Mental Intensity and CrossFit, a Great Combination

When an athlete has the commitment, the will, and the enthusiasm to practice with a purpose, they will be able to create a peak performance. How does an athlete develop the mental intensity mindset? An athlete has to master this mindset of mental intensity during practice or else it will bite them in the butt during competition. Mental intensity starts at practice and will continue with them onto the field of competition.

CrossFit is an exercise program that is practiced by individuals and athletes all over the world. They have an excellent strength and conditioning program that aims at improving an athlete’s muscular strength, their cardio-respiratory endurance, and their flexibility. CrossFit has the belief that everything begins with fitness. CrossFit is a fitness regimen that has been developed over several decades and mental intensity plays a critical role.

How Do You Improve Mental Intensity?

Most coaches consider mental intensity to be a very important characteristic for any athlete, and especially with a CrossFit athlete. The best athletes come to practice with the mindset that provides them with an intense focus. What this does is allow them to get the most out of practice. They have the most enthusiasm, are the most determined, and are definitely the most goal-driven athletes during training.

When athletes start out in CrossFit or any sports, some of the really talented ones often simply “get by.” These athletes have not captured the importance of mental intensity in practice. What happens with these talented athletes is that they continue to cheat themselves for a while, but in time, just going through the motions in practice is not enough and they will not advance their progress. Other athletes that practice with mental intensity will soon catch up and even pass them.

What do you need to know as an athlete to be able to practice with mental intensity?

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Some people feel that you either have intensity or you don’t.

This is not true.

What is practicing with mental intensity? What are the highlights of some possible causes, and how can this help you to develop ways to make you practice with mental intense?

Jim Taylor (1993), a sports psychologist, suggests that there are actually three very important aspects of practice with mental intensity:

• Practice intensity allows for a positive feeling.
• In order to play your best, you must have an ideal level of intensity.
• This optimal practice intensity is not the same for all athletes.

Lack of Practice Intensity

What drives coaches insane?

Athletes that simply “go through the motions.” It is common knowledge that in order to perform well, you must have good practices. Why would an athlete purposely go to practice lacking the intensity needed? Most of the time it is actually not intentional. Most athletes that lack practice intensity do not even realize the problem.

It is fortunate though, that researchers have been able to provide some insight to the problem. The athlete that is under-intensified is often:

• Poorly prepared
• Lacks motivation
• Fatigued
• Lacks goals
• Lacks plan of practice

If you are an athlete, attempt to think back to when you had a practice when you were basically just going through the motions. If you are able to do this, then think back at the reasons why you lacked intensity. Mental intensity recognition is very vital to focused practices. A good athlete should always “check in” with themselves right before a practice starts to determine their level of intensity.

One of the best ways to accomplish your awareness of intensity is to keep a training log. This is an excellent way to track your intensity levels in practice. Use an intensity meter to rate your level. For example, use a rating of 1 to mean that you are early asleep and a 10 to designate high intensity. There are even times when you are too intense and cannot focus on the appropriate things in practice.

Keep your log for a couple of weeks and then evaluate it to see what intensity levels coincided with your best practices. Be sure to keep you log for at least two or more weeks so you will not get a “false reading” and will be able to use this information to get a true optimal level of intensity.

Appropriate Level of Practice Intensity

Once you have figured out the appropriate level of practice intensity that suits you, it is time to use several strength skills in order to increase this practice intensity. It is very important to develop a preparation plan before practice as well so that the following skills will help you to not just go through the motions.

These mental strength skills are not just tactics and strategies. There are plays that can be used to increase their intensity during practice and are actually a way of preparing to achieve their peak athletic performances.

• A good practice is definitely goal driven. Goals are achievement standards that are set to direct behavior. Goals give an athlete a clear purpose for practice. It is definitely amazing that a lot of athletes actually go to practice with no goals in mind. Doing this is like getting in your car and starting out without figuring out your destination. Always have a goal, do not allow your practice to become haphazard. For example, maybe today you want to learn the forward crossover. Always set goals for improving yourself in play. There is a road of progress for all athletes, maybe it is to improve your skills, tactics or techniques, but no matter what it is for the day’s practice, it is very important. Use your log to chart your goals daily and then list whether or not you have been successful in meeting these goals.

• Another skill that will help an athlete is to learn the habit of refocusing. A habit can be learned. The use of cue words, images or phrases can be a great deal of use when attempting to refocus. These skills can help you to overcome a lack of motivation or even fatigue. For example, if you are not practice intense, try using a cue phrase. Every person is different and what works for one person may not work for another. Some examples of cues are “pay attention, get intense” or maybe an image of time when you were playing great, practicing hard or had really great intensity.

• Another skill that an athlete should be able to make is the habit of using powerful images such as a leopard printing across a field or a rocket launching into the blue sky. This often helps the athlete to increase their intensity.

• The use of all the cue words, the phrases, and the images will help an athlete begin to increase their intensity. Running in place with high knees or performing quick starts and stops, will then become increased. If you have the desire to become a really good athlete, going through the motions definitely undermines your attempts.

Set goals, set cues and images, and increase your intensity. I believes that to become your best, you must make practice intensity a habit. Push yourself to the limit every single practice. It will improve your skills and help you to develop into a consistent peak performer.

“Mental Strength for Athletes” can help you on your voyage to becoming an excellent CrossFit athlete. It comes with bonuses that will have specific scripts and even audios that can be used to achieve your peak performance.

Reference: Taylor, J. (1993), The mental Edge for Tennis, (4th Edition) Aurora, CO: Minutemen Press