Fitness Is Mostly A Mental Game
Happy Monday everyone! It feels like it’s been forever since I’ve posted but it’s really only been about a week. Life gets crazy and sometimes, my brain needs a break! Anyone ever feel like that? We are so used to going with the motions and checking things off the list that we don’t realize that we are getting super close to running on empty. One quote I like to remind myself of is “You can’t fill someone else’s cup if yours is empty.” This is so true in all aspects of life! Since I took a break to kind of get myself together mentally, I’d like to talk about how our mental game affects our fitness.
Often you’ll hear people say “Mind over matter”. I’m a firm believer in positive affirmations and reciting mantras to get you through tough workouts. I wear a wrap with a motivating message on my wrist during long runs because sometimes I need a little push to help me keep going. While most of us see exercise as a release from our hectic lives, our bad mental energy can bleed into our workouts and affect them too.
How many of you have had a bad day and you let it all out at the gym? While this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, it can quickly be a recipe for disaster. If you’re upset and you’re not quite focused, you may perform exercises incorrectly or form may fall by the wayside because you’re just doing anything to forget your issue. I’ve run sprints until my lungs burned because I was upset. While it got all my energy out, it wrecked my legs more than anything.
Here’s my solution: it’s okay to feel what you’re feeling! The ups and downs of life is what makes us human. Frankly, I’d be a bit worried if you never had a bad day in your life. However, focus your mental energy toward your workout. Tell yourself that you’re going to have a good gym session. Focus all your energy toward the positives in what you’re doing and soon, you’ll forget about your issue. It won’t be a permanent solution but you’ll be able to use that negative energy and channel it toward something better. Heck, you may even find that your performance in the gym improves because you were able to properly change your mental outlook in that moment. The next time you head into the gym or out for a run, tell yourself that you’re going to have a great session, even if the rest of your day has been crazy!
Have you ever had a really good workout when you’ve had a crazy day?
