When you think of mental toughness, who comes to mind? I can think of a few of the content creators on this platform who I would label that way. Many of us think of that person’s mental toughness and say: “well that’s just how they are, and I could never be that way.” But, here’s the thing — mental toughness is not a trait you are born with; rather, it is a cultivated set of skills that a person has worked on and does work on throughout their life. Believing that you can’t do it and that this other person just “has it” is both selling yourself short and failing to recognize their hard work.
Mental toughness involves positive self-talk, mindfulness, mantras, reframing negative thoughts, using positive reinforcement for desired behaviors, self-compassion, discipline, maintaining awareness of and honoring emotions, and goal-setting, among many other psychological skills. They require ongoing practice and commitment to be able to put into practice during times when we need it.
Many of these skills are already incorporated in the other guided meditations through Fitness Blender — so, if you’ve been engaging with them regularly, you’re building these skills. But, I wanted to package a guided meditation that puts a few of these things together and allows you to practice them with this intention in mind.
So, I want you to go into this guided meditation thinking of how you can use these skills during high pressure situations. Thinking explicitly about this as you practice them creates a neural pathway wherein you associate this behavior or skill with tough times. That increases the likelihood that you will think about and employ these strategies when you need them.
What other factors go into mental toughness for you (or people you know)?
New Guided Practice for Mental Toughness
When you think of mental toughness, who comes to mind? I can think of a few of the content creators on this platform who I would label that way. Many of us think of that person’s mental toughness and say: “well that’s just how they are, and I could never be that way.” But, here’s the thing — mental toughness is not a trait you are born with; rather, it is a cultivated set of skills that a person has worked on and does work on throughout their life. Believing that you can’t do it and that this other person just “has it” is both selling yourself short and failing to recognize their hard work.
Enter today's new guided practice: Guided Meditation for Mental Toughness
Mental toughness involves positive self-talk, mindfulness, mantras, reframing negative thoughts, using positive reinforcement for desired behaviors, self-compassion, discipline, maintaining awareness of and honoring emotions, and goal-setting, among many other psychological skills. They require ongoing practice and commitment to be able to put into practice during times when we need it.
Many of these skills are already incorporated in the other guided meditations through Fitness Blender — so, if you’ve been engaging with them regularly, you’re building these skills. But, I wanted to package a guided meditation that puts a few of these things together and allows you to practice them with this intention in mind.
So, I want you to go into this guided meditation thinking of how you can use these skills during high pressure situations. Thinking explicitly about this as you practice them creates a neural pathway wherein you associate this behavior or skill with tough times. That increases the likelihood that you will think about and employ these strategies when you need them.
What other factors go into mental toughness for you (or people you know)?