Train with Intent!
Intent. That is the golden ticket to success in any area, especially athletically. Many of you like to train. That is good. Many of you like to train a lot (for long periods). That is also good. But many of you lack the ability to train with the intensity required to make actual changes. Let me explain.
Going to the weight room every day, doing the same routine, and lifting the exact same weights each session is not going to get you the results you need to get better. If you want to get stronger, you need to challenge yourself to lift more (either more weight or more reps).
For example…
If I went to my local gymnasium and put up 1,000 basketball shots, you might say, “Wow, good for you!” But the real question you should ask is: “How many did you make?” It doesn’t do much good to just chuck up 1,000 air balls just to say I “put in work” and “#grind.” Now, if I said “10”, that wouldn’t be very good. But if next week we had the same conversation and I said “20”, then you see that I am pushing myself and actually getting better.
Or if I went to the field and kicked 100 field goal attempts. The same thought process should go through your head, “Good for you, but how many did you make?” “How many did you make last time (more or less)?” Those will help you see if I am getting better or not.
Now we will translate that to my area of expertise, the weight room. I see too many young athletes in the weight room or posting their sessions on social media that are not going to get them the results they want. It is great that you are going to train every day at 6 am before school; that is step number 1. So kudos to you for accomplishing that habit. Now in order to go from where you are to where you want to be, you need to make sure you are putting in the amount of intensity and effort required to actually make gains.
Grabbing the same 30lb DBs for your three sets of five reps on DB Bench all summer is not going to get the job done. You won’t get stronger if you don’t actually try to get stronger. Your body will adapt to the stress you place upon it. So if you stay in the 30s, you will stay at that strength level. It is not enough to just show up, check the box, lift light weights so you don’t get sore, and move on, but then tell everyone, “I’ve been to the gym every day this week.” Strong people lift heavy weights, and so do fast people. If you want to make gains and get better, you need to train with intent.
If you want to get stronger, you need to try and lift heavier (after a period of time). Everyone will start at different points. As seen in my free throw example, I wasn’t very good, but I was getting better each session. Same with you in the weight room. No one cares that you only lifted the bar (45lbs) today. The point is that the next time they see you in a few weeks, you better have added some weight to make some gains and continue to push yourself.
It won’t be easy at all. Getting strong requires lifting heavy weights, and heavy weights are heavy. But unless you put the phone away, fuel up, and mentally prepare to actually grind, those gains you want are never going to come. But bring some INTENT to your sessions and watch the gain-train roll in!
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Train with Intent!
Intent. That is the golden ticket to success in any area, especially athletically. Many of you like to train. That is good. Many of you like to train a lot (for long periods). That is also good. But many of you lack the ability to train with the intensity required to make actual changes. Let me explain.
Going to the weight room every day, doing the same routine, and lifting the exact same weights each session is not going to get you the results you need to get better. If you want to get stronger, you need to challenge yourself to lift more (either more weight or more reps).
For example…
If I went to my local gymnasium and put up 1,000 basketball shots, you might say, “Wow, good for you!” But the real question you should ask is: “How many did you make?” It doesn’t do much good to just chuck up 1,000 air balls just to say I “put in work” and “#grind.” Now, if I said “10”, that wouldn’t be very good. But if next week we had the same conversation and I said “20”, then you see that I am pushing myself and actually getting better.
Or if I went to the field and kicked 100 field goal attempts. The same thought process should go through your head, “Good for you, but how many did you make?” “How many did you make last time (more or less)?” Those will help you see if I am getting better or not.
Now we will translate that to my area of expertise, the weight room. I see too many young athletes in the weight room or posting their sessions on social media that are not going to get them the results they want. It is great that you are going to train every day at 6 am before school; that is step number 1. So kudos to you for accomplishing that habit. Now in order to go from where you are to where you want to be, you need to make sure you are putting in the amount of intensity and effort required to actually make gains.
Grabbing the same 30lb DBs for your three sets of five reps on DB Bench all summer is not going to get the job done. You won’t get stronger if you don’t actually try to get stronger. Your body will adapt to the stress you place upon it. So if you stay in the 30s, you will stay at that strength level. It is not enough to just show up, check the box, lift light weights so you don’t get sore, and move on, but then tell everyone, “I’ve been to the gym every day this week.” Strong people lift heavy weights, and so do fast people. If you want to make gains and get better, you need to train with intent.
If you want to get stronger, you need to try and lift heavier (after a period of time). Everyone will start at different points. As seen in my free throw example, I wasn’t very good, but I was getting better each session. Same with you in the weight room. No one cares that you only lifted the bar (45lbs) today. The point is that the next time they see you in a few weeks, you better have added some weight to make some gains and continue to push yourself.
It won’t be easy at all. Getting strong requires lifting heavy weights, and heavy weights are heavy. But unless you put the phone away, fuel up, and mentally prepare to actually grind, those gains you want are never going to come. But bring some INTENT to your sessions and watch the gain-train roll in!