Training without intention is like dating without connection

One thing that I have learned over the years of training is to train with intent. It is an inevitable characteristic that training should contain. Particularly, if you want to progress in your practice, no matter whether it is strength, mobility, skill or a combination of all – the drills you do should all have a specific reason. Yes, on the one hand you should be able to cognitively understand why you are doing what you do, but what is more important, in my opinion, is to have a “specific outcome sensation” in mind for a given exercise. This reflects quality training. You are completely in tune with your body, sensing muscle contraction and tendon stiffness in one area while other areas remain relaxed at the same time. There is a constant interchange between contraction and relaxation in smooth, rhythmic patterns.

When starting out, training with intention is much easier said than done. When you do new exercises, you don’t know yet what your “goal sensation” looks like. You have to try and experiment. You have to tweak things in order to provoke different sensations. After a while, a certain awareness and physical intelligence develop (if you stick with it long enough). You know what you want to feel during the exercise, and you try to achieve and even chase that sensation. However, as you advance, new parameters of the exercise – ones you were previously unable to see – come into play, and the process starts again. You will again be confused and in need of figuring things out – just on a higher level this time. That in my opinion is what makes training for physical skills so beautiful (and frustrating at times). There is no end.

Care about what you do

Without having any scientific proof for that, I feel like you can tell if someone is training with quality. They treat it as their craft, and you see the attention and level of detail. On the other hand, you also see when people are distant from the movements they are doing. To be honest, most people I see in the gym are just going through the motions. Sometimes while talking with others. Sometimes while checking Instagram in between and then ticking off the next set. After 3 sets they move on to the next bench for the next mindless exercise. The whole thing seems rote.

It reminds me of dating for the sake of it, but without connection. Meeting the other person feels like a duty, just like the exercises in the gym. The focus mainly lies on a physical outcome. The time together, the “process”, is secondary. Training without intention is like dating without connection. Without passion, genuine interest, the desire to understand, laughter, and frustration, it doesn’t feel real – neither in training nor in romantic relationships.

Honestly, I started writing this short article with the intention to only talk about the importance of intention in training and that I love to see when people train with quality. I am the worst person to give relationship advice. But somehow, I find the comparison I made more valid than I would’ve expected. Maybe I am unraveling something here or maybe it’s now finally the point where I am starting to get insane.

Cheers,

Nik