INTENSITY COUNTS

INTENSITY COUNTS

In my opinion there are 2 main things (amongst others) that separate those who attain the body they’re after and those who don’t.  The first is an adherence to a specific diet or meal plan (or lack thereof) and the second is their training intensity (or how hard they work in a workout) Today I’d like to discuss the latter, training intensity.

I often hear people in the gym talking about “tough workouts” or “hard sessions” or “barely being able to walk” after said “tough workouts”. However, very rarely do I witness such individuals completing such workouts. I don’t think this is because they are lying or are not working hard, but I tend to think that it is their perception they’ve had a grueling workout that may be a little off kilter.

Can they be blamed for looking at their workout through sweat-coloured glasses? Attend an average group fitness class, bootcamp or better yet 1 on 1 personal training session and you’ll most probably do your stock standard 10-12 reps of a weight that is manageable whilst making sure you’re “keeping your core tight” and really “feeling that burn”. You will then be told what a great job you’ve done and how hard you’re working. Maybe you should reward yourself with a celebratory protein shake/popper/bar on your way home…..better yet why not get take away tonight?...after all you’ve worked so hard for it… haven’t you?

Alternatively, you could listen to regular “hardcore discussion” about the latest HIT (high intensity training) methods ranging from “taking every set to failure” or making sure you do your “4 second negatives” on each and every rep. This is all well and good, and some of these methods are even proven to be effective.

However, I witness time and time again through my own experience and that of my clients that training intensity begins in the mind. Any workout style/technique/duration performed without the required level of intensity is going to produce sub optimal results AT BEST!

You can be equipped with the latest and greatest revolutionary “5million ways to perfect abs in 10 days” workout from womens health magazine, backed up by the latest in scientific results proving its effectiveness, yet if you turn up and complete said workout with a, “I’ll go for 10 reps” or “that will do” attitude, believe it or not you’re working well below your potential, and its no surprise that you won’t look like the girl in the magazine demonstrating the workout (and that’s not just because she’s been airbrushed to have abs of steel).

That’s because the girl on the cover didn’t walk in thinking “I’ll just do my regular 3 x 20 reps @ x kg on the leg press today and maybe do a few situps before my yoga class”.

In order for your body to change shape (tone up or lose fat) it has to be forced into handling something that it previously wasn’t capable of, (ie lifting heavier or for more reps, running faster, jumping higher). The degree and rate at which it changes is directly linked to the degree to which it is stressed.

All too often I speak to gym goers who have the same “I’m coming 5 times a week and not seeing results anymore” story. And I always ask, when was the last time you increased your weights? Or are you now doing your pushups on your toes for each set and dropping to your knees only when you simply can’t do another rep?

Without fail each and every person agrees they could be working harder.

In order to achieve average results you need to do something average. Likewise, in order to achieve an AMAZING result you need to do something AMAZING. Each workout should be approached with a clear goal, a target, “working hard” is not a target.

My most successful and interestingly most satisfied clients achieve personal bests in  every exercise they perform almost EVERY workout. They do not approach a workout with a “I must do 10 reps @ 15kg like my program says”. They say “last week I did 10 reps @ 15kg and it nearly killed me, this week my bare minimum is 11 reps @ 15kg…in fact lets go for 12!”

This is definitely the aspect of training that separates the exceptional bodies from the average bodies.

One of the best pieces of advice I got when partaking in a particularly difficult exercise was to “turn your head off”. I regularly repeat this phrase to myself and my clients as a way to push through extremely difficult sets or exercises.

To me this basically means that when you get to that point in a set that the exercise becomes difficult, you’re out of breath, your muscles are aching, shaking and fatiguing, these are all signs that your body is under stress and struggling to cope. Your mind will usually follow with “I can’t continue” or “this hurts” or “just stop for a sec” “this is insane.” All seemingly plausible and great reasons to stop. This is the EXACT second when you must switch your head off and push through the mental pain barrier and continue until you really have nothing left in the tank.

You must learn to be able to push yourself through the talk in your head that tells you to give up or quit to complete those last few reps, to sprint that last 100m as hard as you can. This is when the REAL results come, and not just physically. This attitude and mindset can be transferred and adapted to all areas of your life and as well as helping you to reach your goals, will also improve self esteem and self confidence.

You have commited to turning up for the session, why not commit to giving absolutely everything you have for the session, you’re going to be there anyway. At the completion of your next workout ask yourself, “Could I have worked any harder during that session?” If the answer is yes then commit then and there that NO MATTER WHAT you will push that little bit harder in your next session.

I guarantee that with practice this technique alone, which doesn’t take up any extra time or cost any extra money, will dramatically increase your results and will make you feel happier and more fulfilled about your training. 

Take some time periodically to review your training goals and why you’re committed to them. What does training mean to you personally? Why is it important to you to include this activity in your life? Why is getting the best possible results meaningful to you? Answering these types of questions will reinforce the commitment in your mind, strengthening your resolve. The more intensely you care about the outcome of your workout, the more intensely you will train during that workout.

Visualization is another valuable technique for developing a high intensity attitude. Take a few minutes before your workout to sit somewhere quiet by yourself, close your eyes, get relaxed, and see yourself in your mind’s eye completing your workout, setting new personal bests on every exercise. Picture how you expect to look and feel, in the most vivid detail you can imagine. Once you open your eyes and enter the gym, strive to recreate your vision.

Listening to music or reading something that you find uplifting and motivating can also help you program yourself for a highly intense workout.

Completing successful workouts will provide you with positive memories that you can access to psyche yourself up for future workouts. As they say, “nothing succeeds like success”.