Thread: Partitioning the mind for training. Also known as anchoring

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Found this on another site....though it was good

Just a bit on mental prep for a workout.

A good workout is due to a number of factors.

1. Adequate pre training nutrition - From the days eating and the day before as well

2. Adequate rest and recovery prior to training - i.e a good nights sleep

3. Adequate supplementation/gear prior.

4. Mental Focus

So providing you have 1 to 3 in order this will deal with the mental side of things.

Part of the partitioning exercise is to totally change your mindset from your normal daily routine, unless you are a pro level bodybuilder you probably arent thinking about your workouts, diet and supplementation every day because its not your job.

Loads of times I hear people talking about their day, their missus, etc etc when they are training and this is defeating because they are bringing their normal daily activities into the gym and to get a really good workout you need to be in a mindset to work WITH the weights to make the body you want. You can't focus on the weights if you are thinking about a bird you pulled last night or some argument that you had with your Girlfriend etc.

Therefore I created a little routine for myself to create the right mindset for my training. I call it partitioning because you are blinkering off your mind from any other stimulus apart from the session.

I do this as follows

1. I change my clothes,

this symbolises a change in mindset you are changing into the work clothes of training and building a better physique. Too many times I see guys training in their work clothes (electrician combats etc).

How can you be thinking about smashing your body into a growth of muscle if you have the same clothes on that you've been drinking tea in and fixing broken pipes with all day.

When I put my workout uniform on I take the time to think about what it symbolises in terms of what is to follow. I also sometimes think about a suitable visual metaphor, for me its the scene in commando when Arnie tools up on the beach with all his commando items intent on destroying lots of soldiers. similar mindset for me but with weights.

2. I change my scent

This is an olfactory stimulus (smell stimulus) prepares the body for the workout by preparing the scent of the workout. I have a different can of lynx for my workouts than I have for my clients and I have for work.

Olfactory stimulus is very powerful, how many times have you caught a whiff of a food or drink or birds perfume and its reminded you of a good or bad memory and thats triggered an emotion. Same with workouts, have you ever walked into a hardcore gym and the smell is of hardcore training, thats the atmosphere of the gym preparing you for a workout.

Ive even gone to the point of when I have an awesome workout going back and spraying a tiny amount of spray on mid workout so that the stimulus is reinforced in my mind, next time I spray that smell on Im immediately reminded of that workout and it prepares me for an awesome workout. Similar if Im not feeling 100% ready that spray will immediately bring about that memory. So next time you have an awesome workout spray a bit of your 'workout smell' on and take a minute to take in the smell while remembering the training session. It works I assure you.

3. Nutrition preparation

I have a small pot that i put my pre workout BCAAs and Kre Alkalyn in. I also have a shaker that I only put pre workout drinks into. This repetitive action means that I know that the products I am taking from those items are for workout and it becomes a ritual to consume the products pre workout just before I get changed so I know my body is fuelled and ready to train.

4. Walking into the zone.

This is the final aspect of the pre workout partitioning. Now that you are suited and fully fuelled for the workout you need to walk into the workout environment. For me this is very easy to do I imagine around each station a kind of force field of energy, as soon as I walk through this energy it consumes me and lifts me up ready to give 100% to that set. I dont think about my workout in terms of '4 sets of this 3 sets of this' etc I think about '1 set of this' Thats all that matters at that point, making sure that the 1 set is totally worked.

So at the point I walk into the squat rack or walk up to the deadlift bar, or lie on the bench or pick up the dumbells I am relaxed, as soon as I touch the bar I 'feel' the encased energy from the dumbell or the bar fill me and engorge me with the strength I need to fully smash that set into the ground, like touching a live electrical wire but instead of being jolted across the room my body absorbs the wild energy and transforms it into explosive strength and endurance.

This mindset and visualisation has helped me reach many personal bests recently.

Once you rack the weight you can relax again and have a small chat with your partner or whatever but as soon as you touch the bar again you become enlivened with the energy contained in it.

This short focussing is much easier than trying to psyche yourself up for a complete workout. Do it set by set and its so much easier