Stoicism and Visualization in PT

[Hong WeiLoh]

Hopefully, this won't be tl;dr.

 

I've had this idea percolating for a while, because I haven't read it thusfar on the NF blog or forums, and a conversation with Sytherz the Spartan (Ha-ROO!) last night caused the whole thing to kind of "come together", so to speak.

 

I have two tools to offer, that will help with life decisions in general, and your motivations for PT/diet, etc specifically, the 2nd to help with actual performance and confidence, in life in general, and specifically PTs as well.

 

1. "What Does This 'Buy' Me?"

Our Modern Lives of Convenience are just that: designed to divorce us from critical thought about ourselves, our actions, our surroundings -- the Modern First World is pretty much specifically tailored to allow us to spend our day to day existences on mental autopilot. There are just certain things that "we do", without questioning much, if at all.

I've been doing a lot of reading on Stoicism (you may recognize the name Marcus Aurelius, he was one of the last Great Rulers of the Roman Empire, and perhaps best-known of the Stoics), and Cynicism (the philosophical doctrine is NOT how we use the word today), and a common theme for both is: "Who cares what the mass populace does unthinkingly? Think, and do, what is right and good." (see also: the latter half of my 2nd signature quote, Ezio Auditore's explanation of the Assassin's motto)

 

Most here, already do that to a degree, we've stepped away from the Masses and formed the Rebellion. But take it a step further: next time you're tempted to have that sweet, soda, etc, or skip a workout, ask yourself: "What does this buy me? What gain will I receive from this, what benefit will I derive? And what consequences will come of it?" Well, other than the temporal enjoyment of a sweet tasty drink, that soda/mocha/etc "buys" you nothing, and comes with the consequences of sugar, empty calories, etc.

Maybe skipping your workout "buys" you some extra time for a nap, or playing a game, etc -- and maybe that's worth it to you. It also brings the consequence of not improving your health, and possibly starting you down the slippery slope to NOT PTing at all, losing your shape, and having to work all the way back up from Level 0 again.

 

So next time your friends ask you to skip a workout and go hit the bar for a bender, or your family wants to have hot dogs and beans, or fast food for dinner every night, or you just want to sit and veg playing GTA V or AC IV all night -- remember, other people and influences can distract you from your goals and direction, but you are the one who solely must live with the consequences.

"'Everything is permitted', is to understand that we are the architects of our actions, and that we must live with their consequences, whether glorious or tragic."

 

2. Reach out with your mind, young Jedi

Visualization is an extremely powerful tool, highly recommended by various religious and even scientific communities (from Wiccans to Buddhists, from Taoists to Therapists, even a powerfully imagined and specific prayer can fit the category).

Why do it? Positive visualization has been proven, by both anecdata, and new peer-reviewed articles, to increase one's ability and confidence at performing things which have been positively visualized for a period of time.

What it is: sorta like meditation or prayer, the first step is to calm and direct your conscious mind, then imagine yourself doing a task -- whatever it may be, successfully. Visualize it as richly as you can: the sight, smell, feel, anything that would help "immerse" you in the visualization. Whether it's doing a Kong Vault over a picnic table, or saying hi to that hawt girl in your Bio class, doing the Perfect Pullup, or even getting an A on a hard test you know is coming up, it'll help.

Why's it work? Turns out, life really IS a question of "mind over matter" -- the latest psychological gobbledeygook articles reveal that your mind cannot easily distinguish vividly visualized events from real memories, and internalizes the visualizations almost as well as if the events really happened.

 

So that's why I bombed talking to the hawt girl in Bio class, cuz I was thinking about how flustered I'd be and how awkward I'd sound!!!  Yep, pretty much. If you'd focused your mind on being cool, having a good, positive conversation, with positive feedback from her, you probably would've made a much better impression.

What about workouts? I think I sabotage myself sometimes.... If you're thinking about how much it's going to hurt, or how you really "don't wanna today", or any other negative-vibe sorta stuff, yeah, you probably did screw yourself before you even started. Worse yet, your mind/body will do its best to meet your "lowered expectations", which just reinforces that "Man, I suck," vibe, which causes you to feel down about your next workout, which creates what's known as a "feedback loop". True story, bro -- Google it up. Generally, feedback loops are bad: they'll lead you to depression or mania, one of the two, and neither state is really helpful in living a healthy, balanced life.

So how do I cure that?!?! Simple. First, take realistic stock of where you're at. What your strengths and weaknesses are. Make a plan for how to support and continue your strengths, and a plan for how you're going to address and mitigate your weaknesses.

Next, take a break in a nice, quiet, calm place. You're going to do something that's basically meditation, though a little more "focused" than the "clear your mind, be still as a pond"-type stuff. You're going to create a "holo-deck" in your mind... Imagine yourself in a place where you feel safe and powerful -- the gym, a dojo, the forest, wherever. Put some thought into it: what does the ground feel like, what's the air smell like, what ambient sounds are present? Add yourself, the "yourself" you (realistically) want to be. See yourself as strong, lean, fast, agile, a martial-arts badass, whatever your goal is -- MAKE SURE it is a vision of you that you can relate to! If you subconsciously reject the version of you in your mind as 'incompatible', this will not work! 

Now, step into that version of you. Become that "you". And start doing what you want to accomplish for the session. Kong Vaults, pull-ups, fighting off bad-guys without taking a hit, whatever. Feel yourself doing the action with perfect form, and feeling good about it. Do this "mental work-out" for 5-10 mins, then relax and mentally "cool-down" before stepping "out" to the real world again.

 

But this sounds like a bunch of New Age namby-pamby mumbo-jumbo, Hong, wtf? It is a bunch of New Age mumbo-jumbo.... but it's New Age mumbo-jumbo that works. Try it seriously, and you'll see.

 

Bonus credit: apply the "What's This Buy Me?" test to it: well, it might buy you increased confidence in something you feel less-than-confident about, it may help you increase your ability, coordination, and strength (there's actually a peer-reviewed study out that says those who just imagined working out hard for 15-20 mins a day showed gains in strength and endurance). What's the consequence? 10-15 mins of your time, and you can count it as "meditation" time, if you have that as a daily goal.

So, it might buy you something, in fact probably will, and if not, then you're out 15-20 mins and can call it "meditation" time.

Sounds to me like something you should at least try. ;-)

[Evicious]

Hooah, Marcus Aurelius! This is a nice post, Hong WeiLoh. I accept your challenge and over the course of the next week attempt visualization of a fantastic workout before PT (probably on my drive to work). 

 

Just a note, but this is what your sig looks like to me:

 

“The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather in a lack of will.â€

-Vince Lombardi

 

To say that "Nothing is true," is to realize that the foundations of society are fragile, and that we must be the shepherds of our own civilization. To say that "Everything is permitted," is to understand that we are the architects of our actions, and that we must live with their consequences, whether glorious or tragic.

 

In case you wanted to fix that.

[Hong WeiLoh]

On mobile, I don't even see my sig in my post. Was displaying correctly yesterday before boards crashed, though. Got me...

[Jittersthe.Clown]

This is the post I've been looking for.  Thank you.  

[Erick the Red]

I have used imagery to get through workouts occasionally when I need it.

 

Just last week I was having a hard time getting out to the gym and so I did this at home.  Imagining you are on a viking raid may be enough to get you off the couch.

 

Going Viking

 

Sledgehammer high intensity interval training (HIIT) routine

I set a timer for one minute work to fifteen seconds "rest" to transition between exercises

Doing just the sledgehammer exercises takes nine minutes of work plus two minutes rest = 11 minutes of HIIT

I used a ten pound hammer this week, but you can go higher or lower.

Just like with every exercise, I would start lighter and work up.

 

1. Open waters

Warm up: Five minutes rowing machine

 

2. Defend the oars

Spear the fish, alternating sides

 

3. The Approach

Use sledge as oar, alternating sides

 

4. Charge the beach

Lunge while thrusting sledge like a spear, alternating sides

 

5. Clear the wall

Iron Roundhouse punch, alternating sides

 

6. Throw the Rope

"Kettlebell" swing between legs, weight down, hands spaced out on handle

 

7. Raise the Portcullis

Wheel - hang sledge verticall between legs in wide squat, rotate in wide circle, alternating sides

 

8. Break the shield wall

Overhead diagonal swings like you are a fireman axing through a door, alternating sides

 

9. Hoist the sack

Backscratchers - hang sledge from one hand behind back, triceps extensions, alternating sides

 

10. Bury the dead

Hold sledgehammer like a shovel, scoop and toss, using your legs to lift the load, alternating sides

 

11. Open waters

Cool down: five minutes on the rowing machine

 

Lots more similar exercises and ideas at:

www.shovelglove.com/

http://www.urbanprimalist.com/id3.html

http://www.marksdailyapple.com/sledgehammer-workout/

http://www.rosstraining.com/articles/sledge.html

[Hong WeiLoh]

Nice, I like that workout routine. Have to try it, prob later this week. ;-)

[CombatBoot]

Great post, I'm going to try the meditation variant - as I actually have that as a life goal.

[Hong WeiLoh]

Giving this a bump. It's one of my best posts, I think (amid the ocean of trolling and shit-poasting I normally do lol). Also turns out this is pretty much a tl;dr of Loren Christenson & LTC Dave Grossman's Warrior Mindset. They expound a lot more, but positive imagery and visualization/meditation are some of the big tools in the toolbox they keep touching on throughout. Being an instructor myself, if someone keeps coming back to a topic, it's because it's an important concept.