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Being the analytical mo-fo I can be I spent 45 minutes talking to myself about every aspect of the last few, but especially yesterdays, training sessions last night. All with a view to deciding how next Friday's workout would go.
Here's a few of those thoughts:
1. How I feel beforehand. Kinda shit. That may well come down to aspects. One is I need to feel 'on' ONLY when I lift and I sometimes think my body holds back that sense of energy and well being for lifting only. The other is it is NOT comfortable being 334lbs and would, if I stayed this heavy, take a while to get used to. That's not gonna happen
2. How I prepared. I walk to the gym. That's how I get ready. I left a little late and was still eating my oatmeal 20 minutes beforehand. The gym made me a coffee to go with the doubled up one I had before I left. Food will barely, if at all, have kicked in.
3. Speed warming up. The faster I can move with the broomstick or bar the better I bench. Speed IS power. Yesterday I was coming off the bench when repping the stick. That's 300+lbs flying off the bench and slamming back down
4. How easy the warm ups are. How easy the 120kg/264lbs, 140kg/308lbs and so on move is a great indicator of what happens with the top weights.
5. Switching on / switching off. I spend a few minutes getting my head in the right space. Muttering away and cursing myself. Yet once I'm actually performing the rep it's just moving the bar.
6. Taking each rep on it's own. If you start to think too much about 4 or 5 singles you take a little energy from the rep you're about to do. It can be overwhelming to consider how f**ked you'll feel after. Living in the moment is how it gets done. Do the rep and recover
7. Success breeds success - do the work. Each time I am successful and complete another single rep with 185kg is another baby step closer to making next Friday successful.
8. Visualization. Seeing yourself doing the thing. I know a session is going well when I start to think 'maybe 2 reps'
I'm seeing that 200kg/440lbs in my head
Here's a few of those thoughts:
1. How I feel beforehand. Kinda shit. That may well come down to aspects. One is I need to feel 'on' ONLY when I lift and I sometimes think my body holds back that sense of energy and well being for lifting only. The other is it is NOT comfortable being 334lbs and would, if I stayed this heavy, take a while to get used to. That's not gonna happen
2. How I prepared. I walk to the gym. That's how I get ready. I left a little late and was still eating my oatmeal 20 minutes beforehand. The gym made me a coffee to go with the doubled up one I had before I left. Food will barely, if at all, have kicked in.
3. Speed warming up. The faster I can move with the broomstick or bar the better I bench. Speed IS power. Yesterday I was coming off the bench when repping the stick. That's 300+lbs flying off the bench and slamming back down
4. How easy the warm ups are. How easy the 120kg/264lbs, 140kg/308lbs and so on move is a great indicator of what happens with the top weights.
5. Switching on / switching off. I spend a few minutes getting my head in the right space. Muttering away and cursing myself. Yet once I'm actually performing the rep it's just moving the bar.
6. Taking each rep on it's own. If you start to think too much about 4 or 5 singles you take a little energy from the rep you're about to do. It can be overwhelming to consider how f**ked you'll feel after. Living in the moment is how it gets done. Do the rep and recover
7. Success breeds success - do the work. Each time I am successful and complete another single rep with 185kg is another baby step closer to making next Friday successful.
8. Visualization. Seeing yourself doing the thing. I know a session is going well when I start to think 'maybe 2 reps'
I'm seeing that 200kg/440lbs in my head
