Fitness Friday: How to improve your workouts with mental focus

By: Jeff

[Editor's Note: We are starting a new series of articles called Fitness Friday. Every Friday we provide you with some advice to help you reach the level of fitness you desire. Enjoy!]

We've all been there. In the gym, going through the motions, thinking about something else and essentially not wanting to be there. You leave feeling as if you've wasted more time than made yourself better. The question remains, how do you prevent this from happening in the future?

The answer might seem corny and simple, but it is all about mental focus. Having the ability to put those external factors on the back burner for the next 45 minutes, and simply focus on the task at hand.

Here are some tips which I have found work for me, and could help you when it comes to becoming more focused on your workouts, and seeing the benefits of your hard work:

- Be prepared - Just like a coach has to have a plan in place for a practice or game, you need to have a plan before your workout. Forget just walking in not knowing what you are going to do that particular day, sit down the day before and chart out your workout, diagram your cardio session and mentally walk through the workout so you are ready for your scheduled training session.

- Music - Some like to listen to gangster rap, some prefer classic rock. Whatever floats your boat, in my opinion. Whatever you choose to listen to while you train, make sure it is music which motivates you. I don't know too many people who would choose to listen to Abba or the Carpenters when trying to rep out a set of biceps curls, but whatever works for you is what will keep you focused and motivated to do more.

- Block out distractions - This could be combined with the music piece, but if you workout by yourself, your best bet is to put the headphones on to tell others in the gym you are there to focus, not socialize. Many use the gym as a place to meet people and make connections. You can do all that after you are done training. Keep conversations to a minimum and remember you have a job to do.

- Have a backup plan - Everyone has walked into the gym looking forward to their workout and they suddenly see the equipment they had planned on using is taken. Don't fret, this is an easy fix. If you were prepared for the workout and wrote down your plan, simply move things around to make it work. If you were going to start with bench press, but all the benches are taken, move on to the squats you had planned next and go to the bench press when it becomes available. One small hiccup cannot derail an entire workout.

- Forget the TVs - Gyms across America are now putting televisions everywhere within their facilities. TVs on your cardio equipment, in the weight room, the ab room and some gyms even have movie theaters to watch movies while you workout. The absurdity of this has gone over the edge, in my opinion. When you step on a treadmill or a stair climber, it should be to workout, not to watch TV. The television can not only cause you to lose your balance and fall (yes, I've seen this happen several times), but takes your attention away from the workout.

Ultimately, when you approach your workout, you need to have the mental focus to get into the gym and improve. Whether your goal is a faster mile time, to lose weight, to see gains in the weight room or to just feel better. Your goals are just that...your goals, but you need to have the mental focus to achieve those goals you set for yourself. Hopefully these tips will help you do just that in 2015.

Happy Fitness Friday!