• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Breaking Muscle

Breaking Muscle

Breaking Muscle

  • Fitness
  • Workouts
    • Best Shoulder Workouts
    • Best Chest Workouts
    • Best Leg Workouts
    • Best Leg Exercises
    • Best Biceps Exercises
    • Best Kettlebell Exercises
    • Best Back Workouts
    • Best HIIT Workouts
    • Best Triceps Exercises
    • Best Arm Workouts
  • Reviews
    • Supplements
      • Best Pre-Workouts
      • Best Whey Protein
    • Equipment
      • Best Home Gym Machines
    • Certifications
      • ISSA Review
  • News
  • Exercise Guides
    • Legs
      • Back Squat
      • Bulgarian Split Squat
      • Goblet Squat
      • Zercher Squat
      • Standing Calf Raise
      • Hack Squat
    • Chest
      • Bench Press
      • Dumbbell Bench Press
      • Close-Grip Bench Press
      • Incline Bench Press
    • Shoulders
      • Overhead Dumbbell Press
      • Lateral Raise
    • Arms
      • Chin-Up
      • Weighted Pull-Up
      • Triceps Pushdown
    • Back
      • Deadlift
      • Trap Bar Deadlift
      • Lat Pulldown
      • Inverted Row
      • Bent-Over Barbell Row
      • Single-Arm Dumbbell Row
      • Pendlay Row
Fitness

Stop Shaking Your Head: How Self-Talk Affects Performance

I have a rule with my clients: if you shake your head during a workout you owe me ten burpees. Self-talk has an impact on your performance and the research is out there to back that claim up.

Becca Borawski

Written by Becca Borawski Last updated on October 5, 2012

I have a rule with my students and clients: no headshaking. If you shake your head during a workout there is a ten-burpee penalty, due immediately upon completion of the workout. There is distinct drop in the amount of headshaking that occurs in my private sessions and classes once this rule is issued.

Although more than one client has accused me of sadism, I don’t issue this burpee rule for any personal satisfaction other than the success of my clientele. Truly. I have this rule because your mental state and your physical performance are inseparable. And I guarantee you that shaking your head “no” before attempting an exercise does not contribute in any positive manner to your performance.

Think about what is happening when you are shaking your head: You are saying no. You are visualizing failure. You are analyzing and thinking. Versus: Being in a state of “yes.” Visualizing success. Letting go and finding your flow. Shaking your head is a judgment, and not a good one.

Too often I see people working out and falling into the trap of thinking their workout performance means something about them as a human being. A study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research looked at perspectives on achievement and motivational responses in teenaged, competitive weightlifters, but I think what the researchers wrote in their conclusion applies well to adult fitness enthusiasts and athletes, as well:

Athletes need to know that their value as human beings is not dependent on their athletic achievement; their self-esteem should build on numerous qualities and aspects of their personalities (e.g., friend, student, guitar player). Unfortunately, some athletes’ entire self-esteem hinges on their role as an athlete, and they are at risk of crashing hard if their participation in sport ends unexpectedly (e.g., injury, burnout). Athletic careers do not last forever, and when participation in competitive weightlifting one day ends, athletes should be left with numerous great memories.1

Is your headshaking creating great memories? I’m guessing not. A headshake is an obstacle. It’s a, “I’m going to try this, but I don’t think it’s possible.” It’s an “I’m not good enough,” “I’m weak,” or “I’m slow.” Well, that’s inspiring. That sort of self-talk is not going to provoke a great performance from you.

Another study in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research looked specifically at the effect of self-talk on performance. Researchers used the vertical jump as their test movement and examined how the kinematics of the movement were affected by instructional, motivational, and neutral self-talk. They found that both instructional and motivational self-talk led to greater forces generated and higher jumps.

Last year a group of researchers did a systematic review of all the published articles on the effects of self-talk. That means they read through all the existing studies, saving us the work, and compiled the results. They came up with the following conclusions:

  1. Positive, instructional, and motivational self-talk provide performance benefit.
  2. Negative self-talk did not necessarily impede performance.
  3. The difference in effect between instructional and motivational self-talk was inconsistent.

So for you, as an athlete, that means the best-case scenario is that negative self-talk will not make you worse, but it also won’t make you better. Whereas, the simple practice of providing yourself with instructional and/or motivational thoughts will inspire you to better performance. It’s scientifically proven folks. Stop shaking your heads and practice positive self-talk if you want your PRs. What else can you do – right now – that can make that simple of a performance difference?

burpees, visualization, positive self-talk, motivational self-talk, self talk

I had a client years ago who was a police officer. She was terribly serious during her workouts. She did this thing, though, that I loved. Her last name was Bailey and she would encourage herself as if she was her own instructor. “C’mon, Bailey!” she would say sternly, and then do her reps. “You can do it, Bailey!”

Aside from the entertainment factor, the best part of Bailey’s self-coaching was the lack of judgment. It was never “Bailey, you suck” or “Bailey, you can’t do this.” It was a prompt to keep moving forward. It was a simple positive statement.

What if instead of a headshake you were a head nod? What if you were a “Get moving, Bailey!” for yourself? What would your training look like if you removed the negative self-talk?

And for those of you who don’t take me up on this proposition – you owe me burpees.

Photos provided by Miguel Tapia Images and CrossFit LA.

Becca Borawski

About Becca Borawski

Becca found her way to a career in health and fitness through Martial Arts and CrossFit. Originally a music editor for film and television, Becca started studying Martial Arts in 2000. Though she started with traditional Martial Arts it was not long before she discovered Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) and her path was forever altered. She began training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) and Muay Thai and started working with professional MMA fighters, building websites, working on fight promotions, and producing videos.

As a competitor in BJJ herself, Becca wanted to get stronger and fitter. In 2006 she discovered CrossFit and became a student at CrossFit Los Angeles. In only a couple of years she became CrossFit Level III Certified, left her career in the film industry, and dedicated herself full time to coaching. She has since been certified through CrossFit in Olympic Lifting, Powerlifting, Nutrition, Endurance and Kids coaching. She also held an NSCA-CSCS from 2006-2008 and is a certified IndoRow instructor. In addition to coaching adults, she founded the CrossFit LA Kids program in 2010 and taught children aged 5-17.

Becca regularly takes on new sports, which have included indoor rowing, fencing, and most recently, cycling, as she believes it makes her both a better athlete and a better coach. In order to reach more people with her coaching, Becca also created ModernAthena.com – a website dedicated to women in pursuit of physical fitness and self-improvement.

View All Articles

Recommended Articles

Method Man Incline Dumbbell Presses December 2022
Check Out Rapper Method Man Cruising Through 120-Pound Incline Dumbbell Presses for 10 Reps
Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson Leg Workout
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson Crushes 5 “Monster Sets” of a Leg Workout
Michael B. Jordan poster for Creed III
Michael B. Jordan and Jonathan Majors Look Like Shredded Boxing Stars in “Creed III”
person running on road
How to Run an 8-Minute Mile Pace

Primary Sidebar

Latest Articles

2023 Musclecontest Campinas Pro Results — Brenda Farias Qualifies for Olympia

Larry Wheels Teases Ripped Transformation for Classic Physique Division

Phillip Herndon (125KG) Squats 411 Kilograms (906.1 Pounds) for Raw All-Time World Record

Jamal Browner Logs a Monster 426.4-Kilogram (940-Pound) Conventional Stance Raw Deadlift

Latest Reviews

ISSA Personal Trainer Certification Review

ISSA Personal Trainer Certification Review

Best Whey Proteins for Packing on Muscle, Shredding Down, Meal Replacement, and More

Best Pre-Workouts for Building Muscle, Running, Taste, and More

Best Home Gym Machines

Best Home Gym Machines

woman lifting barbell

Be the smartest person in your gym

The Breaking Muscle newsletter is everything you need to know about strength in a 3 minute read.

I WANT IN!

Breaking Muscle is the fitness world’s preeminent destination for timely, high-quality information on exercise, fitness, health, and nutrition. Our audience encompasses the entire spectrum of the fitness community: consumers, aficionados, fitness professionals, and business owners. We seek to inform, educate and advocate for this community.

  • Reviews
  • Healthy Eating
  • Workouts
  • Fitness
  • News

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS Feed

© 2023 · Breaking Muscle · Terms of Use · Privacy Policy · Affiliate Disclaimer · Accessibility · About