Heartache and the back squat

Watching a friend who’d experienced recent heartache struggle through a workout that should have been tough but doable made me stop to think about the extent to which our emotional selves impact our abilities to perform.  How often have you gone into the gym for a workout on a day when you were feeling down, only to struggle through every lift, through every set?  It’s a given that emotional struggle will distract you from that place of “focus,” sometimes to the point that you seemingly daydream through the workout.  On days when I have “so much on my mind” I find I have to drag myself back to the next set.  So watching my friend try to squat 225lb and essentially fail when it was nowhere near his max, I knew he was struggling with more than the weight on his back.

The use of music in the gym, whether your own or whatever's piped in, is geared at improving your mood during the workout/training process.  It clearly suggests the recognition and understanding that improving one's mood would be conducive to improving the gym experience. I wonder though, on days like that, is it best to just call it and move on, or is it better to “soldier on” and make the best of it? I have never quite learned how to channel my emotional state into competition or training.  Not like my brother, who took his level of training up to such an elite level because of issues he was dealing with that year.  When my emotions are getting the better of me I just want to hide – hit the couch and put a blanket over my head.  Struggling through the workout would just leave me feeling weak and hence worse than I did going into the gym, so to me it seems counter-productive. I'm good at hiding, so why not focus on  that instead?  But we all know better - the endorphins from the workout are the best thing for elevating your mood on those days. A good workout always leaves you feeling good, even if it's wrung the life out of you, and remember, even if you don't feel great at the end of it, your heart and your elderly self will thank you.

Sugs