I'm going to take a hiatus from heavy topics and let the personal trainer in me get a little fresh air. Since I currently have no one on whom to exercise my sadism, I must fling my wisdom on the web and hope it sticks somewhere.
Below are my favorite visualization techniques for resistance exercise. I use these to keep my mind focused on the task at hand, to enhance the effectiveness of my workout, and to prevent injury. For example, I might mentally focus in on my glutes (butt muscles - best muscle group ever) to avoid over-taxing my knees in a squat exercise. I hope you find some of these helpful as you pump iron!
1. Gatorade Commercial
I've always fancied orange Gatorade was my favorite flavor, but in my commercial, the color inside me is gold. Let's say I'm performing a barbell bench press exercise. I imagine that liquid gold is illuminating my pectoral muscles whilst pressing some obscene amount of weight toward the ceiling. Just the act of "coloring" the primary muscle involved in the exercise will assist focus. In the chest press, it takes the exercise from simply bending and extending one's elbows to a focused movement for the pecs.
2. Tension/Pull/"Energy"
The technique of imagining lines of tension or pull comes from my limited experience with ballet. I love the cues ballet instructors give students regarding "lines", and this has helped immensely with more complex exercises. But let's start with a simple move like the abdominal plank. You want to imagine lines of pull going right through your body forward through your forehead and backward out your heels. These cables pull you equally in both directions,"lengthening" your spine in a beautiful line. To add complexity, I "wrap" my midsection in a candy wrapper in 360 degrees, so that my core is wrapped up and lifted from all sides.
For a more complex movement like the squat, I keep my "energy" or "tension" in my feet, so that the emphasis is down toward the ground as I extend my hips and push to standing. If you want to get fancy, you can refer to the diagram (left) for proper squat angles. Notice the back and the shins are in near parallel lines (image source: http://www.edancescience.org/ref/nextlevel.htmlhttp://www.dotraining.co.uk/if-youre-going-to-squat-then-deep-squat/)This is a great technique for solidifying technique in the learning phase of complex movements.
3. Animal
An accomplished, competitive power lifter and good friend of mine likes to imagine she is a small but powerful gorilla before she performs her lifts. This taps into the "animal brain" and lets a well-trained body do its thing during exercise. It also channels any adrenaline one might feel in a competitive setting, or when facing an intimidating, heavy lift.
My animal is the tiger. I love how they look so relaxed when they move, but you can see the power of their muscles rippling beneath the surface. I also like the fierceness of their eyes, even when they are at rest. I think of a tiger's powerful hindquarters when I perform the deadlift to give a boost to my set.
This technique plays more into emotions and can help enhance or channel adrenaline during heavy lifts. It is best to have thorough knowledge of correct technique, and ideally to have perfected an exercise before going into "animal mode".
4. Fitness Model
When I'm trying to get back into pre-pregnancy shape, I like to imagine my body as it will appear in the future. If I look at those dimples in my thighs or see my belly jiggling in the mirror, I'm likely to lose my mojo. Rather than admiring my postpartum bod in the gym mirror, I close my eyes (safety first! I usually close my eyes with Pilates or Yoga only!) and picture the body that will be. I AM that body underneath this fluff, and I am an artist chiseling away the excess until I reach that solid marble interior. Or something like that.
This technique also works on an emotional level to boost self-perception, halt negative self-talk, and exercise the imagination. It is a good idea to speak with a fitness professional about realistic goals as well. I know I'm never going to be capable of carrying the amount of muscle on my little frame that I would like, but I can do my personal best and take pride in the process.
5. Trigger Words
I use special phrases or words in tandem with other visualization techniques. The words should trigger a response in your body by improving mechanics or enhancing energy needed to complete a set. One of my faves for squat and deadlift is, "find your glutes!". This comes from a friendly and super-buff dude at a gym I used to frequent, who would kindly stop his workout to spot little ol' met. I always got stuck at the bottom of the squat, and having this giant yell, "FIND YOUR GLUTES" made me engage my body's most powerful muscle group and stand the heck back up!
Another favorite for squat and deadlift is "feet through the floor". I imagine pushing through my feet - not my heels or toes, but evenly through all points of my feet - so powerfully that the floor cracks under the pressure. This has helped me develop explosiveness with these tough-but-effective leg exercises. It also has a similar feel to "find your glutes" and takes focus off the knee joints and back, which are involved but NOT primary movers in these exercises.
Finally, my go-to phrase for doing a full squat (butt-to-heels squat) is "find your lats!". This refers to the lattisimus dorsi, or the back muscles running like ropes from your armpits, alongside your back, and into your hips. This is a posture reminder for me - it prevents my back bowing forward at the end of the squat, which really hurts my lumbar spine. "Find your lats!" also implies a slight contraction back and down to prevent excess rounding at the tailbone. Your back won't be perfectly upright at the end of the squat - nor should it be - but you will be engaging your core more effectively and protecting your knees and back in the process.
Next time I'll share my top ways to keep cardio exercise from being so painfully boring - hint: it's all about playing mind games!
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