The Power of Imagination

If you're human, chances are you have experienced some sort of fear in the course of your life.  Fear is a real emotion and it comes in many forms; anxiety, nervousness, and inaction.  In the world of fitness and sport fear of failure runs rampant but no one really addresses the issue, because a lot of times no one knows how.  There are many ways to overcome fears, but one of the best ways to learn how to defeat fear is to use imagery.  That's right.  Using your imagination can be used to overcome anxieties, but it can also help you increase confidence, motivation, attention and focus and enhance performance whether it be lifting heavy weights, jumping on boxes, participating in a Tough Mudder, and competing in a sporting event.  Imagery can also be a great aid in recovery and return to play after an injury of setback and even in changing your nutrition.  The power of imagination is limitless.  Some of the best athletes in the world practice imagery and apply it during competition.  If applied correctly, imagery can be a huge game changer.

If you would like to give imagery a try, the best way to start is through the use of imagery rehearsal.  It is one of the easiest and most effective way to implement imagery into your practice. 

Imagery is defined as “using all the senses to re-create or create an experience in the mind.”  Our brain cannot tell the difference between an actual physical event or the mind’s creative imagery.  Just think of dreams…they seem real to use in the process.  Using imagery properly can help facilitate confidence in a skill or task and ease anxiety.  The images that we see in our mind influence emotion, which in turn influence performance.  During imagery practice it is important to elicit all senses involved in the desired outcome…vision, hearing, smell, taste, and proprioception (feel)…the more senses you use the better.  Make the rehearsal as real as possible.  Mental rehearsal doesn’t take a lot of time and can be done anywhere at any time, and has been found to greatly enhance performance.  Some of the most elite athletes used imagery on a consistent basis to improve their competitive edge. 

For the best outcome, practice the script 3-5 times a week for 5-15 minutes.  It is most beneficial that mental practice precede physical practice, but any practice is better than no practice.  During imagery practice, make each rehearsal successful.  Ultimately, you are in control of your mind’s thoughts and images…if you make a mistake start over and take great care to be positive in your thinking.  Try each of these exercises.  I suggest beginning with number one.  Once you have mastered the first exercise, move on by adding the next one to the sequence.  Mental imagery, just like any skill, must be practiced.

Before we go on, pick a fear that you would like to overcome or a skill that you would like to perfect.

1)      Find a quiet and comfortable place to relax.  It is recommended that you lay down and close your eyes.  Start by using diaphragm breathing.  Take a deep breathe in and as you let the air out do it slowly and forcefully.  Continue until you are completely relaxed (5-10 breathes). 

 
2)      First, practice imagery by visualizing a shape.  Now color in that shape with your favorite color.  After you have colored in the shape of your choice, visualize erasing the color and filling the shape with polka dots.  Repeat the process a few times to get comfortable with details, but use different shapes and colors.  Be precise.
 

3)      Next from the location that you are in, mentally walk to the closest grocery store.  Imagine all of the turns that you must make.  Take into consideration the traffic that you must look out for along with bumps on the sidewalk in which you are walking.  How is the weather?  Is it hot or cold?  What does the air smell like?  Imagine every detail that you can think of.  Once you arrive at the doors of store safely, how does it feel?  You may walk home or repeat this exercise as desired. 
 

4)      Now, imagine that you have just walked into any gym in the world.  What does the gym look like?  How does it smell?  Are there a lot of people?  Are they friendly?  How does your body feel?  Start to imagine feeling strong and confident.  Begin warming up and being excited about the workout no matter what it might be.  Get all of your muscles ready to take on the workout aggressively.
 

5)      Finally, imagine the fear you'd like to overcome or skill you'd like to develop.  For the sake of discussion, the box jump will be used as an example.  Now imagine that box jumps are part of the workout.  Pretend that you are watching yourself jump…like you’re watching T.V.  Imagine that you are seeing yourself stand in front of the box with a face of confidence and determination.  Your feet are set, your arms are back, and your hips are loaded ready to explode onto the box.  Imagine seeing yourself jump 6 inches higher than you needed and landing on the box successfully.  Now, feel how proud you are of yourself!  Your confidence levels are high and you feel happy that you overcame anxiety and met the challenge.  Repeat this for 10-20 reps…executing each and every jump with precision and confidence.  Repeat as needed.
 

End each session by breathing slowly and deeply.  Open your eyes and sit up slowly.  Take a moment to feel happy and accomplished
 

Remember that in order to reap the benefits of a helpful technique like imagery, practice is essential.  If you are in a slump, want to take on a new competitive challenge or have a legitimate fear that you would like to overcome imagery is a very effective technique to implement in your training.  Give it a try.  What do you have to lose?
 

 “You are the embodiment of the information you choose to accept and act upon. To change your circumstances you need to change your thinking and subsequent actions."  ~Adlin Sinclair 

 

Dirty Laundry

Lately I've had a bit of writer's block and my energy level has been funky.  I have found myself irritated and frustrated lately feeling like I need to let something out, but I just couldn't figure it out.

I got home from a long day of training people, and I hopped on facebook to unwind a bit and this song was posted by one of my friends;

 

 

 



After listening to this song, it hit me like a ton of bricks.  I need to air my dirty laundry.  I have decided to let 'em hang, and air out my dirty laundry.  Who knows, maybe this will empower another woman to get out of a bad situation.

I was married once.  I don't speak of it much, because I don't like pity and I hate it when people apologize about one of the best decisions I ever made.  Divorce. There has never been a moment that I felt regret for walking out the door.

Here's my love story.

Boy and girl meet.  Boy swoons girl.  Boy and girl fall in love.  The two of them get married.

Two weeks after graduating from college, I packed my backs and moved to Virginia Beach, Virginia to marry the man of my dreams.  I mean, what else does a girl do after college?  Get married of course! 

So, two weeks into our marital bliss our marriage took a sharp right turn.  Who am I kidding, it took a complete 180!  All of the sudden the man I loved took his mask off, and the drama story began.

It started with verbally demeaning me.  He would say condescending things like "you don't know how to do anything right" or "Let me do it, because you can't" or "why are you wearing that? You look bad" or "you make me sick." 

My initial reaction was shock and hurt.  I couldn't believe this man that I gave my life and devotion to was saying such mean things to me.  I would try to shake it off and fool myself by thinking, "this is how all marriages start.  First they are rocky, but then it gets better." 

Next, was the lies, late nights out drinking and spending money frivolously, and don't forget the numbers I found his pockets and receipts from strip clubs. 

Believe me, I wasn't shy to confront him and speak my mind.  This led to more of the same behavior by him.  In fact, the drama started to escalate more and more each time I confronted him.  The first time, he ignored me.  The next time, he shoved me.  The next time, he shoved me harder.  The next time, he punched me.  Once, I had to walk home in the middle of the night, because he drove off and left me while we were out. 

I have never cried so much in my entire life.  In fact, he would deliberately say hurtful things to me to get an emotional response out of me and then laugh at me as the tears fell from my eyes.  He would corner me and tease me in the process. 

Looking back, it was verbal and emotional abuse (mixed in with a hint of physical abuse) but when you're caught in a whirl wind of what you think is love...you lie to yourself.  You trick yourself into thinking that all marriages have trials and tribulations (which they do to some degree) and that to experience joy and happiness, you must endure humiliating pain.

Trust me, don't believe that bullshit.  Love doesn't hurt.  If it does, it's not love.

To get back to the story, I was certain that he was cheating on me.  I had no proof, but I was certain.  It's just one of those instincts that you get.  It's hard to explain.  You just know.  The problem was, I had no proof...just an instinct.  Until one day the truth was revealed and my instincts were right.  At that time, he guarded his phone like it was a safe full of gold.  I took notice.

I will never forget the darkest night of my life.  I had finally found great friends that I worked with and we decided to have a girls night out.  He was not happy with this, and when I returned home I was locked out of the bedroom.  He had bolted the door shut, and that's where it all began.

After pounding on the door for minutes, he finally opened the door.  We argued a bit, but he laid back down.  As he turned his head, I grabbed his phone and decided to get to the bottom of what my gut was telling me.  I just needed to prove what I already knew...he was cheating.

My instincts were right!  He had pictures of this girl on his phone.  Not just any kind of pictures, but the kind that a wife does not want to see on her husband's phone.  What made it worse was that he sent pictures to his brother bragging about his mistress.  True story. 

What happened next is a blur.  I was filled with unspeakable pain, disgust, and rage, and I confronted him head on.  The confrontation led to an argument.  The argument led to a shoving match.  The shoving match led to me swinging a lamp, him pushing me through the wall, and me getting a black eye.  The only thing that I'm proud of from that night is the left hook that broke his nose.

Once the fight ended, I looked him dead in the eye and said, "we're done."

I left the next morning, and I never looked back.

I will never forget the people that helped me through that rough patch...and it was rough.  I am forever grateful for my family, Jody, Sara, Eddie, Jenna and my best friend Adriana.  They kept me sane.  I love them. 

I didn't share my story to tell you how bad I've had it.  Hell, my story is lame compared to what other women have suffered through in their lives. I just wanted to make it clear that although problems arise in our lives, things get better.

I shared because I want people to understand that drama and trauma can only have power over you if you allow it to.  Pain does not always last.  The darkest of night is just before the dawn.  Just when we think we can't take the rain anymore...the sun will starts to shine.   

Being a MissFit isn't just about being physically strong.  It's about having a strong mentality as well.  Strong is a choice.  You can either let life knock you down, leaving you bumped and bruised OR you can stand up for yourself and decide that enough is enough and fight back. 

We are here to be happy. We are here to do things that bring us joy.  We are here to be victorious.  We are here to give love and receive love.  We are not here to be miserable.  We are not here to feel bad about ourselves.  We were not created to live in defeat.  We were certainly not put here to hold on to our dirty laundry.  Sometimes you have to let go and air that shit out!

I needed to hear that song tonight.  I needed to let that out.  Thanks Kelly Rowland!



*Side note:  This is not intended to bash men.  I love and respect men.                



MissFit May Spotlight: Chely Galván

MissFit May Spotlight  

Chely Galván

Age: 23

Sport: CrossFit  

In an attempt to branch out and find more MissFit’s, my friend and fellow Texan, Adam Longoria, told me about a friend of his that is a fierce CrossFit competitor down in San Antonio, Texas.  He mentioned that she had only been competing locally for a short time before she became a serious CrossFit contender in the South Central Region.  She seemed like a perfect MissFit Candidate, and I became more and more curious about her, and needed to speak to her first-handed to learn more about her.

I was finally able to speak to Chely Galvan over the phone to talk about her life as a CrossFit competitor.

What is your athletic background?

Chely: I played many sports growing up; basketball, volleyball, track, but mainly soccer.  I thought my competitive sports career ended after high school.  I wanted to stay active so I started running half-marathons and marathons.  I ran four marathons to be exact.  I liked the time to myself during the runs.  I was getting bored though.

How did you find CrossFit?  What drew you to the sport of CrossFit?

Chely:  I was introduced to CrossFit in March of 2010.  My cousin’s boyfried told me about a new workout he was doing called CrossFit.  He talked me into giving it a try.  I was instantly hooked, and wanted more.  The funny thing is that “death by” burpees was my very first WOD.  I loved CrossFit.  I don’t know what I’d be doing right now with my training if I didn’t find it.  Not only do I do CrossFit, but I have become a CrossFit coach at CrossFit Mettle.  I love the CrossFit culture and community.

                                            

Do you compete?

Chely:  Yes.  My first competition was called Oktoberfest Obliteration down in Houston in 2010, where I met Adam.  I actually went to be a spectator, but at the last minute a spot opened up and I filled it on a whim.  To my surprise, I came in 6^th!  I competed in 2011 in the Hammer and Chisel competition and finished in 2^nd.  I have also competed in the South Central Regionals of the CrossFit Games in 2011, 2012, and if I do well enough this year will make my 3^rd appearance at regionals.  

 

What motivates you? 

Chely:  I have always been very active, and before CrossFit I was self-motivated.  I think now it’s just a little different especially since I have started competing.  Now, I feel like if I don’t put myself out there and give 100% of myself I will let people down.  I know that people look up to me and I want to be an example of what’s possible with hard work.  Personally, I don’t feel like I’m the best but I have made it this far and I will continue to work to be the best I can be.  I guess you could say other people motivate me.

What advice can you give to young women out there that might be hesitant about trying something new?

Chely:  Whatever it is you want to do, just do it.  It is okay to be nervous, but don’t be scared.  You have to face your fear and just attack it with determination.  Anything is possible.  Also, find someone to look up to and mimic them.  When I first started CrossFit I wanted to be like the CrossFit girls from my area that kicked butt like, Lisa Thiel from CrossFit Central and Lindsey Smith who is currently living in Ohio.  I would imagine myself working as hard as they do during my training to stay motivated and focused.  Also, don’t ever hold back on the goals that you want.

Why are you a MissFit?

Chely: I’m not good with describing myself.  I would say that I commit myself to live with passion every day and I am determined to succeed.

As I spoke with Chely one thing was crystal clear, she is extremely honest and humble in her athletic abilities.  She understands her gifts and isn’t afraid to work hard to reach her goals.  Chely is a prime example of what a MissFit is.  

Side note:  I contacted Chely a few days after the 2013 CrossFit Open closed to find out where she placed in her region.  She finished in 20^th, guaranteeing her a spot in the 2013 CrossFit Game South Central Regionals.  Good Luck Chely! 

If you would like to learn more about the CrossFit, you can click on www.crossfit.com and find a local CrossFit gym near you.    

Are you or someone you know a MissFit?  Share your story.  E-mail me at info@themissfitmovement.com.