Always tense?

[DirtbagDan]

Thought i'd post a new thread about this.

I'm sure HIT and doggcrapp guys are familiar with this the most, but who else here is always tense and nervous before that one heavy working set to failure? Especially on leg day? Especially before deadlifts? Or squats? Seems like you can never get used to it when it comes to lifting, heh.

Anyone have ways of dealing with it?

[maverickBU]

I know exactly what you are talkin about. I've found that you need to be aware of "mental overtraining" as much as the physical one we talk about often. You know how when you start a new routine like the ones you mentioned, you are motivated, you want to find your limits, you want to push as hard as you can. I think that like typical overtraining, you build mental fatigue from constantly having to pour 110% into each set.

What has worked well for me when I hit that mental wall is switching to a non-failure type program for a few weeks. I know most low-volume, failure-oriented programs have a week long (or longer) deloading phase, but sometimes its not enough. I think teaching your body again to embrace your training without it having to go to failure for a few weeks will help. Once you are done, you can go back anbd attack your original program reinvigorated, physically and mentally.

[lifting5]

I know the feeling as well, especially with deadlifts. I've just started to feel it lately because I've finally worked up to weights that are forcing me to almost fail at 5 or 6 reps. To me, it's almost like the worst/best feeling in the world.

[DirtbagDan]

I think Maverick is right, you need some downtime from all of the super intense failure training. I remember at one time I wasn't as tense before sets, so there definitely is a mental overtraining aspect to it.

[stillflabby]

I completely agree.
I hit a wall a couple weeks back. Mentally and physically.
For me, I took some time off, and I'm getting back into a different sort of routine. It will be higher volume lifting and I'll be doing it mainly for the fat burning/metabolic boosting effects. After a month or so of this I should be back in the game.

I used to not look at a set like I do now either. Now I see my final, heavy set and get nervous and apprehensive. Then I have to work up the courage to just do the set. Sometimes that takes a little while. It's weird.

[Dzoni]

It's called HEAVY A*S SETS! I am pretty sure a lot of the people who train heavy got the same feeling, hence why people use techniques to psyche up. Some people are just "few dogs short of a full kennel" and don't have a problem with these type of things.

You really think ronnie isn't thinking "how the heck am i going to deadlift all of this 800lb" but he blocks it out and starts yelling things out to forget about the negative and just focus on lifting.

I get it, I always get it, I get tense before I even walk in to the gym, but you just gotta block it and do your thing.

I think the week or two is sufficient rest from heavy weight when you get to deload or cruise so to speak. Just enough to make you hungry again for lifting heavy.

Personally if I stop lifting heavy for any longer it's hard for me to motivate my self to go back to heavy.

[lifting4life]

Stillflabby, glad to see you back on the boards!

Donzi... nice post. I agree. Lift heavy and if your burned out, then just take a week off, don't change your lifting techniques, just rest and then get your a** back lifting heavy weights next week.