Mental prep before attempting lifts

[Arden Cogar Jr.]

Originally Posted by Arien Malec

Also relevant to weightlifting is the quote from Funkadelic: "Free your mind... and your ass will follow"

. On a related note, I don't know how many folk here knew or remember Mike Rinaldi, but he often wore a shirt of Mr. Natural. Except on the shirt, it said "Mr. Snatch-ural." I believe this was Mike's nickname. In any event, the shirt said "Mr. Snatch-ural says Keep A Tight Asshole."

Very similar if you really think about it.

All the best,
ARden

[Kevin Perry]

Originally Posted by Arden Cogar Jr.

. On a related note, I don't know how many folk here knew or remember Mike Rinaldi, but he often wore a shirt of Mr. Natural. Except on the shirt, it said "Mr. Snatch-ural." I believe this was Mike's nickname. In any event, the shirt said "Mr. Snatch-ural says Keep A Tight Asshole."

Very similar if you really think about it.

All the best,
ARden

heh that got a chuckle

[Aimee Anaya Everett]

Get yourself in a good state of mind...

I wrote a couple articles about it here and here

[Chris Salvato]

ionno, im a lot newer than most of you guys...

what I usually do is pace around the platform during my rest (around 2-3 minutes) giving myself a pep talk...

when i am about 20 sec left in rest I go to the bar, get in my stance and stomp hard 3 or 4 times, i find that really clears my head.

Finally, when I am ready to lift, i say to myself as i do it:
1) Stance
2) Grip
3) Shins
4) Chest
......
......
5) PULL

By the time I get to realizing I passed Step 5 the bar is either on my shoulder/over my head or its a fail.

But what do I know, only been cleaning about 5 months now :P

[Kevin Perry]

I tough talk the bar and let em know whos boss

[Kris Reeves]

Originally Posted by Kevin_Perry

I tough talk the bar and let em know whos boss

Talking shit to the bar is key.

[Daniel Labuz]

I meditate between sets, rarely do I rest over 2 minutes between sets unless I'm lifting real heavy. I'm terrible at meditating, but it does help me better than anything else I've tried.

[George Mounce]

I believe a little green alien said it best....

"Do or do not, there is no try."

We are what we think we are, and if you think you can accomplish something, you will.

The samurai were very intuitive about such things, putting everything in focus as life or death, throwing away their lives without thought. In the Hagakure it even talks about living your day as if you were being smashed upon rocks, impaled by hundreds of arrows, or ripped apart by gunfire. I never thought it possible, but my current job and the split-second decisions I've had to make so far that saved not only mine but others has given me a perspective that fits with this mentality. If you even have one thought of failure before the lift, you are done. If you go into the lift with the mentality of moving a mountain and succeeding, even if the mountain doesn't move, you have achieved the next step.

/zenoff

[Arden Cogar Jr.]

This may sound a little strange, but I'm a big time Star Wars fan and I've studied a lot about eastern philosophy. A lot of what Yoda taught Luke in Return of the Jedi is very Buddhist in a manner of speaking.

Given that I'm an avid yoga practitioner and perform tai chi daily, the introspection of the almost Buddhist teachings of the Jedi Knights in Star Wars has become part of training philosophy not only in my sport, but in my training. Not that "the force" will ever allow me to drive an axe in deeper or lift a heavier weight. But there's a lot to be said about the focus and concentration of understanding the importance of accepting your feelings and going beyond them or "reaching out."

It's one of the reasons I practice "Fa Zhing" (sp) explosive style tai chi. It's predicated upon harnessing your body's chi to a focal points that goes out your hands in striking motions. With me, the chi is focused out the handle and to the axe head or out the handle on onto the crosscut saw. The predicate is silk reaming and generating the chi from the feet up through the body and out through the hands.

I often joke that after a brutal set or an excruciating event session that I "saw Buddha." But there are moments pre set or pre event, when I let go of the present and allow my body to take over, that I sorta feel at one with my surroundings. Then when that brief session of hell is behind me, I sort of drift - almost light headed - no real thoughts in my mind. Just impressions. Just fleeting impressions that really make no sense, but are deep in their own meaning.

It's really cool. Almost euphoric.

It's for that reason I'll never need alcohol or recreational drugs. Just give me a kettlebell or a barbell.

Sorry if that's TMI, but the mind is a powerful thing and learning how to use it, harness it, and play with it is a good thing - especially for sport.

All the best,
Arden

Originally Posted by George Mounce

I believe a little green alien said it best....

"Do or do not, there is no try."

We are what we think we are, and if you think you can accomplish something, you will.

The samurai were very intuitive about such things, putting everything in focus as life or death, throwing away their lives without thought. In the Hagakure it even talks about living your day as if you were being smashed upon rocks, impaled by hundreds of arrows, or ripped apart by gunfire. I never thought it possible, but my current job and the split-second decisions I've had to make so far that saved not only mine but others has given me a perspective that fits with this mentality. If you even have one thought of failure before the lift, you are done. If you go into the lift with the mentality of moving a mountain and succeeding, even if the mountain doesn't move, you have achieved the next step.

/zenoff

[Derek Simonds]

Arden and George really good thoughts. Aimee as well. I have tried to explain why BJJ and MMA are so important to me to a lot of people and what Arden and George just said is probably the best way I have ever heard it explained. When I shake hands to start a match my brain shuts off. Completely. I am not thinking about work, family, bills, the economy nothing. I am just a big blob of doingness. I will watch video of my matches and I will see myself doing stuff that I don't even recall. Those are the moments that I absolutely cherish.

I am not quite that way with Olympic lifting. In fact I probably over think the lifts some of the time.

I have read many articles and a couple of books on the being in the zone. I have always related it to that zen state of doingness where no thought is necessary everything just happens.