Train Your Mind To Build Your Body 

MuscleChemistry.com 

 

As the 2019 New Year approaches many of us will reflect upon our 2018 Fitness endeavors and tally up the wins and losses and then set new goals for ourselves. However setting goals , or talking about making realistic new year resolution changes is not what this article is about! Training Your Mind To Build Your Body Is!

Yes thats our Slogan for MuscleChemistry.com and while it certainly does mean that you should read articles, ask as many questions as you can in our forums, and absorb all the knowledge needed to sculpt out the best you, however it also means having the Mindset to do anything you set out to do.

 

Knowing the difference between the volume of sets, and reps it takes or weight used to reach a specific goal doesnt do you any good if you havent figured out how to motivate yourself to actually get in there and do it, or convinced yourself you can.

It Starts With Mindset
In her book, Mindset, Stanford University psychology professor Carol Dweck discusses two basic mindsets that pervade our thinking. The growth mindset and the fixed mindset. 

Those inhabited by the growth mindset know that they can develop their abilities with attention and hard work. Fixed mindset folks falsely believe that natural abilities are impervious to change. They’re only as smart as they’re ever going to be, only as athletic as they’re ever going to be. 

The reality is we can enhance our talents and we can consistently improve our abilities through dedicated hard work and the belief that we are physical, and mental, clay to be molded. Before we continue our goal discussion, embrace the growth mindset.

Goals: Outcome vs. Behavioral
Goals exist in two categories: outcome and behavioral. 

Outcome goals are the things we’re aiming to achieve or become: a better body composition, a 500-pound deadlift, be a better coach. Two imperative factors separate outcome goals from wishful thoughts: they are time-sensitive and they are written down. 

Dating a goal spurs action. Writing it down makes it concrete. Rather than remaining a wishful thought viewed romantically through your mind’s eye, a goal dated and written enters reality. You can see it and you can touch it. You can hold yourself accountable to it. 

Behavioral goals are the defined actions that advance our odds of achieving our outcome goals. The reality is we don’t have complete control over our outcome goals, There are factors beyond our control that often influence our ability to achieve them. But we do have control over our behavior. 

Let’s examine the relationship between outcome goals and their behavioral supporters.

You’ve set a hypothetical goal of reducing your body fat by three percentage points during the first three months of 2019. You’ve written it down and dated it April 1. Outcome set. 

What’s required is clear: a carb intake reduction, appropriate carbohydrate timing and increased workout frequency. Knowing what needs to be done isn’t enough, we need detail-oriented action. Here’s how we write it out.

I commit to reducing my carb intake by twenty-five grams every two weeks until April 1.

I commit to eating starchy carbs only during the three hour window following my workouts until April 1.

I commit to training six days per week until April 1.

The critical actions are scripted. There’s no question about when you’ll be doing what you need to do within a finite time-frame. With the guess work removed you have the mental clarity simply to act. Setting the finish-line date encourages your sense of urgency while also offering relief. You know this won’t go on indefinitely.