Feel the Burn but Don’t Pay it Any Mind
Leveraging the skills of mindfulness for a better, more enjoyable workout
M y brain is a terrible workout partner. At the most inopportune moments it chimes in with gems like: “This is hard” or “I can’t keep going” or “I don’t want to keep going.”
But these are just thoughts— neurochemical phenomena regarding a future that does not exist and will never exist (except as the present moment). Responding mindfully to thoughts like these can help us achieve our athletic and fitness goals more efficiently and with a minimum of suffering.
“No pain, no gain.”
So goes the athlete’s mantra. Sure, discomfort and even a modicum of “good” pain are inevitable during productive exercise. But suffering is not. The trick is learning to notice and respond appropriately to sensations of discomfort in order to avoid getting sucked into the narratives of suffering. And that is squarely in the wheelhouse of mindfulness.
Nothing more than feelings
The physical sensations we have during exercise are just data. They are not commentary on our current performance, our capabilities, or our value as human beings. They are just information. Mindfulness teaches how to avoid constructing an elaborate narrative on top of this information. As in, “I’m tired. This sucks. Why am I so out of shape? I’m just going to stop.”
Of course we ignore our bodies at our peril. The key is to receive the information the body is providing, take appropriate action (if any), and then let the mind move on to something else instead of building a counterproductive story out of our bodily sensations.
Example: One day I was out for a run. I had stopped sweating, despite the iridescent heat. “I have to stop,” I thought. In this case, I had correctly interpreted the data. My physiological signals were clear: I was badly dehydrated. The reason I stopped was not that I was succumbing to a story about how I was uncomfortable, or tired, or out of shape. I stopped because to continue would have risked significant harm to my body.
But often the data we are receiving indicates that although we are exerting ourselves, we are going to be OK. Then it is time to redirect attention from our bodily sensations to other things (pleasant things, hopefully) arising in the present moment.
Sounds nice. But does it actually work?
Data from exercise science
Athletes can reduce anxiety and increase confidence by participating in brief mindfulness stress-management programs, according to recent research. And it is often pointed out that exercise can be a form of meditation. But can mindfulness improve the physical aspects of athletic activity — both the physical experience and the results?
Mindfulness has been shown to improve performance in competitive sports. Using mindfulness to focus their attention, basketball players can make more free throws, and table tennis players win more points. I will certainly bear that in mind when I try out for the NBA. But what about your bike ride, weight training session or run today?
In theory, mindfulness should equip us to direct our attention away from the physical discomforts we experience during vigorous exercise. Rather than dwelling on the discomfort, we could redirect our attention on more pleasing aspects of reality arising in the present moment.
And research data is beginning to support this theory. College athletes demonstrated a decrease in subjective feelings of fatigue during an 800-meter race following mindfulness training. Still more intriguingly, collegiate rowers completed a 6K rowing workout more quickly following mindfulness-based stress reduction training — an improvement not observed in a control group.
It bears noting that the research field pertaining to the impact of mindfulness on athletic performance is young, and the few studies that have been completed so far have methodological shortcomings. But that should not stop you from investigating these potential benefits for yourself.
Let’s get physical
When you exercise, drill down on the bodily sensations. When you feel that narrative of “I’m tired and I can’t” welling up, pay attention to your body to pinpoint exactly what sensations you are having and where you are having them. It can often be difficult to describe these sensations exactly, so take your time. (Bonus: by the time you have described them, you will be another quarter mile down the road or another set into your workout). Now remind yourself that those sensations are just information.
If you are receiving actionable information from your body, then take that action. Slow down. Stop if that is the right thing to do. Take a brief break before the next rep. And by all means, if you are unsure how to interpret your body’s signals during exercise, make sure to get some help from your doctor or trainer. (Getting medical clearance is always a good idea when starting any new fitness activity. I’m a doctor — but I’m not your doctor.)
If no action is indicated, it’s time to get your mind to move on to something more pleasant than burning muscles and rapid breathing. When I am running I like to look around and really notice my surroundings, and the way the air feels as I pass through it, and the smells surrounding me.
I’ll be honest though — sometimes looking down the road makes it too hard to resist thoughts about how far I have to go. When that happens I will just focus on a point right in front of me, gently holding back intruding thoughts. I mean, I meditate, but I’m not the Buddha. (Does the Buddha even run? Deadlift seems more his cup of tea, no?)
The stream of information from your body can get pretty loud during a good workout. That’s fine. Just keep allowing your thoughts to pass along, redirecting your attention to more pleasant things arising in the present moment, without judgment on either you or the thoughts. (And speaking of loud, while loud music is not traditionally recommended as a tool for meditation, I find listening to music useful during exercise to help me keep my thoughts directed away from physical discomfort. It’s all right; we’re not learning to meditate right now, we are applying its lessons.)
Applying our mindfulness skills during exercise takes practice. But over time you will find you are able to exert yourself longer and harder without focusing on the uncomfortable aspects of working out. This approach can even make it easier to get started in the first place. When you notice yourself thinking about how much you don’t want to work out today, just let those thoughts go and focus on tying your shoelaces. Breathe in with the left shoe…breathe out with the right shoe.
The next time you work out, give it a try. Start with bite-sized chunks. Tell yourself, “I am not going to think about how hard this workout is during the next rep.” Or, “I am just going to focus on how beautiful the clouds are until I reach that next mailbox.” And teach all your friends at the gym your new mantra: “It’s just information.”
Your support makes my health and wellness writing possible. You can sign up for emails when I publish on Medium. To learn more about my mindfulness based coaching and podcast, visit https://realandpresent.com. — Eric
