Mind Muscle Connection
- Lady Leigh Fitness
- Jan 29, 2023
- 3 min read
Article by Anni Bedrossian The mind-muscle connection is the deliberate, focused attention on muscle contraction when weight training, as opposed to passively or mindlessly moving weight around. The theory behind it is that the better the connection between mind and muscle, the better the quality of the contraction. And while this is not a new concept – it’s been applied by body builders for years – it’s only been studied in recent years, with some pretty impressive results.
For example, a 2016 study on the bench press had participants benching at 20, 40, 50, 60, and 80% of their 1RM, by focusing first on the pectoralis major, then the triceps brachii (1). In both cases, the increased focus on contraction led to greater muscle activation at loads between 20-60% of 1RM. Even more interesting was that the increased focus on one muscle did not occur at the expense of the other – both muscles were activated. And while there appears to be a threshold between 60-80% of 1RM (likely because in order to lift very heavy weight, it becomes increasingly important to move with as much power as possible rather than focusing on contracting any one muscle), the potential for extra hypertrophic gains seems pretty clear.
Another study in 2018 by Brad Shoenfeld proved equally as promising, this time on single joint exercises, specifically the bicep curl and the leg extension (2). 30 untrained college-aged men trained 3 times a week over 8 weeks. Half the participants focused on contracting the target muscle during training, while the other half did not.
At the end of 8 weeks, the group who focused on the contraction showed significant more hypertrophy compared to the group who did not. There have been other studies looking at the mind-muscle connection, and while they didn’t study weight training specifically, the results were nonetheless fascinating. One example was a 2014 study that had volunteers wrap their wrists in surgical casts (3). Half the group were instructed to sit quietly and visualize flexing their wrist muscles for 11 minutes a day, 5 days a week. The other half were instructed to do nothing. At the end of the study the wrist muscles of the visualization group were twice as strong as the wrist muscles of the control group.
How to apply the mind-muscle connection
It’s safe to say that by consciously and deliberately focusing on working muscles, you can greatly enhance the quality of your contractions, leading to extra gains. Even better is that applying the mind-muscle connection to your weight training session is actually quite simple.
Here are 5 practical tips:
1. Use warm-up sets
Warm-ups sets help warm up not only the body, they also help warm up the mind. Using lower weights allows you to easily focus on contracting and stretching your muscles with each rep, ultimately preparing both body and mind for the heavier weight.
2. Focus on training the muscle
By this I mean the goal should not be to simply lift as much as possible. The goal should be to lift with intensity and good form while simultaneously focusing on your muscles stretching and contracting. For some this might mean having to lower the amount of weight lifted. Always remember that when it comes to hypertrophy, the goal is not to lift weight per say, the goal is to lift weights as optimally as possible in order to sculpt the body.
3. Visualize
Arnold said it best:
“When people see me doing concentration curls with my eyes closed, they think I’m focused on doing the exercise. Actually, I’m really thinking about a mountain of muscle—giant, unreal biceps, more than 30 inches around. It’s a kind of self-hypnosis, a way of making the muscle function beyond its own rational ‘thinking.’” – Arnold Schwarzenegger
In other words, visualize not only the targeted muscles lifting the weight, but also, visualize your outcome.
4. Slow down!
If you find yourself just going through the motions when you’re lifting weight, or rushing through the reps, I guarantee you, you are not optimizing your training. By simply slowing down you will force yourself to be more present, greatly enhancing your mind-muscle connection.
5. Pose and flex in between sets
In between sets is when the mind-muscle connection can often get lost. Posing and flexing will help keep you in the ‘zone’. So flex, pose, and keep pumping your muscles to help you stay aware and connected.
That’s really all it takes. The beauty about adopting the mind-muscle connection is that it doesn’t require you to train more in order to make extra gains. It just requires you to train smarter. To be more present. To not waste your time or energy. And in the end, who doesn’t want that?
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