Date: Thu, 25 Feb 1999 09:24:34 EST
From: WestsideBB@aol.com
Subject: Re: Strength_List: Psyche-up at a meet

Pre-lift rituals vary from person to person.  Some find it necessary to go
absolutely ballistic (Doug Heath) prior to attempting a lift while others
choose to stay calm and focused (Ed Coan).  Either way can prove productive.

Let's examine the facts.  The adrenal gland releases adrenaline into the
bloodstream.  Adrenaline takes us to a heightened level of anxiety and arousal
thereby making us "temporarily" stronger and/or capable of things we might not
be able to do under normal circumstances.  This is why we hear of women
lifting cars and tractors to save their children from death, etc.  While this
"life and death" situation is extreme and I would not classify powerlifting as
a "life and death" experience, there is some correlation.  Arousal, like many
other states of consciousness, is expressed across a bell shaped curve.
Ideally one wants to be at the top of the bell or curve.  This will put one in
a situation for the best possibility for maximal performance.  If one gets
over-psyched, their arousal levels will be on the downside of the curve thus
impairing performance.  Translation: there is a time and place for everything.
Being too relaxed can get you hurt by not being mentally ready to handle a
heavy weight.  Getting excited can and possibly will aid in your immediate
level(s) of strength.  Getting overly excited can actually impede your
progress by making you more tired and fatigued.

Having trained alongside Kirk Karwoski I can vouch for his moods.  On Mondays
(squat day), Kirk is in his "zone."  Don't even think about getting in his
way.  He is so serious and focused.  If looks could kill, I wouldn't be typing
this right now.  He would motivate himself to the point of an internal rage.
He would be like a time-bomb just waiting to explode, then all of the sudden,
he'd save it for his top/heavy set of the day.  He had the same ritual every
time he lifted.  He'd approach the bar, set his grip and then explode with one
huge yell, "YEAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!!!!!"  He was very focused and never expended
any energy unnecessarily.  I've seen other lifters, yell, scream, and be
beaten prior to a lift only to go out to the platform and get buried because
they had nothing left.  On the other end of the spectrum we have lifters like
Ed Coan and Tony Conyers who are equally accomplished yet take another
strategy.  Though I've never witnessed Conyers lift in person, I've heard that
he sometimes is so relaxed he appears high or intoxicated.  That's pretty
relaxed if you ask me.  Coan stays focused, but you can definitely tell he's
got a lot of internal energy brewing.

I seem to fall somewhere in the middle.  While I'm not in a coma, I'm
certainly not going bonkers either.  If I relax too much, I risk losing my
edge and getting hurt.  On the other hand, I've gotten over-psyched before and
gotten buried.

Like I said before, find what works for you and stick with it.  Nobody gives a
damn about your pre-lift psyche techniques, we only care about the lift
itself.  Dr. Brad Hatfield, a world renowned sports psychologist, once told me
that it is necessary for the athlete to fill his/her mind with positive cues
and thoughts just prior to exertion.  Our minds are like a box.  We can fill
them with positive images or negative ones.  If we fill our minds with
positive cues and images, we shouldn't and won't have room for the bad stuff.

I hope this helps shed some light on the issue.
Stay strong,
Matt Gary, CSCS