What are the last words that go through a lifters head just before a big attempt? Is it a helpful cue, a quick reminder of the technical points of the lift? (“Drive!”) Is it a positive mantra, or word of self-belief? (“I can do this!”) Is it thoughts of external pressures - a projection of the reaction of others? (“What if I fail?”) Does the mind go blank completely, letting the body default to what it has rehearsed so many times?
The final moments just before an important lift is executed are deeply personal and special to each lifter. Are you in the flow state - calm but intense, fired up but fluid and powerful? Or stuck, frantic, fumbling over the movements you’ve worked so hard to perfect? Every attempt is a chance to bring all of you, all of your whole, true, Self, to the platform - what do you think about in that moment?
