We are finding ourselves in very uncertain and different times these last few weeks. With our daily lives out of balance we have asked Coach Heather Betancourt to put together five habits that have helped her enhance her performance and how we can apply them to this instance that we are all currently in. We hope you enjoy and make the most out of this extra time!

1. Mindfulness Practice 

Pre-quarantine, the best excuse for not practicing mindfulness, was the lack of time. Well, now, no excuses! Mindfulness can be applied in many different ways, meditation, visualization, breathing, stretching, yoga, walking, running, etc. The two that are most commonly passed over are meditation and visualization because they are silent practices, for the most part. In a society that is fast-moving and never stopping, it makes it more challenging to incorporate these practices into our daily lives. 

Small commitments create small changes that allow for long-term growth and practice. Meditation does not have to go on for hours or even 30 minutes. It can be a simple, 10-15 minute practice. Obviously, there are many great resources out there as far as guided meditation go: Calm, Headspace, Aura, Smiling Mind, 10% Happier, Inscape, Insight Timer, etc., but the initial desire to practice meditation has to come from YOU. 

 Numerous studies have shown that a consistent meditation practice can improve your memory, slow down/prevent some neurodegenerative diseases, reduce blood pressure, lead to neuroplasticity in the brain, assist in better sleep regimens, make decision making easier, reduce stress and other physiological benefits. The thing is, consistent meditation is better than lengthy meditation. Just like anything, consistency is king in reaping the long term benefits. Meditation can set you apart from other athletes, being able to slow down, focus on your breathing, creating a deep mind-body connection will allow you to be more intentional with workouts, competitions, and even studying game film. 

Yes, meditation can be a small additive to the greater scheme of long term health and success, but the catalyst that can take your workouts and competitions to the next level is visualization. Visualization is the technique used to envision what you want to accomplish, exactly how you want to get there, and then take action to create those positive outcomes. 

Science has shown that athletes who use visualization perform better in their respective sports and people who imagine themselves doing a specific task, improve their performance in that task. Visualization can be a one-time thing: you have a championship game coming up, the days before you sit quietly thinking about the type of performance you are going to have, how in control of your emotions you will be, how you will outlast fatigue and rise above physically, etc. Then you do all of those things during the game. You need to know what you want. Don't leave out any details; there should be so many details that you create emotional connections within your visualization. 

This technique isn't just for big games or competitions. It can be utilized before lifts, runs, conditioning, class, or even for professional/life goals. Exercise Physiologist Guang Yue at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation in Ohio discovered that people who did a virtual workout over three months in their minds were able to increase their strength by 35% versus 53% by the people who actually did the workout. Yes, the people who did the workout got stronger by 18% more, but can you imagine if you applied visualization before each and every workout, practice, and film? You could essentially add 35% more success to your activity, just by thinking about it beforehand. That's huge, especially when talking about setting ourselves apart from other players or competitors. 

2. Mobility/Stretching Practice 

Since competition is at a standstill right now, it is a perfect time to identify your physical weakness and work on them! Adding a daily mobility practice can correct imbalances in your body, increase range of motion, joint capacity, and keep your tissue healthy to make your inevitable return to sport safer. You do not have to develop a long routine to gain the benefits, pick 2-4 movements, and perform them 2-3 times per day! Remember, consistency over quantity. Consider the long term benefits if you begin now, you have an established routine that becomes a habit, which when the return to sport happens you can carry it over into a lifetime of consistent mobility gains! Check out the blog post on mobility to find some resources to build your routine!

3. Journaling 

Keeping a journal may come naturally to some; you might already keep a daily journal. For the rest of us, it's something that we might have a hard time keeping up with, remaining consistent with, or it can even be something we do not find success in. We struggle writing our thoughts and feelings down. Journaling doesn't have to be a task, be the most detailed account of your day, or even take you over 5 minutes. One of the best resources for starting a daily journaling habit is The Five Minute Journal by Intelligent Change. It only takes 5 minutes total, and that's splitting up your entries into 2 times per day. This technique helps you set intentions, have specific gratitudes in mind, and be able to guide your day appropriately for your goals. Then at the end of the day ties everything together to make sure you can adequately absorb all the good things about your day and how you can make tomorrow just as productive or even more so.

 Taking into account that most journaling and/or intention setting has to do with goals and manifestations we should probably talk about how to create those… right? When it comes to setting goals there are two different types, outcome-based and behavior-based. "I want to lose 10lbs in 2 weeks" is an outcome-based goal. On the other side, "I want to increase my water consumption to 48 oz per day instead of my current 32oz average" or "I want to add 30 minutes of cardio three days per week to my current workout routine" is a behavior-based goal. With the outcome-based goals, we often get frustrated if we do not successfully complete them. On top of that, it's hard to assess them and make them scalable for progress. With behavior-based goals you set up small landmark goals so you have a safety net to achieve that outcome goal. Increasing water consumption and bouts of cardio will both help lose 10lbs in two weeks. But they are maintainable behaviors that can be modified and scaled based off of adherence to them. 

Here is where you start, pick a behavior that is a stepping stone to reach your goal. If my goal is to run a faster mile, I would start with "running 1 mile 5 days per week." If my goal is to increase my vertical, I can start with "incorporating more plyometrics in my workouts 2-3 days/week." When posing these questions to yourself, rank the behaviors on a scale of 1-10, 1 being highly unlikely to adhere too and 10 being 100% confidence in adhering to the guideline. Now, you have created healthy long term habits that will consistently help you to reach and maintain goals. These habits are highly achievable, limiting the failure factor, ensuring these habits stick long term. Just like you have read in the above sections, consistency is always going to beat quantity. It's easier for your brain and your body to focus on increasing water consumption every day, rather than thinking about what food you are eating, how much water you are drinking, how many workouts a week you are completing, how long does each workout take you, are you getting enough sleep, etc. These are all things that will help in that 10lb weight loss, but having all of them together is way more stressful than focusing on one at a time. Lastly, when setting these behavior goals, make sure they are S.M.A.R.T, Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Timely. If we are using the water consumption example, "I want to consume 48 oz of water each day Monday through Friday, by 9 pm. I will keep track of how many 12 oz water bottles I finish in my notes OR track consumption in MyFitnessPal." There are specific days and times I want to consume the water; I am using a 12 oz water bottle to track accuracy, and holding myself accountable by using my notes or MyFitnessPal. Setting goals can be a part of daily journaling. Being able to have a written account of when you first set the goals, along with daily notes of how you executed guidelines working toward your goal, can help keep you motivated to reach everything you put your mind to!    

4. Plan workouts ahead

 Knowing what you have coming up in the week is not only helpful for work, tasks, and time management but also can help guide your workout regimen. Set the intentions for the week, for two weeks, even for a month. It can be as simple as "I want to run a faster mile" or as complex as "I want to make my running mechanics better." From here, you can develop a program to help you get there. The key is to know your schedule and plan the time you will spend training. For example, if you know you have an online lecture at 10 am, and you want to get a run in and a lift, there is planning involved. Make sure you eat the appropriate meals before and after, also taking into account warm-up time, cool down time, etc. Planning can help you stay motivated and make progress during a difficult time. Here are some general examples of layouts:

There are free resources out there to give you an educated insight into how to program your workouts properly! If you are committed to being top-notch at the end of quarantine, obviously purchasing a custom program or seeking the help of a strength conditioning professional is the best way to go! You can also find online sources for buying training programs and mobile platforms to access top tier coaching. If there is a time to invest in your performance, it's now, especially when others might be taking the time to relax or not train hard. You can always reach out to me at coach@heatherbetancourt.com or on Instagram @coach_hbetancourt; if you have questions about training or resources to help you excel, I will be more than happy to assist you in any way that I can!

 5. Have a schedule. 

Even though there are changes to our time commitments and schedules, it is imperative to maintain a daily/weekly schedule to keep our brains alert and motivated. Especially during this particular time, our regular routines have been flipped on their heads, and the only way to make it out on the other side is to adapt. You can either plan each week out on Sundays, or each day on the evening of the previous day. Personally, I like to keep a paper calendar along with my Google calendar. That way I know when certain events are, and can also plan my larger brakes appropriately. Here is an example of how I set up my daily calendar:

This allows me to know when I am going to have time to eat, complete the workouts I have to do to reach my goals, and factor in self-development/family time, which are very important to me. Obviously, I have days where I am not seeing as many clients, so I have more time for other things I have on my plate, but knowing ahead of time my free areas allows me to plan for those tasks and hobbies I might want to include on certain days. Everyone has their system; these are the ones that work for me! Here is a great article going over how this pandemic has been creating "broken systems" and how to fix them!