Not Making the Hulk Angry

This is a blog I wrote a while back on jrodtrained.com.

Not Making the Hulk Angry… April 15, 2011

A few things on goal setting is that they should be

1) Challenging but achievable.  Don’t set a goal to defeat the Hulk when you are Batman.  Instead, in Batman’s case: set a goal to NOT make The Hulk angry.

2) The more specific your goal the more likely you will achieve it.  If you set a goal to “do your best” or “win” without defining exactly what that is (i.e.” your previous best XXX and you will beat it by YYY” or “the record is ZZZ and you will beat it by YYY”) it is not likely that you will achieve your goal.

3) You should start by setting small, short term, and easy to achieve goals such as getting one more rep on a set than the last set.  Or too not make The Hulk angry this week.  Then after you have had practice setting goals move onto harder ones and include long-term goals.  For example get to X% body fat by (XXX date) and maintain it for 6 months (or 180 days).

4) Set an action plan to obtain these goals.  A goal is meaningless if you don’t do something about it.  For example if your goal was to lose body fat, more specifically 2% in 30 days, you could put in your action plan that you make workout 4 times a week and eat a meat an nut breakfast every morning at 7AM.

5) Evaluate your goals often.  If your goal is a body composition goal you should evaluate your progress every 2 weeks by getting your body fat tested.

6) Revise your goal if needed.  If a barrier shows up that makes you unable to reach your goal of YYY by date XXX then you should revise your goal so that it is achievable.  Do not just give up on that goal.  If your goal was to do 12 pull ups in 90 days and 60 days into it you can only do 2 reps, you should change your goal into doing 3 more reps in the next 60 days.  That way you still challenge yourself to do better than you did the previous 60 days and your end goal is more achievable.

7) You should be held accountable for the goals you set for yourself.   Tell your friends your goal(s) so when they ask you how your goal is coming along you will have to tell them something.  Everyone needs someone to hold them accountable.

I encourage you to start setting goals and don’t forget to write them down.

Stay Strong,

James Tatum

Bar's Loaded

"Bar’s Loaded" 

I chalk my hands and then stare down at the bar. My heart rate increases and I can feel the adrenaline running through my body. I hear a grunt, then a bar slam behind me as other lifters warm-up. My hands are shaking with excitement. I walk to the back of the platform. The air is cold on my arms, and it gives me a chill. I walk to the bar and place my right hand on it, fasten my hook-grip up and then do the same with my left. My hands are steadied by the barbell. I give a grunt. I look up and don’t see anything in the general direction that my eyes are looking.  I imagine myself pulling the bar off the floor and sweeping it back as I get to my heels. I visualize the extension of my second pull to my hips and pulling myself down while moving my feet slightly outwards. I go back to the reality of actually lifting. I pull that bar without anything to spare. Next thing I know, I am standing up with the bar over my head patiently waiting for the down signal. Everything went just as I visualized it right before the lift, even though I felt like I had no time to control anything. My adrenaline-filled body obeyed my mind. 

"Down"

"Good Lift"

My hands are shaking again, ready for the next lift.