The Connection Between Intension and Technique

Intentions during exercise is this week's theme.

What I love about this aspect is the guiding influence it has when we are trying to learn a new physical skill or technique.

I find it's not enough enough to just know what our body needs to do in order to perform that technique. We have to attain a proper feel for the technique.

The way to gain that feel is usually by way of relating to the movement involved through studying its intended purpose and with constant adjustment of how you perceive the movements.

This results in the discovery of a type of what I like to call guiding intentions.

Example: for proper posture, the spine needs to be in a straight and upright position rather than a slouched, hunched or rounded one. The technique cue commonly stated for that straight and upright position is;

-Shoulders back and down

It might be easy enough to do, adopting it can be difficult based on the level that you might relate to it.

You might respond and relate better to;

-squeeze shoulder blades together
-chest out
-straighten/stretch abs

My point is, it's interesting just how many ways there seems to be to execute the one technique. It just depends what resonates best with you.

Anyway, here is a video of how using intention can guide your attention in strength training and doing it with less weight with better results.





Inspired by fitness,

Clinton Boucheix
Certified Personal Training

Free Exercise Motivation Report

Mental Attitude: The Key to Progress in Fitness

I found this video on YouTube which touches on the aspect of mental attitude and it's effect on physical performance and talent. 






 Mental attitude is key to accessing our best in every area of life. But in sports and physical activities, it can be the difference between excelling and plateauing. You may have heard that its not practice that makes perfect, but it's perfect practice that makes perfect. The quality of an athlete's practice is so heavily hinged on the mindset and attitude that he or she holds during the time of practice. 

The truth About Exercise Consistency

So, you want to get up every morning and jog, or you want to go to the gym 3 times, 5 times or 6 times a week, or you want to get yourself to be in the pool twice times a week for 2 hours. You've heard or read somewhere that in order to get into shape an maintain it, that you have to have a pretty frequent exercise routine.

Yes, it's true, once you start being in shape, it is because you have a consistent commitment to your workout. However, here is the trap that so many people fall into. Starting from where they are in that moment.
they look where they would like to be in terms of their fitness.
they look at the people that have that.
they look at their standards.
and...
they automatically think that they need to train at the same standards as those people right off the bat.

What these people do not realise is the time and process it took them to reach that level of commitment and dedication to their training.

This is probably the biggest reason why so many quit.

Fitness Resolution:Avoid the Desolution

Another year, another goal. Another goal gone unreached.

Every year we do this little ritual where we project our wishes of what we want to achieve, become or do and every year we feel despondent when we realize that not a single step was taken toward that goal.

Borrowing Commitment to Workout: A Guide to Accountability

This week, I would like to share the approach of using other people's commitment to utilize as your own when you yourself can't quite find it in yourself the motivation to follow through on an exercise session as often as you would like to.
Sometimes our own motivation lets us down and we fail to follow through on our fitness plan, but there is a way to leverage the motivation of other people to stay engaged much, much more consistently.
You might know it as accountability.
I'm sure you have heard and read about accountability before and how it can serve as a good source of motivation, but if you have not initiated what it takes to set up an accountability system, it might be because you are unsure what kind accountability would be best suited or you are concerned that having to commit to someone else will act as a source of pressure and will turn you off of working out entirely.
There are a multitude of accountability systems, each with structures that meets different needs, yield different results and provide a different experience.
Accountability can be very a effective tool to have, you just need to know which type of system is right for you.
Here is a list of 4 styles of accountability systems:

Does Ego Serve You in Your Physical Performance?

"I can lift Xxx kgs/lbs"
"I can cycle on the highest gear up a hill"
"I can run at Xxx km/h"


The ego is something we all have that can really pump us up and urge us to perform at a specific level in order to measure up to some sense of greatness. This behaviour shows itself in exercise with the best of us. I myself, until recently was limiting myself to the top 3 gears of my bike because that was the standard I was proud of. I just learnt how much time I can shave by swallowing that pride and actually using lower gears.

This is important to note, if you have a habit of ego anywhere in your exercise or workout routine, then you could be undermining your performance, your growth and development and in some cases you could even be doing yourself harm.

Here are a few examples where ego could be getting in your way:

Exercise Identity

Does exercise have an impact on our identity? Do we change as a person depending on what physical activity we do? Does exercise allow us to express our truest self?

The topic this week is about how exercise impacts our sense of self. What fascinates me is how over the years that I've been practicing the various forms of martial arts, it has led me to adopt certain perceptions of myself. It has impacted my general sense of who I am. But what's more interesting is not only how it has impacted my sense of identity over that time, but how it affects it in the immediate. Have you ever noticed, directly after a workout or training session, your entire sense of self has morphed somehow?