Improving Your Mindset For Weightlifting

Weightlifting it truly a unique sport in the sense that the actual lifts are executed in only a couple seconds. There is no margin of error within that time. In other sports you could slow down or misstep but make that up by sprinting a little faster. In weightlifting almost no error can be made in that key millisecond. Another unique aspect of weightlifting is that it is an individual sport - if you miss its entirely your fault and if you make the lift its entirely your accomplishment. So how can we improve our mindset for this sport?

1. Begin your focus before your training session even starts. What exercises do you have? What are your target weights? What technical cues will you be focusing? What lessons learned came from prior workout? Do you have intra-workout food and drinks ready?
2. Focus on building a concise and systematic routine warmup before your training. For example, I like to take a couple muscle snatches and snatch press bottoms barefoot before putting on weightlifting shoes. This helps me personally focus and feel more stretched out. Find you own unique routine to get both physically and mentally prepared for weightlifting.
3. During your training session focus on the things within your control. Things may not always go the way you expected. Control your reactions and path forward. Someone walks in front of you during a heavy snatch, you have two choices - (1) let it ruin your attempt and become the reason your training session goes down hill (2) realize that during competition distractions often happen and use it as an opportunity to perform under similar circumstances. What happens is not what makes or break a training session, its how your react to what happens that is key!
4. What are you feeling? What are you saying in your head before a lift and during your rest time? Remember what you feel becomes what you say and what you say becomes what you do. Do you feel tired or are you ready for a good workout that will wake you up. Are you scared of the weights or reps coach has written or are you ready to challenge yourself and get better. Are you saying to yourself "I can do this" or asking yourself "can I do this"
5. The most important thing to remember is that you have control over your mindset during training. You can't always control people walking in front of you, which bar you get, what platform you get. But you can certainly control inside your own mind. Just make a conscious effort to do so!