Much has been written about the MIND: MUSCLE connection in the fields of bodybuilding and physique enhancement, a phenomenon that has been consistently backed up by scientific research. In 2010 in France at the Centre of Research and Innovation in Sport researchers showed that mental imagery boosted performance in the gym, increasing strength in both the bench press and leg press.
19 subjects were recruited for a 6 week study, and were assigned to either a mental imagery or a control group. The 2 groups performed identical bench press and leg press exercises. The difference came during the rest period between sets. The mental imagery group were told to visualise the exercise movement and imagine how the muscles would feel during each rep. The control group carried out a neutral task.
After 12 workouts, the mental imagery group had gained strength more quickly than the control group. They increased both their single rep maximum lift and the number of reps that they could do with given weights.
The mental imagery group were told to picture in their heads the muscle that they were training and to mentally successfully achieve a certain number of reps with a weight before they trained. They were told to FEEL the set in their heads from the moment the weight was picked up to the conclusion of the set, picturing as vividly as possible how each rep felt.
Without going into too much science, mental imagery helps to increase muscle strength and consequential performance by making your neuromuscular system more efficient, recruiting muscle fibres that would not otherwise be used. This, in simple terms, enables you to lift greater amounts of weight, which in turn leads to the development of larger muscles.
Perhaps the most famous example of this is multi Mr Olympia/ Mr Universe winner Arnold Schwarzenegger who thought of his biceps as mountains where there was no limit to biceps growth, which enabled him to go beyond normal mental barriers.
The results of the research in France mirrored those achieved at Hull University which was presented to the British Psychological Society's Annual Conference at the City Hall Cardiff in March 2006. In this study, 30 people performed machine bicep curls with a machine that measured how much their biceps were working. Subjects tried to produce as much force as possible under three conditions: (1) thinking only about their muscles and how they were working, (2) thinking about the weight they were lifting and (3) thinking about whatever they wanted.
It was found that there was significantly more muscle activity when people concentrated and focussed on the muscle that they were working rather than the weight that they were lifting.
Thinking about a muscle increases action potential, the electrical discharge that travels along the membrane of a cell, but will only lead to increased strength if the muscle is fully contracted, becomes overloaded, and is then allowed to repair and recover.
At the Cleveland Clinic Foundation subjects visualised contracting a finger or bending an elbow but not to perform a task. Over a 12 week period in which subjects did 50 mental contractions 5 days per week, the muscles powering the finger and elbow strengthened by 35% and 13.5%, respectively.
Stimulating a specific muscle response can also be generated by watching the actions of others. In a study at the University of Surrey, researchers found that watching live performances of dance resulted in muscle-specific motor responses in viewers, even when those viewers had no formal training in these movements. Study participants were either frequent dance spectators of ballet, Indian dance, or novices who never watched dance. Researchers tested participants using a technique called single pulse trans cranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to measure corticospinal excitability, or signals in the hand and arm. Researchers found that if the subject was watching a motor action performed by somebody else, the motor cortex got excited. Knowing how excited the motor cortex was meant that the brain was tuning itself in ready for similar actions.
The empathic ability of participants was also tested, using an Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI). This is a standard questionnaire used to measure cognitive empathy. It includes a fantasy scale, with questions designed to gauge the ability to immerse yourself into a fictional character, story, or film.
Frequent ballet spectators showed larger responses in the arm muscles when watching ballet compared to when they watched other types of dance, similar results were found with Indian dance fans when watching Indian dance. They also found that that the Indian dance spectators scored higher on the fantasy subscale of the IRI. Results showed that even without physical training, corticospinal excitability can be enhanced as a function of either visual experience, or the tendency to imaginatively transpose oneself into fictional characters. They concluded that it might be possible that transposing oneself mentally into the body of a dancer has some beneficial effects for you, as in your somatosensory perception of yourself, such as the imagined feeling (that) you were dancing with somebody else.
Transposing this to the field of muscle building it would be interesting to see the muscular responses of weight lifting fans watching a weight lifting competition or bodybuilders watching a movie of some top professionals doing a workout.
What all of the above suggests is the power of the mind for muscle building. Recently I have been conducting my own trials, which at some stage I hope to publish, working with teenage Rugby players. Without, at this stage, going into too much detail, individual subjects have been using visualisation as a means to increase overall body strength. The results have been nothing short of amazing with strength increases of in excess of 30% being achieved on average by all participants.
Being a full on contact sport, additional strength equates on the pitch to improved performance levels (these of course are highly subjective) as determined by the players, coaches and of course results (winning) juxtaposed with fewer injuries.
To summarise the above - your mind is a very powerful tool when it comes to muscle building. Before you train you need to get yourself into the correct mind set by observing something inspirational in an associated field (such as in the example above a series of You Tube clips with impressive Rugby tries and tackles). Then before doing a particular exercise focus on the muscle that you are working. The greater the amount of your focus on the muscle the greater the results will be. Feel the muscle as you do the exercise. Concentrate solely on the muscle rather than the resistance being moved. As a side note, in this last respect, from a safety point of view, it is preferential to train with machines rather than free weights as free weights often need more concentration on the movement in order for the exercise to be done correctly.
Once the workout is complete, keep your visualisations going by KNOWING that your muscles have been worked fully and keeping your mind channelled into the additional growth that it will bring.
Use your mind to achieve greater results in your training. By focusing in on your muscles rather than the exercise you can greatly enhance your muscle size and strength, I am currently working with many leading bodybuilders, Rugby Players, Athletes and sports professionals all of whom are benefiting from the power of visualization and the appliance of science to muscle building.
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