The training mindset you harbor can make, or break you. In training especially, the way you view things is important as it will determine whether the outcome of reasonable, realistic goals you set for yourself, are successful, or not.
Your mindset can push you towards constant growth, but it can also be lazy, and even destructive. In this article, we will discuss how and why your established set of attitudes is such a critical component of a successful workout, as well as the longevity of your goals towards your own health and fitness.
If you regularly train in a gym, you will often notice the following scheme, which repeats itself year after year. After the big celebratory Christmas festivities are over, the month of December has come to and end and consecutively, January comes along the corner, the gym will become filled with “new years resolutioners”. You will witness these seemingly motivated people jump on the cardio machines and throw some free weights around. After just two weeks however, already the mass of new clients seems to have diluted. Two months in, and you are back to the regular gym goers, without a single resolution-er in sight (with the exception of 1 or 2 people).
Here’s the problem; these people will use the beginning of the new year as a “trigger” to start changing and improving themselves (which in itself is great!), but they will either:
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- A. Form unrealistic goals and expectations
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- B. Choose an activity that they have no enjoyment for, and force themselves repeatedly because it’s what seems like the “best” way of training
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- C. Have a sudden loss in motivation, and give up on their goals altogether
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- D. All three of the above.
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Further down we will talk about how motivation is bullshit, and should by no means dictate what goals you set for yourself. But first, we should go over how one can acquire a mindset that aligns with your goals and allows for consistent progress.
Acquiring the growth mindset
Consistency:
A mindset where one aims to apply a good effort, consistently, is an efficient mindset. Without consistency, you can train for 3 hours on one day, and barely 5 minutes on another. You will not progress in the way. This applies obviously not just to training, but also to anything in life. If you wish to learn how to draw, paint, play an instrument, or learn a new language, all of these things require consistent practice. However, do not use this to justify an “all or nothing” approach. We all have those days where our performance is simply way below it’s usual level, and we cannot push ourselves as hard. In these cases, it is better to try to sustain what you have been doing so far, or do less, but don’t give up altogether. 15 minutes of light jogging is better than 45 minutes of intensive lifting, if you cannot bear to do the latter on that day.
Make smart goals:
Next along with consistency, is the principle of SMART goal founding. Before jumping into a new routine, it’s important for you to think about why you are doing it, and what you want to achieve. Doing this helps you to set realistic objectives so you can start working towards them. When you are working out with no particular clear goal in sight, it’s easy to start plateauing and lacking in progress. Here is what “smart” goal setting entails, according to the awesome bodyweight fitness subreddit.
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- Specific: Be precise about what it is that you want to achieve. Setting yourself an objective like”being fit” is a very broad goal that can mean a lot of things. Set yourself more specific goals like “5 strict handstand push ups”. Once you have achieved that number, you can literally tick it off from your list and move on to another goal.
- Measurable: It’s helpful to know how close you are to achieving your goal. For example, if you can already do 15 or more pike push ups, you know you’re close to the wall handstand push up.
- Attainable: If you can’t attain the objective you’ve set for yourself, you’ll get discouraged and will probably end up giving up on the goal anyway. You can still aim high, sure, but be realistic in terms of what you can achieve in a given period of time.
- Relevant: your goal has to be worth it (for you). It has to offer you something beyond the satisfaction of just completing the goal, like a stepping stone for another, further away goal, for example.
- Time-constrained: we all have experienced procrastination. Setting deadlines avoid this, as it sets a sort of healthy urgency, pushing you to work efficiently.
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Form habits:
Make regular training a natural part of your everyday life. You could install a pull up bar in the room where you spend the most time. This will make it easy for you to do 10 to 50 pull ups a day, even when you are just starting out. Every time you pass the room’s doorway, do a few pull ups. Do the same with push ups, squats, and other exercises you can think off. Make it a habit to go to the gym before work, after work, or at whatever time is most convenient for you. The more consistency you have in your habits, the better it is. Have a few songs ready that you know will fire you up for your training when you listen to them, or when you need extra energy on those last few sets.
Meditation:
Learning to breathe properly and be in the present moment, as well as clear your own head can be extremely helpful. There are a wide variety of exercises you can try, do your research and try to implement some from today.
Motivation is irrelevant:
motivation is fleeting and unreliable. It is rare to remain motivated on a constant basis and more often that not, you will not want to put in that extra effort which allows you to remain consistent in your progress. What really matters instead, is discipline. The latter is what will make you get out of bed every morning at a certain time, clean yourself up, eat correctly, and go to work. If you can build up discipline, and motivation will become irrelevant. Another thing you should remember is that your motivation and passion for something will often not be there at times, but it usually comes back round, and you will enjoy your routine, once again.
For some, discipline is a strong character trait of theirs and therefore sticking to a long term goal driven routine isn’t a problem. But for those whom struggle, here is a small checklist of things that you can put into daily practice. Know that to succeed you are going to have to leave your comfort zone, often. Things won’t always go your way and nothing is linear. You may have a certain expectancy of the results you will achieve and in how long you’ll do it, but there will be many bumps and failures along the road. Obstacles will be thrown at your regardless of how disciplined or motivated you are. What matters, is how you work to overcome those obstacles. When it gets hard, remember why you started, realize how far you have already come and how much you have invested, and have the self respect to not give up.
Believe in yourself:
Have faith in the process and know that with time, you will achieve your goals, if you have set them realistically. The more confidence you have when you attack your obstacles on a daily basis, the better you will perform. Seek out any weaknesses you may have, and work to improve on them slowly.
Training mindset – Conclusion
Mindset is hugely important and will deeply impact your everyday life, as well as your training. Try to apply as many as the above points to improve your own mindset; consistency, smart goals, form habits, meditate, believe in yourself, and last but not least, do not let motivation be the guide of how much effort you put in towards your goals on a daily basis.
If you learned anything, or found this article interesting, please, don’t hesitate to share it around. If you have any questions, feedback, or think something should be in here and isn’t, comment below!
