If you search the “benefits of mindfulness and exercise” on google you’ll find plenty of articles! We know that if we just focus our mind during our exercise we will get so much more benefit. There are plenty of studies out there showing us that mindfulness reduces stress, helps with depression, makes us feel good , and improves sports performance. So what does mindfulness actually mean and why is it so hard to do?! And why does it seem to be harder as we get older?!
When I was in my 20s I could zone out! Get myself out there on the run , get in a rhythm and simply focus on my footsteps and my breath. The rest of the world and the details of my life disappeared and I was just in the moment! It felt great! The endorphins were releasing, the pace was increasing! I could run a 4 min/km (or 6 min mile) back then for 40 km! Fast forward 20 years.. I just can’t focus! I got my kids on my mind, my bills, my job! All I want is to leave that behind and be present for an hour! How do I get that focus back?!
Another term for mindfulness while doing exercise is called being in the Zone. This means using meditation and breathing techniques to calm and focus the body while exercising. So how do we do this?
In all honesty to really naturally get yourself into the Zone you need to find that intensity that is pushing your body to a state that doesn’t give your mind the freedom to wander. In this state of exercise you are having to find a rhythmic breath that allows you to control the heart rate so that you can comfortably supply enough oxygen to the overworking muscles. This takes concentration and dedication and you will naturally have to dedicate your mind to do this.
In the absence of wanting to bring your heart rate to mid-maximum working status, we need to find some tricks to help us focus our minds and keep the body calm. Here are a few tricks to try:
FOCUS ON YOUR BREATHING
Here’s where the breath comes in! In my yoga and pilates classes I always instruct my students to focus on the breath. Inhale through the nose and exhale through the mouth. Incredibly when you regulate the way you breathe it takes charge of your brainwaves. It slows the heart down , calms your mind and allows the brain to process information.
VISUALIZATION
Visualization is a proven technique to help improve sport performance. Research has shown that visualization techniques can improve motor skills, grow muscle strength, increase self-confidence, attention concentration and decrease anxiety. It can also help with pain management, endurance and motivation. Visualization can be done in different ways. One is to , in a calm relaxed state, permor a mental rehearsal of the given performance in a respective sport or exercise that you are about to perform. Through this visualization can sharpen your focus and restore confidence in your ability to achieve your performance goal. Another form of visualization is more of a relaxation technique, when you visualize yourself in “your favorite place” . This allow the body to use this as a trigger to create a state of calm and focus, reducing anxiety or negative thoughts that might also reduce performance.
REPETITIVE WORDS OF AFFIRMATION
“I know I can! I know I can! I know I can!”. Believe it or not, simply picking a positive phrase to repeat to yourself , will suddenly shock the mind and allow it to focus on the moment. This is also a technique used by psychologists to help with anger management or serious states of anxiety or mental disorientation. Often we are anxious, depressed, angry, or simply unmotivated and don’t think we can do something. Our mind begins to wander down a track creating all sorts of scenarios and states of panic. We need to bring that mind back to center. Repeating words of affirmation is also effective in the middle of intense exercise or competition and you need to push your body further than it wants to go! I like to say simple things to myself like “I can do this!” or “Go!” or “Yes!”. You could also say “You got this!” . Find that rhythm and keep saying those words. Say them to yourself for at least 10 times and may even need to keep it going for a full minute or a full exercise!
SET A GOAL AND BREAK DOWN YOUR TARGETS
I used to run marathons in just under 3 hours! People would ask me “How do you get through something that long!”. Well to be honest you have to break down. If you think of the full length of your challenge it will become overwhelming! Break your exercise down into something that is mentally achievable. For example, first I would focus on 1km marks, focusing on my pace and time, which would help me get to my milestones which were at 5km intervals. Eventually you are at 35 km.. and you are hurting! So this when you break it down to small intervals. Tell yourself just get to the next kilometer mark, and once you achieve that you will work yourself to the next one! Another example is when I’m not motivated to exercise. I set a small target that is achievable! Okay I’ll just run 20 mins on the treadmill. If I achieve that then great! But usually I’m feeling good by, 20 mins so I’ll then set a new target. Okay I can do 40mins! Don’t over set targets. Make sure you have small targets and milestones and then an end goal. This technique should also be applied to your overall fitness routine.
FOCUS ON THE BODY
Body awareness is critical for not only improved performance of your exercise but also it helps us be present in the time we’ve allocated to exercising. I will admit to you, I’m not a big fan of weights and strengthening exercise. I’m an endurance athlete.. I like to run! I like to move forward, NOT stand still! So I not only need tricks to keep me focused while doing strength training I also need to maximize my output! This is when I really intentionally need to focus on my body. Let’s use a simple bicep curl as an example. To get the most out of my bice curl I need to be aware of which muscles I am aiming to work in that moment. I like to use a mirror to help but you don’t need to. When I’m in the middle of the exercise my mind is thinking only of my bicep! If I have a mirror I’m looking ONLY at my bicep and my overall form. My elbow is tucked in, I’m not moving the arm or the rest of the body. I focus on my form by tucking my elbow in, keeping my shoulder back, moving the arm up and down in a controlled motion and using my breath to help maintain that rhythm. I do this same technique for all my exercises, yoga, pilates, running.. Focus on the muscles and the breath. In pilates I often focus on my core muscles. Making sure I engage them. Believe it or not by focusing on a particular muscle, our mind will not wander !
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