"Preparation"

How do you prepare for training?

How long does it take you to prepare?

Does your preparation start when you walk in the gym? When you touch the bar? Or does it start hours before?

Preparation encompasses all things done before training. Sleep the night before, food the day before, food the day of. Are you stressed? Are you focused? Are you doing what it takes to prepare properly?

I focus on two types of preparation. Mental, and physical.

Mental preparation involves getting your mind right for the training ahead. It can start the day before, it can start 5 minutes before. This is the type of preparation I see neglected the most.

I see this scenario all the time:

A lifter comes in the gym with their face glued to their phone. Phone still out during warmups, and then in carries over to the first few sets, and the session goes to shit. Now their body may be warm, but they did not properly prepare mentally.

Physical preparation involves keeping your body prime for training. Focusing on recovery between workouts, warming up properly before you train, planning your attempts and jumps in a smart way. Tight shoulders and hips can ruin a training session very quickly.

I have tried multiple different ways to prepare for training. I used to start watching videos and listening to music hours before training to get my mood right. I've also tried to keep my head clear until I get on the bar, so I don't drown myself in my own thoughts. I used to warmup for 15-20 minutes before every training session until I noticed I was wasting time and energy on useless drills and making myself anxious for my workout. Sometimes if my body feels good I wont even stretch at all, I'll just grab a bar and go. Other times I'll take my time to warmup, focusing on my shoulders and my hips, and making sure all my joints are warm.

As the week goes on my preparation changes. I take Sundays off so Monday I come in pretty fresh and excited for my workout, my preparation is not as thorough early in the week. As my body gets beat up from training I tend to focus more on my preparation. I will get mentally prepared for my workout earlier in the day. I'll take hot showers to loosen myself up and get the blood flowing, especially now that it's cold.

One thing I have learned from Ian is that once you enter the gym, that is when you must begin to focus. As you wrap your knees, put on your tiger balm, lace up your shoes, with each step you become more focused on the workout at hand and less involved with life outside of training.

Preparation is key when trying to maximize training, how do you prepare?