Bench Pressing the Mental Battle
As I walk through the gym I
notice a lot of things people are doing incorrectly, they could do this
better with their back or that better with their arms etc.. But physical
mistakes aren't the only thing I notice as I watch people lift,
sometimes if people are making mistakes or have plateaued it's a mental
problem. Marcus Aurelius said it best when he said, "Your life is what
your thoughts make it." While putting up huge numbers on your bench
press exercises might seem like it's all physical, a persons ability or
inability to achieve big numbers in their weight bench press exercises
are an even better indicator of the strength of their mind. Some would
say that conqueiring the physical side of lifting cannot be accomplished
until you've conquered the mental side of lifting. The most common
mental mistakes people make are Self doubt and a lack of goals.
Hopefully
you don't need a pep talk, but here it goes anyway. Excuse me as I
impersonate motivational speaker Anthony Robbins for a moment. Your
subconscious mind believes whatever you tell it, so do yourself a favor
and program it with positive thoughts. I cringe every time someone asks
me for a spot and they bash themselves before they even start the lift.
Comments like, "I don't think I'll get very many reps," or "I can't do
this much, but I'll try." If you're not confident, fake it till you make
it and tell yourself you can do it until you actually can. When it
comes to self doubt a lot of people are stuck on certain numbers, maybe
they're trying to join the 200 pound club, or maybe they want to join
the 300 pound club or maybe they're trying to get into the 400 pound
club it really doesn't matter, they all have the same mental barrier and
that is the fact that they are focusing on a number, and it's very hard
when you're training alone to get past these big numbers if you
perceive it as a big number, what you need to look at it as is a
stepping stone to the next big number and a great way to do this is be
around people that are stronger than you and that way you see what
they're doing and by seeing what they're doing, what they're able to
lift weight wise, once you see that they have done it, it opens your
mind to the fact that it's possible and it's attainable it's something
that they can do there's no reason you shouldn't be able to do it as
well.
Another thing that you can do is watch videos of people
bench pressing huge weight, visualize yourself doing that, you really
need to create this belief that you're going to get stronger and the
mental side of it is something that doesnt get talked about much but
it's a huge factor in strength training, you have to believe that you
can do the weight so if you follow a program that is designed to get
your from point A to poing B you HAVE to believe that it's going to
work, then you're not going to put forth the same amount of effort,
you're going to hold yourself back and you're not going to put forth the
same amount of effort, after all you're going to be putting in all that
time at the gym you really might as well make it worth your time and
energy.
Lastly I'll touch on the importance of goal setting. Most
people think that simply saying, "I want to bench press more weight" is
all it takes to get them there. The problem with this statement is
it's much too vague. I want you to pull out your pen and paper. Write
your goal down on four separate sheets of paper in bold letters.
"ACHIEVE A ______ POUND BENCH PRESS BY ______." The simple task of
writing your goal on paper brings you closer to completion. This act
will make your goal more concrete, increasing the likelihood of
achieving it. Now post these pieces of paper on your fridge, dashboard,
computer screen, and dresser to constantly remind you of your goal.
|
 (5 of 5 Stars)
 |
"This bench is one hell of a deal considering the price. I bought it to use with my Sumo rack. As an engineer, I give the designer of this bench an A+ for ergonomics, stability, durability and ease of assembly." |
-Joel C. Avila
|
