Sharpen Your Fitness Focus with Tips from Our Baltimore Gyms
C’mon let’s face it; finding the motivation to be a beast EVERY DAY can be difficult. I mean, even Wile E. Coyote must’ve thought about pizza delivery from time to time. But, you know what? If your goals were easy to achieve, they wouldn’t be worth reaching for.
A lack of focus in your workouts can lead to poor results, boredom, a dislike for the gym and possibly a dislike of yourself. On the other hand, maintaining focus and living in the moment will not only get you to where you want to be but ensure you enjoy every step of the journey.
Discover These 5 Simple Motivational Hacks Guaranteed to get you to Focus on Your Workouts
1. Record Your Results
Time your rest periods and record reps, sets and weights lifted in a workout journal to engage yourself in your training. Tracking your progress allows you to compare your performance to previous workouts and see the breakthroughs, or, the areas needed for improvement. This hack will not only motivate you to your current workout but also have you chomping at the bit for workouts to come.
2. Focus on the Muscle
Counting your reps as you bang them out will only help your focus so much. To get in the moment of each set, you should be visualizing and focusing on each working muscle as it contracts and relaxes.
For example, the next time you clear some space in front of the mirror to bust out some biceps curls I want you to close your eyes and visualize your body. Imagine your biceps are glowing red. Now imagine the rest of your body fades away, and all that is left are your red glowing biceps (Oh you beast, you). Open your eyes and visualize your biceps contracting and relaxing as you perform each rep. This will encourage supreme concentration and perfects your technique making each rep more efficient than the last.
3. Limit the Distractions Within Your Control
The more you pay attention to your workouts, the better the results will be. Don’t allow yourself to be distracted by continuous text, email, or social media notifications on your phone.
Gym time is ‘ME TIME, ’ and you need to treat it that way. Make sure you switch your phone to airplane mode rendering it the most over-qualified MP3 player on the planet for at least the next hour or so.
4. Listen to Music
Speaking of MP3s. There have been countless studies on the positive effects of motivational music on exercise performance. Working out to music makes the experience enjoyable and taps into that hidden fountain of energy located deep down inside you.
Dial into your workout with any appropriate soundtrack that you find motivating. Choose from heavy metal, hip-hop, hardcore dance or whatever else floats your boat – but we can all do without the gym karaoke, ok.
5. Use Supplements
I’m not talking PEDs here. I’m talking about legal and safe supplements that will aid you with increased energy and laser-like focus. Some suggestions you may want to check out, after consulting a doctor are:
• Caffeine – Coffee is an excellent way to enhance focus. Just don’t go overboard, as too much caffeine can overload cortisol (a stress hormone) in the body. High cortisol levels may aid you in the unlikely event you have to outrun a tiger, but will also severely hinder your recovery after a workout.
• Creatine – This combination of amino acids aid in the production of ATP – the energy source for your body. ATP fuels not only your muscles but also that large spongy gray matter resting inside your skull, delivering you a one-two combination of benefits.
