EFT Running Training - Be Your Own Cheerleader

Go to any football match, and you will see that great-sounding cheers from the crowd encourage the players. And if you go to an American football match, you will hear the most inspirational clever ditties from the cheerleaders. Good cheers work. They motivate where motivation is needed, console when consolation is needed, and inspire for excellence. Now imagine having a cheerleader encouraging you all the way when you go for a run. Isn't that just great?

"But I can't even afford a personal trainer" you may think, or maybe you have a personal trainer but you often train on your own. Well, that is no problem at all, because you can be your own cheerleader!

Let me illustrate from my own experience. I am a relatively new runner training for my first half-marathon. I use a combination of techniques to help me with my stamina and speed. One of these is Emotional Freedom Techniques, or EFT for short. It involves stimulating certain acupressure points whilst repeating a specific releasing phrase. There are two ways of doing EFT whilst running. One is by concentrating on releasing negatives, and the other is by releasing the negative combined with installing the positive. It is the latter that leds itself wonderfully to cheer-leading. The points that I stimulate whilst running are located on one side of the thumb, forefinger, middle finger, and baby finger. I usually rub or tap the thumb point with either the forefinger or middle finger points whilst saying my cheer. For the cheering statement itself, I use whatever comes to me and hone it down to a better form as I rub or tap the points. The rubbing or tapping itself helps to inspire me in forming perfect ditties.

Cheers that I have used include:
"Oh my God, this hill's so steep. But I will not, I will not, I will not break down and weep.""Oh my God, this road's so long, but this is my journey where I belong. And it will, it will, will make me strong.""I can do it, yes I can. I can, I can, I can, I can.""I can do it, like Superman. I'm the one, the one who can."

You can learn EFT from many online resources free of charge, or you can attend an instructional workshop or practitioner session to get you started. EFT is suitable for everyone, unless you have one of the more severe mental conditions such as schizophrenia or psychosis. And although you can tap before your run, I find it even more powerful to tap my cheers during my actual run. You can experiment with it and see how you feel. If EFT is not for you, then try saying positive affirmation cheers to yourself whilst you run. One more tip that I think is important - say the cheers in your head rather than out loud. This way, you can breathe better for your run, and it is more socially acceptable too.

I wish you great progress with your training.

? Suzanne Zacharia 2011. My name is Suzanne Zacharia and I am committed to spreading the word about health options. I believe that the more and better options one has, the more choice there is. And of course, you are advised to consult with your medical practitioner before embarking on any course of alternative, complementary, or beauty therapy. Want to use this article? You can, as long as you credit me with it and invite your readers to get my FREE "EFT How-to for You" and regular free EFT Tapping script samples in my newsletter at http://www.eft-scripts.com/ - New to EFT? No worries, just get your own copy of "EFT How-to for You" and start EFTing with ease very soon!

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Article Submitted On: April 14, 2011

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6 Ways to Prepare for a Week of Intense Training

You have just found out that you will be taking part in an Intense training camp for 5 days straight. Maybe a job requirement or the desire to get in shape. Bootcamp or a basketball camp, maybe a week of brutal Russian martial arts training- who knows? Bottom line, you've made up your mind: it is going to be tough.

On top of that, you only have 3 days to prepare, during which you have to work, make meals, look after the kids, and run a couple of last minute errands. All in all you have very little time to optimize your systems for what is to come.

The following 6 tips will hopefully take the edge off and give you a solid foundation for an intense week of training.

Hydrate your system: Proper hydration takes time. Start drinking a few days prior to your event. Avoid drinking large quantities at a time. Rather, sip little amounts throughout the day, all day. You want to make sure you do not deplete your body of minerals and vitamins by over drinking and therefore over-eliminating.

Stay away from energy drinks, carbonation, fructosy-glucosy drinks, coffee, tea and alcohol. Stick to water.

Regulate your eating and diet: Make sure you eat well. Keep it simple; salads, raw fish, fresh greens and vegetables. A good dose of fruits and nuts to supplement your main diet, be it vegetarian or not. Make sure you do not eat late or before sleeping.

Frankly, this is how our diet and eating habits should be all the time. Giving extra attention to your diet will go far in terms of sustenance and nutrition, but also as a psychological pillar.

Firstly, it will mean that you are slowing down your day-to-day pace, which is very good for your nervous system, but also you will feel more "wholesome" knowing that you care, feed, and look after yourself in a healthy manner.

Push ups, squats and sit ups: The trinity of body maintenance, I highly recommend the following regimen twice a day, everyday.

3 minutes of push ups, 2 minutes of squats, 1 minute of sit ups.

You can take breaks as needed, but try to accomplish as many per set, without sacrificing good form (in push ups it means planking your body and going as low as possible without touching the ground, and coming up to a position where arms are straight. In squats, keep your back straight, and heels to the ground. In sit-ups make sure your chest does not slouch inward, and your head does not tilt forward or backward).

Mimic, imitate and practice: Unless you have little idea of what will be expected of you, take the time to practice moves that will be required of you.

If it is basketball, you know that you will be required to do a lot of stop and go, and lot of jumping. If wrestling, you can practice transitions from standing to lying down, or may want to lie on the ground with a bit of weight on your chest.

Take the time to exaggerate each move, make sure you breath, and practice slowly, especially if new and unfamiliar with the discipline.

Stretch: Not everybody is flexible or "free" in their movement the same way. In order to avoid injury, I would like to offer an alternative to what we commonly understand as a stretching. Coupled with proper breathing this is the safest manner to get rid of tension without actually risking a tear in muscle or connective tissue.

Twice or three times a day spend about 1 minute stretching like you would when you wake up in the morning. Try it in different positions and try to slowly engage as many parts of your body. Make sure you breath.

Rest well: Quintessential to surviving hardcore training, proper rest, prior, during and after an Intensive will give you the necessary sharpness to better perform, follow directions, learn and process information and data. You will also heal better and feel better.

Rest does not necessary mean sleep. It can be considered as a space where the mind and body can forget and unplug from stress and anxiety causing conditions. However, sleep is the best way to rest and recuperate.

The above tips are for the average person who may or may not have a basic level of fitness, however everybody can benefit from them. Enjoy!

Always seek the advice of a physician prior to starting any training regimen.

Vali Majd is the founder, director and chief instructor at Pacific CoastSystema. PCS specializes in Martial Arts, Self Defense and Survival training for professionals and civilians. Our training mehodologies are based on the ancient Russian Martial Art, better know as Systema
For more information check http://www.pacificcoastsystema.com/

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