Be the (CF) Buddha
The Moment Arrives
There is a moment that occurs in the midst of difficult workouts, events, trials, or physical undertakings – when signals of physical and mental stress begin to register (but not peak). The moment occurs at a point of effort when your mind can still comprehend the remaining volume of work to be completed and can consider your body’s best chances for “survival” – which are:
quitting
slowing down
changing course
continuing on
Emotional reactions often accompany this moment, presenting as thoughts of anxiety, doubt, or fear. Examples include:
“I can’t maintain this pace.”“How many more rounds?”“This is too fast/steep/difficult.”“I don’t think I can finish.”“My legs feel like lead.”
Have you ever muttered sentiments like these inside your own brain? I have.
Times that I’ve encountered “the moment” include soccer tryouts, rugby matches, mountain bike rides, CrossFit workouts, and track intervals. While no one is immune to the moment’s arrival, it is the difference in our response to it that will dictate our performance.
Sports performance scientists and psychologists have studied various tactics to trick, amplify, or “hack” the brain and body into better performance for decades. Visualization strategies, positive self-talk, mental-focus endurance training, have all proven varying effectiveness. One approach that I am particularly fond of (in sport and life) is rooted in the Buddhist concepts of mindfulness and non-judgement. By cultivating these skills and applying them to our mental state during workouts (re: times of stress), we can remain more focused and able to execute uncomfortable but accomplishable paces, efforts or tasks. Since I primarily coach in a CrossFit setting, I jokingly refer to it as “being the CrossFit Buddha”.
What is the CrossFit Buddha?
Being the “CrossFit Buddha” encompasses two skills rooted within Buddhist teachings and applied in a state of physical duress:
Staying present in the moment of effort we are in rather than worrying about work or effort to come in the future.
Non-judgement. Cultivating the ability to suspend judgement on how our body feels.
Staying Present in the Current Moment of Effort
Staying present means not dwelling on the future work, duration, effort, or intervals to come. Which is different from willfully ignoring an appropriate pace and hoping for the best. First and foremost as athletes, we must “know ourselves” and have a general idea of what we’re capable of in order to sustain and move beyond it.
When the moment arrives where our body’s fatigue catches the mind’s attention – muscle/mental fatigue, mounting effort, elevated heart rate, discomfort – it will only cause further stress to anticipate and worry about the remainder of the work. Instead, borrow from Buddhist mindfulness practices – staying present, focusing on the task (or exercise) we are performing in that exact moment. Marathon runners call this “running the mile you’re in”.
Some examples:
In an EMOM (every minute on the minute), it means existing entirely in your burpee-box-jump station instead of dreading the upcoming assault bike station.
In a conditioning class, it means focusing on the calm, yet intentional effort you can give NOW in round four without letting your brain wander and create fear/anxiety about round eight.
When cycling or hiking a steep hill, it means shifting your focus from concern over “when will this climb end” to elements that you control right now – such as the synchronicity of your breathing with the cadence of your pedal stroke, the length of your exhale, relaxing the muscles of your jaw, or un-shrugging your shoulders.
Dwelling on future work detracts from precious brain power and focus that can be utilized to accomplish present work faster or more efficiently. In addition, stress over the future increases present-moment physiological duress - anxiety, heart rate, breathing rate, shallow breathing and sympathetic activation. Remind yourself – the assault bike station is going to arrive whether you worry about it or not; the top of the hill will arrive whenever it does. Instead of contributing to panic or dread, simply narrow our focus to the moment you’re in and focus on what you can do to accomplish the present moment’s task at hand – it’s often more than you realize.
Non-Judgement:
The best athletes in the world feel similar pain and discomfort as novice athletes do (simply at higher thresholds of output). The difference lies in their ability to attach less concern and reactionary behavior to those signals – it turns out that over years of difficult training, they’ve learned that effort and discomfort will in fact not kill them. The brain’s job is to constantly scan our body’s input and adjust physiological responses accordingly to keep us alive. To be the CrossFit Buddha, we must recalibrate our brain’s relationship to signals of discomfort. This starts by evaluating our reactionary feelings and actions in response to effort.
First, differentiate between effort and pain.
“We often think of races as ‘painful’ but physical pain is completely distinct from the sense of effort – the struggle to keep going against a mounting desire to stop – that usually limits race speed.”
ENDURE: Mind, Body, and the Curiously Elastic Limits of Human Performance by Alex Hutchinson
To become the CrossFit Buddha, we cultivate “non-judgemental self-awareness”, which as it turns out, is a loop. It begins with first recognizing what you’re experiencing, for example: “my legs feel heavy”; The non-judgemental part is allowing ourselves to not freak out about that! Cultivating the belief and mindset that we can continue on, maintain the pace, and accomplish work with heavy legs, it may simply require more effort. The increased effort will bring more signals and self-awareness, and the cycle repeats.
“For a marathoner, leg pain and shortness of breath become neutral sources of information to be used for pacing, rather than emotionally charged warnings to panic about. You learn to monitor how your body feels, while suspending judgement about it.”
ENDURE: Mind, Body, and the Curiously Elastic Limits of Human Performance by Alex Hutchinson
Endurance VS Intensity
You might be wondering – does this “CrossFit Budhha” mindset apply only to endurance events? Certainly not! The ability to stay in the moment AKA “in the fight” – or to – “keep your foot on the gas pedal” – regardless of signs your body is sending to your brain can be utilized during short bouts of intensity. Have you ever noticed how a minute on an assault bike can feel like an eternity?
Einstein said it first – time is relative!
Moments of intensity slow down our experience of time by narrowing our focus and attention to only what matters to keep us alive.
(and in the round of 15’s of Fran, your body may in fact think you are in danger of dying.)
To implement CrossFit Buddha mentality in a short-bout of intensity requires that the skill of “physical-mindfulness” be extremely honed since everything happens on a quicker timeline. The time to be mindful, focus on something we control in the present, and apply non-judgemental self-awareness is very short!
Start training yourself to “look” for the moment where your mind wanders on both short-duration tests as well as long-duration activities. It is usually very near to the peak of discomfort!