At times we can all be a little guilty of underestimating the power of the mind. After all, you know what they say – “mind over matter”. When it comes to your health and fitness goals, your mindset can determine your success or lack there of. Mindset can be defined as a person’s beliefs about themselves and their most basic qualities ie. talent, intelligence and personality. It is important to recognise and understand how you function physically and what drives you mentally in order to give yourself the best shot at achieving the desired health and fitness outcome. The aim of this article is to improve awareness around your mindset and how it affects your progress. This will help you to overcome plateaus in your training and allow you to take steps towards achieving success.
Fixed Mindset
There are two types of mindset: fixed and growth. Individuals with fixed mindsets have the idea that their talent or ability is predetermined and that any success is gained through talent alone. To have a fixed mindset means that you think you are unable to get smarter, fitter or better at any one thing and that hard work and effort are not required nor will it result in any improvement. People with a fixed mindset tend to shy away from challenges in fear of failing and in fear that challenges may expose a lack of skill or talent. They remain closed minded to feedback being used as a tool to better themselves and failure is viewed as a setback. People with a fixed mindset often compare themselves to others causing a stressed and emotional response. This kind of mindset and thinking pattern is counterproductive and only hinders further progress.
Growth Mindset
On the other hand people who adopt a growth mindset rely on hard work, dedication and persistence in order to achieve their success. This type of individual believes that characteristics, habits and skills can all be worked on and refined. They learn from both their successes and failure and respond positively to feedback, viewing it as something that can help rather than hinders. Failures are not viewed as setbacks rather an opportunity to identify areas for personal growth and improvement. Challenges are embraced as a tool used to grow and better equip themselves which new skills or traits. A growth minded person places emphasis on continual commitment which allows for small, regular gains to be obtained over time. Having a growth mindset cultivates a positive and productive environment priming them for success. This should also be encouraged.
Changing Your Mindset
Fortunately mindset is flexible and can be altered with a little education or even coaching. You may also find that your mindset alters through different aspects of your life. For example, maybe business wise you adopt more of a growth mindset but when it comes to your health and fitness you have a more fixed approach. Your mindset and beliefs start to develop from a very young age and can be influenced by the people around you. Changing your mindset doesn’t mean you have to analyse your beliefs, it simply means you need to make an attempt to notice them, challenge them and be willing to adopt new ones. Adapting your language is an essential part of changing your mindset. Avoid saying I can’t, rather use terms such as I will be able to do this soon, change is always possible, this diet doesn’t suit me but another will and so on. It’s important not to fear failure. Accept that failure is part of the process. This doesn’t mean that you can’t feel sad or angry when you experience a setback. Let those feelings pass and try not to attach negative emotions to beliefs about yourself and your capabilities. Everyone has a different approach when it comes to improving performance, motivation and self esteem but yes life happens so don’t allow roadblocks to push you off track, learn from them and keep moving forward.
When applied to your health and fitness, a growth mindset can help you to stay focused and have you continually taking steps towards achieving results. Make sure you have a clear goal that is attainable and manageable. Track your progress in a fitness journal, this allows you to both schedule and track workouts so you get visual feedback of the progress that you are making. Be consistent, remember that every workout is putting you one step closer to your goal. You won’t always feel like training but making the effort on the days you feel this way will have the most positive outcome on your mindset and goals. Lastly, make a playlist that motivates and inspires you to excel. These tools can help you to remain growth mindset orientated. Praise your efforts rather then your immediate results and remember that even the smallest achievements are important to the final outcome.
xx Tara
Whats your mindset around fitness, do you think it can be improved? Let me know in the comments section below.
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