The Effects of Imagery and Arousal in Powerlifting-Graduate School Flashback

“The Effects of Imagery and Arousal in Powerlifting”

**To preface this, I attended the University of Texas at San Antonio from 2012-2014 and earned my Master’s in Kinesiology with a focus on skill acquisition and motor development. Below was a submission for my applied sport’s psychology class regarding the effects of imagery on powerlifting. Enjoy!

Introduction

The term “powerlifting” can be broken down into two components: strength and speed. In order to conquer any feat in the world of competitive weightlifting, it requires the manifestation of strength and speed to defy the odds. For the past several years, I have been a competitor and continue to train for future events. My biggest accomplishment, though, occurred in March of 2011, when I set a personal record of deadlifting 630 pounds at a body weight of 234. The amount of time and effort dedicated to this task required several months of training, physically and mentally. Initially, training towards this goal consisted of typical training protocol; less reps and more weight. It was until Josh Bryant (world renowned strength coach) vocalized the importance of physical and mental fortitude that would allow for bigger gains and stronger lifts. His efforts always have, and always will be recognized as bridging the gap for any lifter.

When competing, the rules are pretty simple. One must lift the bar off the ground in one continuous motion until it has been “locked out”. Each lifter is given three attempts, and must either stay or increase the load each time. After several months of training, each lifter is offered three attempts to proclaim their efforts as dominant over others. It is common that each individual aspires to lift the most weight, implying that their superior strength cannot be matched, It was the final attempt, and after 605 pounds came up with ease, the idea of confidence was welcoming. For my last lift, I attempted 625 pounds, a personal record that I was eager to attain. Upon approaching the bar, I could feel an immense amount of attention from the crowd, enticing thoughts of stress and anxiety. As I reached for the bar, I shifted my focus towards my usual routine; three deep breaths, grip he bar and pull! The bar began to move upward, with an extra emphasis in speed. With each inch that drew closer to my hips, I could feel the fruits of my labor I completed the lift. I had hit a personal record, as well as earning “best lifter” for most weight lifted relative towards body weight. There were many factors that could attribute to this feat, physically and mentally.

When it comes to weight lifting, many people abide to the simple theories that are presented through popular magazines, forums, and word of mouth. “If you want to be stronger, lift with less reps and more weight” is the typical mantra. Programming is not that simple, and should be considered a sophisticated art that not many are well educated about. One of the biggest benefits to programming that could bridge the gap for any lifter would be the psychological factors of weight lifting. As I began to train for this event, I knew that I had to be comfortable with the idea of lifting a certain amount of weight. Each day I dedicated time towards “mental imagery” for this event. I thought about each of my three attempts, and how much I would lift for each one. I imagined how tough it would be to lift 625 pounds, but that each time I would be successful and exhaust my efforts.

Along with preparing for this lift, I prepared for the event itself. I visited the venue several times, just to know what type of environment I would be in and who would be there. This ritual of psychological preparation is helpful in allowing me to be prepared and focused, rather than being aroused by a new environment and what type of negative effect it could have on me. Once acknowledged, I began to rehearse in my mind the weight of each lift, and envision the environment I would be competing in. Although this event had yet to occur, this ritual of mental imagery made myself believe I had already completed the task before. Once I was at the event and ready to compete, the idea of lifting so much weight provoked ideas of confidence and assurance. “I have (hypothetically) lifted this weight before, this should be a guaranteed lift!” was the type of though I yearned to have in order to improve the outcome of this event.

The final step towards psychological preparation was building an “aggressive approach. Passive people do passive things, but aggressive people do aggressive things. In order to conquer this lift, I needed to become more aggressive when approaching the bar. Before each lift, I cued for a certain songs to help evoke a more violent attitude in my performance. Any great lifter has their own routine, but many can agree that lifting an immense amount of weight requires the lifter to become violent and vicious. The deadlift requires just as indicated; lifting dead weight. To overcome this motionless bar, each lifter must prepare not only physically, but mentally as well. The utilization of psychological factors can help define the difference between an average lifter, and a power lifter.

Influence of Psychological Factors

With competitive powerlifting, the level of mental preparation can make the difference between an average competitor, and a great competitor. As mentioned in previous research, high levels of arousal would be optimal for peak performance, especially in regards to weight lifting (Weinberg & Gould, 2010). Certain movements, such as the "snatch" or "power clean" require high levels of arousal in order to conquer any attempt. These movements, though, are highly complex and require several steps that could require more of a conscious effort towards mental preparation. Staying cognizant of certain cues such as a flat back, powerful extension of the hips, and pulling the barbell with acceleration at a specific phase of this movement would be prime examples of this type of mental preparation. A less complex movement would be the "deadlift", the lift of discussion throughout this scenario. Although there are certain cues that pertain to technique, some of the world's best deadlifters have debatable technique that could be questionable by others. The number one priority for any deadlifter, should be lifting the bar to their hips in one continuous motion. This lift does not require several different steps that any of the previous movements would. The next step before this lift is to elevate performance by increasing motivation by implementing high levels of arousal. Implementing the regulation of arousal shows to be beneficial towards explosive performance, especially during maximal motor activity during shorter durations (Perkins, Wilson, & Kerr, 2001). Oxendine (1970) agrees, proposing that thigh levels of arousal would be beneficial and possibly essential for maximal strength performance. Over arousal could be diminishing with highly sophisticated movements, but due to the simplicity of the deadlift, it is easy to tackle larger loads of weight in performance. With an increased amount of weight added to the bar, it would be recommended to induce high levels of arousal to overcome this mammoth lift.  

Along with these factors, it was previously mentioned that imagery could help improve confidence amongst a lifter. Rehearsing these movements in their mind, especially in real time and as vivid as possible, can bring upon a similar response as an actual movement to entice a sense of "comfort" and "self-assurance" (Weinberg & Gould, 2010). These types of psychological aids will help improve this lifter's efforts and evolve into an elite lifter performing at full potential.

Explanation of Psychological Factors

There are a variety of factors that can affect any training program. There is no such thing as a “one program fits all” routine, for not every athlete is built the same. Regardless of any difference, one training protocol that could be beneficial towards peak performance would be “imagery”. Each athlete dedicates time and effort towards their sport, sometimes enough to cause a deficit due to an excess of physiological strain. Some would agree that in an ideal world, training would never end. This statement assumes that training only consists of physical devotion. Imagery is a useful tool towards improving performance through the utilization of mental preparation. This type of training could be dismissed, though, because of an inferred idea that mental practice has an inferior impact in relation towards physical practice. Research disagrees, and has even found a comparable response between mental and actual movement in regards to physiological variables. Motor Imagery is the mental simulation of a certain movement without actual execution of the indicated task (Guillot et al., 2007). To support this idea, the psycho-neuromuscular theory proposes that the electromyography (EMG) of a muscle during an actual movement is the same during motor imagery (Guillot et al., 2007). Along with innervations of electrical activity, the golgi tendon is also noted to be stimulated as well, causing a magnitude of neuromuscular activity to take place. To put this theory to the test, Guillot et al. (2007) looked into the effects of motor imagery on muscular contractions during the muscular response. EMG recorded values of lifting weighted dumbbells during actual and mentally simulated movements. Values were comparable, indicating that the amount of electrical activity in the working muscle was similar during actual and mentally simulated movements. In order to improve performance without the risk of over-training, it is important to consider the benefits of mental imagery. When training towards maximal effort, it takes quite a toll on the human body. Although the topic being reviewed relates to the psychological factors of training and sport, it is important to consider amount of physiological strain that is involved as well.

Elite strength athletes understand the importance of training protocol, and abide to the periodization model in order to train towards “peak performance”. This means that each athlete will undergo training cycles that progressively overload their body towards maximal effort. This could mean between three to four months of vigorous training that is specifically tailored towards their goal. Although some athletes might train for hours on a daily basis, it is tough for a strength athlete to mimic these types of sessions. Football athletes work towards endurance, agility, speed, strength, and many other variables. This could consist of exercises and routines scattered throughout the day, but a strength athlete only abides to one method; lifting tremendous amounts of weight. As mentioned by Guillot et al. (2007), actual and mentally simulated movements are comparable, especially in regards to EMG levels. Being able to train in this regard would help to culminate more time in preparation, and to elicit thoughts of comfort and confidence for future performance. Research indicates that not only should imagery consider the actual movement, but considering factors such as the environment and movement in real time (Weinberg & Gould, 2010). This level of mental preparation would allow the lifter to practically replicate this effort and have a tighter grasp on their emotional state, eliminating the potential of any distraction. In addition to this research, another study by Bolliet, Collet, and Dittmar (2005) investigates the effect of actual and mentally simulated movement on the autonomic nervous system.

This study looked at the effects of mental preparation for a complex movement skill (the snatch). This type of Olympic lift requires strict technique, as well as a shift in acceleration at various parts of the movement. Due to this level of complexity, any elite lifter would agree that mental preparation is key towards maximal effort. The first and more critical component of skilled motor performance is the “preparation period” (Bolliet et al., 2007). The preparation period is immediately before execution of the task, and it is believed that high quality preparation is essential for participants to perform at their best (Bolliet et al., 2007). The importance of the preparation period lead researchers to compare the autonomic nervous system activity during he preparation period during both actual and mentally simulated attempts.

To briefly review, the autonomic nervous system is a part of the peripheral nervous system and acts as a “control system”. The autonomic nervous system affects heart rate, respiratory rate, perspiration, and many more. During this study, six variables were recorded: skin resistance, skin potential, superficial skin blood flow, superficial skin temperature, instantaneous heart rate, and instantaneous respiratory frequency. Twelve top level male weightlifters were subjects that performed the snatch. This study measured two types of values: phasic and tonic response. The phasic response relates to values between being called out and hands-to-bar contact, while the tonic response relates to values between hands-to-bar contact and execution of the lift (Bolliet et al., 2007). Many studies work towards identifying a significant difference to help proclaim a relationship between independent and dependent variables. This type of study found that in a majority of these measurements, there was no significant difference. This would indicate that measurements are comparable between actual and mentally simulated movements, further reassuring that imagery has an identical response and should be highly recommended in preparation for improvements in strength for competition.

In addition to strength training, participating in mentally simulated movements can help prepare the body for future performance in any regard, not only towards maximal effort. With preparing to achieve a goal, it is important to consider both process and outcome. Along with reaching the outcome of 625 pounds, it is important to visualize proper techniques and cues for this movement. Considerations would include posture, placement of the hips, and keeping the bar moving in one continuous motion. Looking beyond the outcome allows the lifter to critique their performance by bringing attention towards the considerations previously mentioned. This way, the performer can continue to practice without the damage of any additional physiological strain from continuous physical practice. This practice is also common amongst those who are rehabbing from a previous injury, lacking any level of confidence due to a absence of practice.  

Additional key factor towards successful imagery would be “vividness” (Weinberg & Gould, 2010). Mentally simulated movements should consider the environment, such as gripping the bar and visualizing the movement in real time. The more vivid imagery can be allows the lifter to believe they have attempted this movement before. The autonomic nervous system, electromyography of muscular contractions, and neuromuscular activity of the body are all affected by imagery. Building this vivid image can affect all of these variables in an effort to make this mentally rehearsed movement seem as if it has happened before.

 Successful imagery can have a strong influence on performance, but the regulation of arousal can help to improve the outcome of this event. High levels of arousal can be distracting, causing the lifter to neglect concentration and diminish performance. This thought can be true towards highly complex movements, but the deadlift is the exception. The initial phase of the deadlift requires the lifter to move a motionless bar, a task that could be overwhelming for any lifter. The key is to provide endless effort for the barbell to ascend upward, provided by the utilization of regulating arousal. Incorporating arousal regulation is critical for explosive athletic performance where maximal effort is short in duration (Perkins et al., 2001). Implementing higher levels of arousal can improve the amount of force applied to the bar. There are many different ways to heighten levels of arousal, such as music or certain breathing techniques. Mental preparation itself has been proven to improve arousal, which can consequently improve motor performance (Whelan, Epkins, & Meyers, 1990).

Learning to utilize arousal is a helpful tool for those who partake in imagery. When evaluating the variables from the autonomic nervous system, it was shown that the two factors that with a significant difference where heart rate and skin resistance. During the preparation phase for a snatch, weight lifters where shown to have a lower decrease in heart rate in order to concentrate on the upcoming lift. Those who participated in imagery did not such a decrease due to the notion that there was no implication of an actual movement in the future. Although this might seem irrelevant, it goes to show that during imagery it is hard to have as strong of an effect on heart rate as it will during an actual movement. Learning to regulate arousal can help imitate this level of intensity that would be ideal for improving performance for the deadlift.

Recommendations

There are complex movements that require much attention before execution, such as the "snatch" and "power clean". The deadlift is a much simpler movement, as the primary objective is to lift this motionless bar in one continuous motion. This lifter must be mindful or technique, but as mentioned before, some of the world's best deadlifters have debatable form. This form might prioritize their lower back due to the infamous "pelvic tilt". The pelvic tilt allows the lifter to have a more "rounded" back that could cause some to cringe at first sight. Beyond the technique, beyond the attention towards execution, any lifter should consider the utilization of psychological aids as ways to improve performance. Imagery would allow this lifter to mimic the movement in their mind before execution of a movement (Weinberg & Gould, 2010). Those who are able to build a vivid scenario in their mind show improvements in the task at hand. Even the study from Bolliet et al.(2007) shows that there is a similar response between an actual and mental movement, meaning this lifter can spend much more time training for a competition without any excess of physical strain on their body. This is a great tool to help improve confidence and eliminate ideas of stress and anxiety. "I've lifted this weight before (mentally), why should I not be able to do it again?” Along with imagery, being able to regulate arousal could be a critical psychological aid for optimal performance. As the law of specificity defines, one must train towards their specific goal. This is a common mentality amongst the world of strength and conditioning. If an athlete wants to lift heavy weight, they must train with heavy weight. If an athlete wants to train for speed, it would be foolish to run a mile during each day of training. Although these ideas deviate from the realm of psychology, this law could be applicable towards mental preparation for strength training. The deadlift is (or should be) designated as the toughest, most respected lift for any weight lifter. The bench press is a highly respected lift amongst any avid lifter, but the bench press allows each lifter to benefit from the physiological aid of a "stretch-reflex". When the bar descends towards the chest, an eccentric contraction takes place that allows the pectoralis to "stretch" and develop tension for inducing stored elastic energy. Once the barbell touches the chest, this stretched muscle (stored with elastic energy) will allow the barbell to sling shot upward during the concentric phase. The deadlift replicates its name; lifting dead weight. There are no benefits of a eccentric-concentric relationship, but rather a battle over inertia that would put Isaac Newton’s first law to the test. This is when a lifter must test their mental fortitude, and to attack this task with a more aggressive approach. As mentioned before, it is ideal to train identical towards a specific goal. A passive lifter would approach the barbell with a passive mentally, but an aggressive lifter would approach this bar with high levels of energy and arousal. The toughest part of the deadlift would be the initial pull from the ground. This is when an aggressive and persistent mindset would be useful. Inducing thoughts of anger, excitement, and blaring music with shredding guitars that would theoretically make "one's face melt". Exceptions from this would include any Gregorian chant or song about someone's unfortunate downfall in a relationship. Along with imagery, the use of (building hype) would be helpful with increasing the odds of a successful lift due to an aggressive mentality for a more forceful lift.

Summary

               Powerlifting requires as much mental strength as it does physical strength. Moving tremendous amounts of weight can be a challenge, as it could be taxing on the body and the mind. Learning to overcome this barrier through techniques such as imagery and arousal can help bridge the gap for any competitive weight lifter. Passive people lift with passive efforts, and although this might be acceptable for many, this type of effort would not be suitable for maximal gains with the deadlift. Together, harvesting the manifestation of these psychological factors can help any lifter achieve their very best, regardless of the load on the bar.

Reference List

Bolliet, O. O., Collet, C. C., & Dittmar, A. A. (2005). Autonomic nervous system activity during actual and mentally simulated preparation for movement. Applied Psychophysiology & Biofeedback, 30(1), 11-20.

Guillot, A., Lebon, F., Rouffet, D., Champely, S., Doyon, J., & Collet, C. (2007). Muscular responses during motor imagery as a function of muscle contraction types. International Journal Of Psychophysiology: Official Journal Of The International Organization Of Psychophysiology, 66(1), 18-27.

Oxendine, J. B. (1970). Emotional arousal and motor performance. Quest, 13, 23–30.

Perkins, D. D., Wilson, G. V., & Kerr, J. H. (2001). The effects of elevated arousal and mood on maximal strength performance in athletes. Journal Of Applied Sport Psychology, 13(3), 239-259.

Weinberg, R, & Gould, D. (2010). Foundations of sport and exercise psychology (5th ed.). Champaign: Il: Human Kinetics.Whelan, J. P., Epkins, C. C., & Meyers, A. W. (1990). Arousal interventions for athletic performance: Influence of mental preparation and competitive experience. Anxiety