Other documented benefits of mindfulness meditation include reduced reporting of depression, anxiety, and chronic pain. Different forms of mindfulness training exist, but the general principle is to guide the individual to develop concentration by focusing their attention to the sensation of breathing.
Then, when thoughts, emotions, or body sensations distract the focus from the breathing task, the individual is directed to nonjudgmentally acknowledge the distraction and return to the breathing exercise. A progression is to then focus on body sensations during the breathing task.
Such approaches help individuals to become more aware of the stressors in the present situation e. This nonjudgmental approach then influences more constructive solutions to problems, as they are approached in a more impartial manner. Although the benefits of mindfulness are well documented in other areas of psychology, they have only recently been explored within sport and exercise psychology.
Early findings from Rachel Thompson and colleagues support the positive cognitive appraisal and performance outcomes of mindfulness training. Autogenic training involves a series of exercises designed to produce warmth and heaviness sensations—feelings that are typically associated with relaxation. Within this form of self-hypnosis, attention is focused upon the sensations the individual is attempting to produce. Developed by Johan Schultz in the s, autogenic training has been associated with reduced anxiety, fatigue, HR, and an increased sense of control, and better focus and sleep.
The process involves six sequential training stages where verbal self-statements are used to direct the focus to specific bodily sensations. In Stage 1, the individual is guided to focus on achieving heaviness in the arms and legs, starting with the dominant arm or leg. Once trained, the next stage is to achieve warmth in the arms and legs. Once the individual is competent enough to control the sensations of heaviness and warmth of their extremities, their sensations of heart and breathing rates, and the perceived temperature of their abdominal area and forehead, then the potential to achieve a relaxed state increases.
Even though the relaxation approaches identified here have been categorized as either physical or mental in nature, it is documented within the SP literature that a physical relaxation strategy focused on reducing muscular tension also may have mental effects, such as reducing the incidence of negative thoughts. Similar crossover effects have also been reported for mental relaxation strategies primarily focused on reducing negative thoughts and emotions; these strategies also have been found to reduce the incidence of negative physical symptoms associated with anxiety.
Alongside the physical and mental benefits of relaxation, a further benefit is that the reduced incidents of negative thoughts associated with relaxation allows for other psychological strategies such as self-talk and visualization to be used.
For example, consider a situation in which a sport psychologist attempts to guide a performer to use self talk, to talk to himself or herself more effectively to help change negative thoughts experienced. DeMont said that in track and swimming it helps to relax the lower jaw and make sure you are breathing with your diaphragm and your stomach. And Mr. Reiff said that he tells runners to stay tall, avoiding the rolled shoulders and tight upper body form that comes with fatigue and being too tense.
And, he said, coaches or a friend on the sideline during a race can shout it out if a runner shows tenseness. Reiff said. People like Michael Phelps, these experts say, are masters of relaxation, able to get into a rhythm and stay there even with the intense pressure of Olympic competition. For example, Mr. DeMont said, when Mr. Phelps swam, his stroke count remained the same in every lap. A person in a high state of stress can cause aggressive or defensive behaviour, avoiding situations, poor communication, drinking too much alcohol and smoking.
It can exacerbate mood disorders too. Being over stressed for long periods of time can also cause fatigue. According to mentalhelp. When we relax, the flow of blood increases around our body giving us more energy.
It helps us to have a calmer and clearer mind which aids positive thinking, concentration, memory and decision making. Relaxation slows our heart rate, reduces our blood pressure and relieves tension. Make your breath a little bit slower and little bit deeper than normal. After about 30 seconds, breathe naturally and normally and the direct your attention to your body. Imagine sending a wave of relaxation through your body starting at the top of your head to the tips of your toes.
Literally direct your mind to each body part as the wave flows through you and do your best to relax that body part. There are many variations of relaxation techniques like this. I would encourage you to include some sort of conscious breathing mechanism as that has proven to trigger a relaxation response in the rest of the body.
As far as your actual workouts and not over training, you need to get the advice of a professional physical trainer and follow their advice to the letter because recovery times vary widely from a couple days to a full week depending on the workout.
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