When mind meets the body, workout becomes so much better
Mind muscle connection is the psychological aspect of exercise where you focus on the specific muscle you’re training and completing rep exercising with that muscle. It is more about focusing on contraction of the specific muscles than about going about the motions of the exercise.
Confusing? Let’s make it simpler. Take Lat pulldowns for example. The exercise requires sitting down, locking your knee in the knee pad, pulling the weighted handles downwards towards your chest, while keeping your arms stable. The exercise requires to use latissimus dorsi, the largest muscle in the back, and the contraction and release of the back muscle with every pull and relax. It is common error to use biceps to do lat pulldowns. Mind-muscles connection is all about not focusing on using the arm muscles but the back muscles to complete each rep and movement.
People who use this mind-to-muscle connection can activate more brain signals to work specific muscles. By doing this, they can build strength and size in those muscles while also making their workouts more effective.
When you do resistance training exercises, a big part of it is how well your brain can stay focused on working those muscles during a set amount of time.
But before you go into weight training, warming up is crucial if you don’t want muscle cramps.
Now for mind muscle connection here’s what you do.
First, figure out which muscles you want to work on and choose the exercises that target them best. For bicep curls, you need to focus on, you guessed it, biceps. Begin by focusing on setting up your workout correctly and doing the exercises in the right way. Right form is crucial. This might mean using lighter weights or doing shorter workouts to ensure you're using the right muscles and staying safe. Lift smaller weights but focus on working the right muscles.
Pay attention to the specific muscle you're working on as you go through the exercise. Over time and with practice, your brain will get better at remembering which muscles to engage each time you do the exercise. By taking your time and repeating the workout, your brain will become more connected to those specific muscles.
While building mind-muscle connection, it is also important to feel the tension in weight training. It allows to focus more on the muscle groud and telling the brain “This is the muscle I’m working with”. Here’s how you do it.
Also, avoid distractions like checking yourself out in the mirror, worrying about how others perceive you, or constantly checking your form (you should be confident in your form before working on this skill). Keep texting, checking emails, or anything phone related or after the workout is done.
Having a strong mind-muscle connection is like a little extra boost for your workouts. It can help you build more muscle and make your workouts work better. You should focus on doing enough exercises, picking the right ones, following a good plan, and taking care of your body with the right food and rest. These are the big things that make the most difference in your training. Once you have those big things covered then the mind-muscle connection can take your training to the next level and help you get better results.
