May the Fourth Be with You

Some days we just wish we had the force to help us pick up that bar.  If only we could just extend one arm with an open hand and will the bar to rise up over our head.  Now, if you really think about it lifting in some ways is a total mind game.  I have trained many athletes who have mind fucked themselves by adding up the weight on the bar just before their next big lift.  Why do you do that?   Last Monday while training a client, we were working a 1rm Snatch.  In working 2-2-2-1-1-1, she was doing and excellent job.  Taking ample breaks, setting up the lift each time, then bam!  She hit the wall, failing the #95 lift. Still feeling accomplished with a 5 # PR we moved onto our Metcon.  Ending our session as always, I gave her positive feedback and told her we’ll get the 95# next time.  And then it happened, confession time.  She said, she probably would have gotten the lift but she added the bar up and thought that it was too fucking heavy.  Thus, the mind fuck.  Since, coming on she has gained 4 new PR’s.  Mind you she has been stuck in her lifts for some two years…because of the mental break that often happens when lifting.
So, the moral of the story is mind fucking yourself is a common occurrence among weightlifters, when doing a big lift work in with a friend and let them count your bar.  And if necessary lie to your partner.  Always remember young Jedi, the force is strong within you.

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