Mind-Muscle Connection
Is there any truth to It?
As a trainer that wants my clients to get the best results for the time they are spending, I use this idea all the time. That being said, I can tell pretty quickly when my clients are looking and focusing on everything BUT the muscle they are working! Maybe they are thinking of lunch, maybe work or the kids. I get that, BUT as a fitness professional I like to explain to them that YES there is a benefit to this Mind-Muscle Connection. It is an optimal tool we can use to maximize strength gains, so let’s put it into practice during our sessions!
Basically what the Mind-Muscle Connection means is if that if you think about the muscle you are working you will engage that muscle more. This means conscious and deliberate muscular contraction. Focusing. The act of activating a muscle, NOT just moving the weight. he muscle will fire more which means you will work it more and the results will show!
Practicing this focusing technique will help you get more out of your workouts. Personally I also find it as a sort of meditation. The mind is powerful as we know, and controlling where it goes is something we have to practice! For example, when I am doing bicep curls. I try not to think of other things during my sets. I will pause at the top and purposefully contract and THINK about the bicep, even looking at it and focus on it. It does help! Sometimes with my clients I will even touch the muscle they are training. This is another form of activating and helping focus.
The Mind-Muscle connection is real, and it is backed by science.
One study using surface electromyography concluded that pectoralis (chest) activity can be increased when focusing on this muscle while doing push-ups. I have included links to this study and one other below.
Some of the benefits of the Mind-Muscle Connection are:
- It helps you target the correct muscles.
- Helps increase strength.
- Promotes muscle growth.
- Makes your workouts more efficient and effective.
- Trains your brain to focus.
A link to one study HERE.
A second study HERE.
Keep your focus, this is not the time for mind wandering!
You’ve got this!
Elissa XOXO
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