Year’s Resolution, pregnancy, high cholesterol, just to name a few.  Although will power usually evolves out of a true love for working out, you can also develop it in other ways.  Since we tend to like things we are more familiar with, becoming knowledgeable in fitness training can actually enhance our will power.  You should surround yourself with information, read fitness magazines & books, participate in sports events, speak with athletes & increase your network to include people that also work out.  

Having will power goes hand in hand with motivation and it is very important to be motivated before your workout and before each set.  There are different ways to get motivated.  Working out in couples, ‘the buddy system’, or with a personal trainer is not only more effective and fun, but a great motivational booster.  The right energetic music is an excellent way to boost your motivation level.  Watching your TV shows while on the treadmill/bike can be a motivational guide to get you off of the couch and into the gym. 

Visualization and concentration also play important roles for a positive mental approach in fitness training.  Before going to the gym think about your fitness routine for the day and psyche yourself to have the best workout ever.  Visualizing each exercise before executing will condition your mind to train most effectively.  Mind-to-muscle connection is the ability to visualize a muscle and to feel it working through a complete range of motion.  Rather than thinking about “where do I feel a muscular stimulus?” it requires you think about where you are supposed to feel the stimulus.  Until you are able to develop a mental connection with your muscles the effectiveness of your training efforts will be limited.

Don’t think of the entire set all at once make sure you are executing each rep to its maximum potential.  Concentrate on each rep, one at a time.  Thinking about how many reps you still have to complete often leads to frustration and failure.

Keep your workouts short but effective.  A good workout should not last more than one hour including warm up and stretching.  Many people tend to turn a workout in the gym into a social meeting.  By avoiding it, you are less likely to get tired of the gym, will be able to concentrate on each set better, and thus get better results. 

Besides the obvious physical health and physique benefits, there are many great mental and psychological benefits to working out with a positive mental attitude.  We have all felt that energetic rush after a bike ride, that stress relieving set at the bench press or that tension releasing stretch after a long day.  PMA leads to a better fitness program and ultimately to a better quality of life.

Use your gym time wisely.  Concentrate, listen to your body, breathe correctly, relieve stress, visualize, get educated, get motivated, enjoy, and exercise right!

For more information write to joe_w@fit1on1.com or call 917.533.2661