Merritt Clubs Blog

Let me start by saying that I am not a psychologist or a therapist. This is coming from experience training many different people and training myself. This is meant to be a helpful read to at least get you thinking in the right direction. That direction is knowing training includes a mental approach and should be treated just as seriously, if not more, than the physical, recovery, and nutritional pillars of training.

Here is a confusing statement… you do not get stronger in the gym!

It happens to everyone at some point…failing a lift. It sucks when it happens but it is not the end of the world. You just have to know how to handle it.

Hands…have you ever stopped to think about how weird they really are? Just a pair of bony appendages on the end of our arms that branch out into smaller bony appendages that bend around on command and are covered in skin but have little fleshy blades that stick out the ends.

We are in the time of year where the spirit of personal change and growth is abundant and fresh. I'm not saying that you have to set a new year’s resolution but I'm also not saying that you shouldn’t. Yet there are two sides of setting goals that one should be aware of when contemplating change. We will keep this catered toward fitness related goals but there may be some overlap with other types of goals.

I'm going to make a very strange statement and that is the following: "Strength is not just being strong.”

Strength development is easy to see in lifting…you're able to do more weight for the same number of reps or you are able to do the same weight but for more reps. However there is a little more to it than just that alone. There are a few other ways to see how you are getting stronger:

We’ve all been there and it is super awkward… asking for help, in this case asking for a spot! I will acknowledge that there may be a certain level of anxiety in this situation. In this blog I will provide some etiquette and considerations on what to look for in a spotter and how to go about actually asking for help. Hopefully by the time you finish reading this you will feel more comfortable asking someone to spot you when you need it.

If you were to ask anybody on the planet what percentage of a sport is physical and what percentage of it is mental, I guarantee you that literally no one will say “It’s 100% physical.” We all know that there is a mental aspect to performance especially in lifting. If your mind is not clear and focused then your performance under the weight will not be as good as it could be. Yet, how many of us actually practice the mental side of lifting? The point of this post is to get you thinking about thinking!

If you have read the title of this post and are looking for some great hype to get your blood pumping, goose bumps on your arms, and electricity bolting through your entire body then you came to the right place.