My focus kicks in the night before a workout, as I prepare myself for what’s coming the following morning. I establish the right mindset by visualizing the training environment in minute detail, preprogramming my workout right down to what poundages I’ll use, so that when I get to the gym there are no surprises.
Nothing is left to chance when I walk into the gym. I’m completely focused on the exact exercises I’ll perform that day, how hard I’ll push myself and how the pump will feel.
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Find a Workout Partner
Find a training partner who is in sync with your psyche and who can help you get the best out of yourself. A good training partner will know precisely when to assist and how much assistance to give in order to barely keep the weight moving. What’s more, he will know how to do this without breaking your concentration.
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Focus On You
I prefer to train when few people are in the gym. Even if the place is packed, I pay no attention to the other bodybuilders except for my training partner.
No eye contact. No talking. Even between sets, if I’m not helping my training partner, I just sip water and look at the floor, making it clear that I don’t want my mental focus to be interrupted.
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Visualize It
When I lift a weight, I know exactly how it’s going to feel because I’ve practiced it in my mind.
I understand how the muscle is going to contract, and so I’m trying to place as much stress as possible on the target muscle, controlling the weight through a full range of motion for a complete contraction.
With my one-set approach to training, I rarely train longer than 45 minutes per workout. Sure, my leg workout could take an hour to complete, but that would include warm-up sets and stretching for the quads and hamstrings.
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Keep Evolving
Force yourself to assimilate these ideas into your training. Introduce a new one every two weeks and I’m sure your mental focus and workout productivity will increase. Remember, to be a bodybuilder, you have to be mental.