Introversion And Exercise

[Marinus]

I realized something while doing my core routine. When I'm exercising I noticed that my thought process is in overdrive. Since I'm more aware I noticed this. The same applies to cold showers and probably every other physical demanding activity.  When I meditate I still have a lot of monkey mind, but exercise has a lot more monkey chatter. It has it's pros, I get more insights while meditating and shutting of the thinking process is even harder then while meditating. 

My theory is that this has something to do with oxygen intake and blood circulation to the brain. I wonder if other introverts experience the same thing. And I wonder what happens from an extroverts point of view. 

[sleeperstakes]

for me, monkey mind is just the mind wanting to be out of the current situation, so i understand how you feel, If im feeling particularly anxious i find it extremely difficult to be aware. cold showers, i think it just depends on what kind of state of mind you're in. If you spend half an hour building up to it and  you drag yourself into it kicking and screaming, of course the mind is going to resist. But if you just stand up, go into the shower and turn it on, without the chatter, and just feel the cold rather than resist it, i find it not only lessens the pain of the cold because you're not tensing up to it, but also in turn that reduces the monkey mind. This is especially useful with a pain that is consistent, such as during stretching or if you experience a chronic pain. 

As for exercise. Im an introvert and i exercise fairly regularly, i dont find monkey mind troubles me so much here. Perhaps because I don't resist it or fear it? I'm not sure how true that is, but i understand what you mean, especially if i push myself to my physical limit. The more you do this though, the more comfortable experiencing it you will be, which is the same for anything, it always becomes easier to meditate on it if you're comfortable with it, real growth comes from meditating on what makes you uncomfortable.

[Marinus]

@sleeperstakes To me it is weird, because I feel comfortable within minutes, but my thoughts still come up. It's like I'm multi tasking. Maybe resistance has something to do with it, especially the cold showers.

[Ricky Walt]

On 21/09/2017 at 11:57 AM, Marinus said:

I wonder if other introverts experience the same thing. And I wonder what happens from an extroverts point of view. 

That's such a keen observation! I have done the Meyers-Briggs test (and a few others) and I'm extroverted in my nature. For me when I do a workout I actually have the exact opposite of what you experience. My mind calms down and the chatter becomes less!

[Marinus]

@Ricky Walt Awesome, that's what I expected. Maybe a topic for an experiment (I study applied psychology) . 

Does it depend on the kind of exercise and what is your MBTI type (mine INFJ-t)? 

[Ricky Walt]

I am ENFP.

Actually now that I think about it yes, different excercises bring about different levels of calmness. I would rank them as follows:

Cardio (running, rowing) - least calm

Lifting - medium (my staple diet)

Yoga - best results for calming my mind (I do this once a week)

[Marinus]

@Ricky Walt Hmm maybe your heart rate is the influencing factor. I do planking and while doing this I need to stabilize a lot which makes my mind go wild.

[Dan Arnautu]

@Marinus I too am an INFJ. Been training for more than 4 years. Being in the present has nothing to do with introversion vs. extraversion. That's just a projection. You just ain't comfortable yet with the whole thing.

My mind is blank when I exercise, with some spurts in the rest pauses, thinking fast about what's needed in my next sets and exercises.

You bring as much consciousness as you WANT in the activity. If you want, you can be aware of every little fiber of your muscle contracting as you lift the weight ... or you can be thinking about lunch. It's no matter of personality.

[Zeroh]

@Marinus

As @Dan Arnautu is pointing out, it has nothing to do with introversion or extraversion. Nor does it with what type of personality you identify with. 

It is a matter of what you are setting out to do in the gym or by exercising in the first place. What your motivations and reasonings are. 
If you simply force yourself there because you need to, because if you dont you will get in worse shape, or because your wishes are superficial and not really substantial - you will be bothered by the monkey mind. Because you dont really wish to be there or because your reasonings for being there are in fact superficial, blurry and maybe even forced. 
Set proper substantial goals that are in reach.
A goal to simply beat the previous you, a goal to doubble your core routine, a goal to get to know you bodys true limits, etc

Other factors such as the way in which you train also affect this. A simple equation for you:

Proper training = less monkey mind
Improper training = more monkey mind

If you are there to truly train, meaning to push boundaries, to get the sweat running and the blood flowing - the monkey mind will naturally disperse as there is no room for it. There is only training. 
Next time you go to the gym or do your core routine, try to challenge those pre-determined boundaries you have set, see if you can push beyond. 
And by doing so, I guarantee that there will be no monkey mind. 

The essence of training is to break boundaries to evolve. But who sets them in the first place?
You.
You are also the monkey mind. 
Break the boundaries - Break the monkey mind.
 

[Dan Arnautu]

@Zeroh @Marinus Yeah, when you have a proper workout and nutrition plan, where you know everything that should happen, there is no more room for doubt and unnecessary thoughts while working out.

When you know the rate you should progress at, you can't be anywhere but in the moment. If all is going well, you should feel something like this: "I know I ate properly and slept properly. Based on this and my current level of development, I should be able to add 1 rep or up the weight by X amount this workout and gain 0.25 kg bodyweight this week with no problems." Then you go and do that.

After some time, this becomes second nature and you will have all your exercises, sets and reps PRE-PLANNED even weeks or months beforehand with the intensity and volume you need to hit in the workout and you just go there and attack the weights knowing that you can hit the numbers you jotted down before the workout.

That's a powerful place to be. You're not one of those guys in the gym looking around disoriented anymore. You enter the gym with a purpose and move from machine to machine with full on confidence.

No doubt. No monkey mind. Pure, intensive action.

Edited November 22, 2017 by Dan Arnautu