[sensations] you're looking for when working out page 2

[elorajade]

LOL @ Grumpy..

I just got finished mine. So its fresh.

For me, I ensure that my form and pace is correct while doing reps. I work with a personal trainer who also lives in my head for my other 3 workouts per week yelling at me when I go too fast. LOL!

I honestly do not think that the majority of people really know how hard to push themselves unless they do work with a personal trainer who can push them to their limits. I've been working with her for 6 months and its only been within the last month or so that I push myself as hard or harder than she pushes me. I see a lot of people at the gym who do not have the proper form when working various machines, I see them going so fast and "short" that I wonder if its a specific technique and wonder how it can be actually working the muscle completely, and I can only imagine that their performance suffers. But I'm the fat lady at the gym, so I'm not about to make any helpful suggestions.

During my workout, I push on the reps until I the last 2-3 cause me to feel like I'm going to drop the weight, or I don't feel like I can finish, or if I'm with my trainer I curse her out. I feel the burn in the muscle, during the last set, I'm usually shaking and really pushing it out.

I expect pain and soreness for 1-2 days afterwards. I also expect progression and get it!

[Owly]

Well that would depend on what you class as "results".

You should take a look into Mihalyi Csiksentmihalyi (pardon the spelling) and the Theory of Flow. He talks about the balance between the demands of a task and the ability of the individual - I think you'll find some interesting relevance to your questions there.

My personal opinion is that maximum performance comes from "losing" yourself in the technique.

I second the recommendation to look at Flow Theory. Flow states tend to occur when people are performing to their top level, whether that's for athletes or artists. Interestingly, I first encountered Csikszentmihalyi in a Psychology of Creativity course and recognized it as something that sometimes came out in my writing practice, but the same theory applies to athletics. In my time in martial arts, the most amazing moments came when I reached a flow state, either sparring or working on poomse (forms). I'm now starting to experience them while lifting sometimes too.

For me, there's this moment where form clicks perfectly and effortlessly, but effort still exists. The hard work doesn't stop, but it feels like I'm in a perfectly natural and absolutely clear state where the work is welcome and somehow joyful (even if it also hurts).

[Furan]

@Owly, @Coach Palfrey,
do you have special link recommendations ? videos / talks / good reads ?
I guess I could have a look soon, since you're urging me to do so =P I can't wait to see exactly what you mean by flow in sparring and forms. Is it something close to what Miyamoto Musashi describes in the water chapter of the Book of Five Rings ?

@elorajade : thanks for sharing your experience. For my part, when I was doing gymnastics, I would have a HUUUGE session on Sundays (5hrs) and then, I'd be like dead for the rest of the week. That lasted three months and then it got better and I would be sore for only four days after sessions

[Alex Good]

My main sensations when exercising are a bit of anticipatory fear (ie damn that bar is going to be heavy, oh this is gonna hurt), then pain, then extreme fatigue.

This.