EXECUTIVE HEALTH & FITNESS -PART 3.

 PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS OF MOTIVATION & SUCCESS

So far we have outlined how to set your health and fitness goals and then pulled our Psychie to pieces to show how athletes stay on top of their game-so that we can apply it to our lives too.

Now lets cut to the chase and show you how to actually apply some strategies when the going gets tough during your journey towards your goals, moreover providing tools to help you to slingshot to the winning goal line!

1. SELF TALK- CONTROL YOURSELF BEFORE OTHERS CONTROL YOU!

Choose a POSITIVE attitude- make the choice; ultimately,  it's up to you to stay positive and more positive events are likely to occur in ones life! If you surround yourself with positive people rather than negative energy suckers, then you will be abundant in supply of positiveness and leap towards your set challenges. Control your inner self talk, control the way you handle your emotions. It's up to you to take ownership so that you take a leash on your self talk rather than others controlling yours.You could write a few positive thoughts down on paper or even commit some time every day to becoming a more positive person. Schedule it in your diary just like an appointment!

2. USE IMAGERY TECHNIQUES

It has been scientifically proven for decades, that the usage of imagery techniques boost sports performance. In fact, due to the nature of their success,  imagery techniques are one the most commonly used modalites, prescribed by sports psychologists. Imagery techniques have even been used to aid the recovery of cancer patients and can significantly reduce anxiety for all of us.

 Athletes typically take themselves step by step through their competition meticulously imagining their 'optimal' performance during competition. For the every day population, imagery techniques can be used to mentally practice skills and furthermore, enhance performance within these skills imagined. 

How does this work? Well, some experts believe that these positive thought processes, can help to fire the same neuro-receptors in your brain which would normally respond to physical stimuli and this makes for a better performance next time (ever heard of the phrase what fires together wires together?). Others believe that every time you mentally rehearse you are calving a bigger stamp of success in your life- meaning if you mentally properly then you are likely to  make success a reality. 

So how would you begin? First of all. you need to be completely relaxed to effectively perform imagary; before bed or first thing in the morning is a great time to practice these techniques because at these times, you often feel more relaxed. You should bring yourself to calm by breathing correctly; that is, through your diaphragm rather than shallow breathing through your upper body region. For many, this can be a technique which has to be re-learned as there is so much stress and anxiety in life these days reducing oxygen delivery to the body...its amazing how many of us take shallow breaths

(hummm....... maybe its time I showed you a video on this please click herehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-_NNCrrdus)

Once you have achieved a calm centre; an anxiety free centre, you would then take yourself (i.e imagine your chosen skills) as though you were ideally executing the skill/technique/performance, and this should occur in intricate detail  within your mind. A step by step approach is the best way to tackle this, BUT WAIT...before you begin imagine actually seeing yourself perform at your optimal, (for example watching as the third person),  remember you must imagine yourself as you were actually executing the skill/s in real life (eg in the first rather than third person) to get the best results. For example,  how do the movements it feel ? What exactly are you seeing around you, where are your competitors?

If you are really stuck with what is described above, a great way to begin your journey into relaxation and imagery, is to go to a meditation based yoga class. This could be a brilliant way to invest in your more positive future!

And last but not least ..it is YOUR TRUE BELIEF that will control the outcome.

Countless sports psychology/motor control studies have shown that believing that an event or goal visualization will definitively occur, actually increases the chances of this event occurring in real life whether this is good or bad. So please set the goals realistically & towards the desired outcome. Believe you can get there, imagine yourself already there, its a great feeling and REMEMBER if you are able to maintain FOCUS along the journey (no matter how turbulent),  you really CAN achieve what you set out to, so commit and go forth-ward success is on your way!