Training and anxiety

[Tygerqb12]

Coaches,

Do you have any experience training an individual who deals with anxiety issues? If so, have you noticed any unique ways training interplays with the anxiety, and how the trainee is able to handle the stress of training, particularly when combined with life stress?

I have some thoughts based solely on my own experience and introspection, but thought I’d throw it out here since you coaches are a hell of a lot smarter than I am, and would also bring some perspective to the table that I lack.

Any thoughts are appreciated, and hopefully discussing this may be beneficial to some other users as well.

[Tom Campitelli]

In general, training has a beneficial effect on maladies such as depression and anxiety. While training can be hard and as the weights climb so does our investment in successfully handling them climb, some feelings of intimidation are not uncommon. People for whom anxiety is a real problem, however, may need to slightly adjust their jumps if the weight on the bar is making things worse than better. In many cases, however, the process of training helps. We'll see if anyone else has input.

[coma]

I have some anxiety issues, and I have to concur with Tom. Sometimes serious anxiety is debilitating, but working out through minor anxiety helps significantly. And for me, the steady, objective progress I've seen is something nice to fall back on. It's something that feels under control when other things do not.

[Anthony King]

I am by no means a coach (I'm still in the Advanced Novice Stage) but ended up being the ersatz coach for a woman with some relatively serious anxiety and depression. As the weights got heavier she started to have a very hard time with the squat--her deadlift was far ahead of the squat and demonstrated much more strength that she could display in the squat, but the squat just got in her head and was making her very anxious.

Even as a person without anxiety I find the squat to be the most psychologically demanding lift, so perhaps this isn't surprising. At a certain point it was obvious that she needed a break mentally--the demands of PR'ing each session were too great--and even though she hadn't finished her LP I suggested HLM programming so that she only had to try to PR her squat once a week.

She did HLM for about six weeks and got enough momentum that she switched back on her own to advanced novice programming for the squat, and puts 2 more pounds on the bar for her squat twice a week.

She reports that lifting has helped with her depression somewhat--with marked effects in the few hours after a training session. She consistently trains 2-3 times a week, and is inching toward a bodyweight squat for reps (started at quite a bit less than half her bodyweight).

[Aslin]

In general, training has a beneficial effect on maladies such as depression and anxiety. While training can be hard and as the weights climb so does our investment in successfully handling them climb, some feelings of intimidation are not uncommon. People for whom anxiety is a real problem, however, may need to slightly adjust their jumps if the weight on the bar is making things worse than better. In many cases, however, the process of training helps. We'll see if anyone else has input.

conversely, I found squatting incredibly heavy sets to centers me, causing everything that's anxiety inducing in my life to melt away into background noise. I have suffered from anxiety for years now, and I always find that staying on top of my training and lifting heavy turns down things that would have previously made my anxiety go off, like the prospect of a presentation or interview or something.

[beastmaster103]

Just my two cents...as someone who suffers from anxiety, I know how you feel. It has been a part of my life for over 15 years...and I've had good and bad days...

When I know a tough workout or lift is upcoming, I try to do a bit of light cardio prior. I've made it habitual in that I almost always walk on the treadmill for 15 minutes prior to lifting. If I'm feeling anxious, which is not rare, this helps to calm me greatly. At the end of the 15 minutes, I'm warmed up for the weight training, and the anxiety has passed. For me - and I think everyone suffering is different - the first 6-8 minutes can be the toughest. It is when you'd experience "fight or flight." After my body realizes the heightened heart rate, perspiring, etc. are part of working out, it works wonders.

Feel free to PM me if you would like to talk further. I am not a medical professional, but I am a good listener.

[aemunn]

Hi there! I'm not a coach or an expert, but I am a new-ish lady lifter (SS training since November) who has had intermittent anxiety and depression for my entire life. Lifting has been hugely helpful in terms of managing and reducing both anxiety and depression for me, especially, as noted, for a few hours after a training session. This effect led me to add more training days --- In late January I started to feel the anxiety and sadness creeping in on me, so I went to the gym more in an effort to stay as psychologically functional as possible. I train 3 - 5 days a week, usually 5 but never less than 3, and make sure to keep my food intake and sleep high (which is difficult and KEY for managing anxiety and depression). I know that training more than 3 days/week is counter to the SS programming and anathema to a lot of lifters, but hey, it's been working really well for me. I don't try to PR every session any more, but I aim for a week-over-week progression that is the same as if I were training 3 days per week, and my progress has not slowed at all --- if anything, it's improved. Form has definitely improved a LOT, and the psychological benefits are awesome.

Squat-specific anxiety: I have this too; squats are scary, and if you mess up your form you can really hurt yourself. The biggest thing that has helped me is to drill form at about 75% of work-set weight, usually once a week. Super duper slow squats, squats with a pause just before and just after depth to check in with my back, box squats, etc. The idea was to develop my muscle memory so that my conscious mind didn't have to work so hard on maintaining good form. Mental cues and mantras help a lot too (for me, "neutral back, abs tight" on the way down, and "chest up, knees out" on the way up). It is also very helpful to be religious about the use of safety bars and to practice bailing out safely --- again, developing muscle memory. If you know that even if you fail your rep, you won't get crushed by the bar and die, a lot of the fear goes away.

Again, not a coach, just a novice lifter, but that's what's been working for me! Bodyweight squat is so close i can taste it, I don't have the lower back pain that I used to get after squatting, and I feel a lot better psychologically.

[Tygerqb12]

Thanks so much for all of your input!

My experience is a bit different. When I was first starting back, my experience was very similar to beast master and aemunn. But I've been at this for a little while now and it's not getting under the bar that makes me nervous/anxious. I've missed reps before and will miss them again. I've hurt myself before and will again. No big deal.

What I've intermittently run in to is that occasionally, for a day or two following a workout I'll come down with a bout of generalized anxiety (i.e I can't point to any one thing in particular that I am anxious about, it's more of a general feeling of uneasiness.) It seems to come when both workout and work stress are high. While I'm nowhere near overtrained (I'll often feel great during the workout) could it be that because I struggle with anxiety, the stress of training (and recovery from training) at times can exceed my mental ability to deal with stress? Does that even make any sense from a physiological standpoint?

[Tom Campitelli]

As Feigenbaum has pointed out, there is research out there showing that emotional stress can be as potent at limiting performance as physical stress.

[Boomka]

Thanks so much for all of your input!

My experience is a bit different. When I was first starting back, my experience was very similar to beast master and aemunn. But I've been at this for a little while now and it's not getting under the bar that makes me nervous/anxious. I've missed reps before and will miss them again. I've hurt myself before and will again. No big deal.

What I've intermittently run in to is that occasionally, for a day or two following a workout I'll come down with a bout of generalized anxiety (i.e I can't point to any one thing in particular that I am anxious about, it's more of a general feeling of uneasiness.) It seems to come when both workout and work stress are high. While I'm nowhere near overtrained (I'll often feel great during the workout) could it be that because I struggle with anxiety, the stress of training (and recovery from training) at times can exceed my mental ability to deal with stress? Does that even make any sense from a physiological standpoint?

High cortisol output due to the physical stress of training and the emotional/physical stress of work could be effecting your sleep, your metabolism and, ultimately, creating that feeling of anxiety post-workout. I've had a bit of this when doing really high volume cycles and not taking care of my nutrition and recovery. Suddenly it's harder to get to sleep, which leaves me feeling stressed the following day which leads to...which leads to...

Cortisol is our friend to a great degree but too much can cause some problems. There are some techniques to manage it including being really serious about your circadian rhythms/sleep-wake cycle, lots of protein and carbs post workout to effect a massive insulin spike (insulin counters cortisol to a certain degree), etc. There may be ways to manage your stress throughout your workday as well - breathing, meditation, etc.