After recovering from a cold last week I jumped back on the saddle this Sunday and joined a spinning class. The instructor Joanne was awesome. She regularly road bikes, had funky music, and her program that day incorporated lots of hills.
After the class I asked her a question about some trouble I had with exerting the right amount of effort. We got into a discussion of how your thoughts can actually translate into physical exertion. Sounds brainless right, your brain sends a signal and your muscles move. But this was more than that. If you continually focus on pedaling at a pace of say 85 rotations per minute, even without looking at a computer, you can most likely hit that pace if you concentrate enough. She made the comment that lots of her students initially thought its a bunch of mumbo jumbo. But I have always believed in the connection between mind and body, and I think we have more control of our physical actions than we think we do.
My 1st realization of this connection is when you have a cold. I always believed you can to a certain extent "will" your way out of being sick. Of course there are certain physical limitations, but a strong will, positive mindset, will take you far in recovery.
Another realization I had was when I started to take Tai Chi classes. Our teacher practiced Tai Chi/Chi Gong. Initially, I was more interested in the Tai Chi part, you know, slow motion, martial arts for old people. But after a few months, I found real value in the meditation and energy practice of Chi Gong. Like many, I was very skeptical of what they were saying. Energy channels in the body, feeling your internal organs, etc. I still can't feel my internal organs, but I definitely believe in continually practicing and increasing your awareness of your body. Some of the benefits include concentration (and believe me, as a reality tv junkie, I can definitely use some help with concentration), relieving stress by relaxing tense muscles, and quieting down your mind from all your worries.
So once I found the benefits of Tai Chi and Chi Gong, I tried to incorporate them into my active workouts, like spinning and mountain biking. Essentially, during times of heavy excertion, I would simply try to relax my shoulders, face, and any non-essential muscles to conserve energy. Makes sense right. There is even a recent book out called Tai Chi running.
In any case, I think our minds have much more potential in influencing our physical well being. There are many books right now talking about positive thoughts, and willing our way to success. I definitely believe in those principles. In mountain biking you are always supposed to look where you want to go, versus what you want to avoid. Otherwise you will just hit what you want to avoid. And in tennis you are supposed to visualize the shot successfully being hit in your head. And more times than not, it will totally work. Our thoughts and intentions are powerful things. I definitely need to think more positive thoughts and visualize my way to success.
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