While recovering from your injuries, which may have been the result of your intensive training at CKO Kickboxing or of your fight in a UFC-style ring, you should continue working on your mental game. You have a precious commodity that may not have been available when you were as fit as a fiddle: plenty of time to rest, recover and reflect.
Here’s how you can continue your mental game so that by the time you’re ready to get back into the gym and ring, you’re physically and mentally ready.
Analyze Your Moves
With video recording technology, there’s no excuse about recording your workouts and fights so that you will have reference materials later on. You can use your newfound time off the gym and ring to analyze your moves and learn from your mistakes.
For example, you may discover that your injury was caused by improper form and execution of exercises. You can then work on these mistakes as soon as you have the go signal from your doctor and personal trainer.
Work on Your Visualization Skills
There’s truth in clichés and, indeed, what your mind can conceive, your body can achieve – within reasonable limits, of course. While you’re still unable to go full blast with your training including your sparring sessions, you can work on your visualization skills.
You will find that it will significantly contribute to your mental readiness when the time comes. Why? You’re allowing your brain to strengthen its ability to send signals to the muscles and joints of your body.
There are several things that you can visualize including:
- Your form and technique in execution
- Your rhythm, timing and flow of exercise combinations
- Your setups and sequences during competitions, such as in combat sports
Even as your body heals from its injury, your mind continues its training. You don’t have to limit yourself to visualization of your movements, too. You should also visualize your attitude in the gym and court – or ring or field, whatever your sport’s venue is.
If you haven’t started on meditation, then your recovery period is a great time to get on it. Meditation and mindfulness have been proven to improve athletes’ performance, and these are easy to do, too, when you set your mind to it.
Be sure to incorporate nutrition matters into your recovery plan, too. Your body will certainly benefit from the modified diet and nutrition while also readying it for when you can get back into the game.