HOW TO USE “NOTING” MEDITATION TECHNIQUE TO IMPROVE YOUR WORKOUT

At first glance, it may be easy to overlook how meditation can help our performance in the gym. With the right intention, we can apply a powerful meditation technique, called ‘Noting’, to our workouts to get the most out of each session.

What is noting?

Noting is a meditation technique that gives us a very clear direction on how to approach the mind as thoughts and feelings arise while we meditate.

How do we do it?

While we’re meditating, our mind will naturally wander off. In that moment where we realize that we've been distracted, we pause and note the nature of the distraction by saying to ourselves. “Oh, that was thinking,” or ” “Oh, that was a feeling.”

When we note the distraction, there's a sense of having dealt with it. This makes it easier to let go of the distraction, create some distance between ourselves and the thought and gently return to the object of focus (like our breath in meditation).

When we get distracted again (which will inevitably happen), we apply the same approach, gently noting the nature of the distraction and returning to the object of focus.

Noting During Your Workout

Now, how does this apply to the gym? Maybe you’re doing a big set of wall balls during a workout. Your object of focus is to hit the target with the wall ball, while maintaining proper form, keeping your core braced, and breathing through your reps. On your fourteenth wall ball, you almost miss your target and catch the ball in an awkward position. As you start your next rep, thoughts start to creep in...

“This sucks. Why am I so bad at wall balls?”

“I still have so many more reps to go!”

“My shoulders are starting to burn.”

“Why do I do this to myself?”

“I wish I was good at wall balls.”

Here’s a great opportunity to practice the noting technique. Instead of getting involved in the internal narrative and the negative thought loop that may follow, you can cut the loop by noting what happened and directing your attention to the object at hand.

Try a gentle “oh, that was thinking” or “oh, I caught that wall ball in an unbalanced position” and then return to the object of focus.

When we note, we want to be as free of judgement as we can so that we can create distance between ourselves and our thoughts and bring our mind back to the object of focus, executing each rep of wall balls to the best of our ability.

Putting It All Together

Noting is when we recognize the mind has wandered. We acknowledge it, gently note the nature of the distraction, let it go, then effortlessly return to the object at focus.

We can use this technique when working out to give ourselves a mental edge in our training, and create the internal conditions that are conducive to success.

Interested in learning more?

Join us every Sunday at 9 AM for Riv Yoga, our 50 minute class designed with the athlete in mind. We work on not only yoga poses, but also training our mind and ways we can improve our mental health, well being and mental toughness.

See you around the gym!

Coach Austin