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It’s a good idea to look in the mirror during your workout, but it takes confidence and focus. How will you know your actions are paying dividends if you’re not watching? That’s why finding your angle and protecting yourself is essential.
Looking in the mirror lets you see the angle of your back or arms and whether or not you are using the right muscles. But, of course, you should also check to see if you are using the correct form.
Whether or not your feet are pointed out instead of in, for example. Looking at yourself in the mirror gives you a better idea of how well you work out.
Also, using a mirror can help you stay injury free. By concentrating on your form, you can prevent injuries.
Using the correct form works the muscles that are supposed to be performed and prevent you from compromising strengths that the exercise was not meant for. Thus making sure you work your muscle correctly on each repetition.
Use a Mirror to Correct Your Form
As you perform an exercise, you should watch yourself in the mirror. If you’re not doing it right, you will not get the best results.
Therefore, you are compromising your gains—and nobody wants that! The same goes for safety: if your form is terrible.
Thus you can use the mirror to correct your form in the middle of a set. Concentrating on your form makes you more likely to lift the weight correctly instead of cheating.
The only reps that count are the ones you do correctly. So watch yourself closely during each repetition. Notice how your body moves. Also, notice the path the bar takes as you move it to contract and relax the muscle. Lifts require a verticle, horizontal, or arc path.
You Can Spot Muscle Imbalances
You may also be able to spot muscle imbalances that could lead to injury if they aren’t corrected. For example, if one side of your body appears more robust than the other. This indicates a problem with muscle imbalance or overuse.
Focus on specific muscles or movements when using the mirror to observe your workout. Also, keep your eyes on your whole body to note any irregularities in your form. Do not favor one side or body part over the others. If you cheat, lower the weight so you can build your body correctly.
Watching yourself in the mirror is a full-time job. The goal is to ensure you are doing it right and correct any mistakes in real time. Also, take notes and make adjustments as needed. Poor form is an indicator that you are lifting too heavy.
Mind to Muscle Connection
Focusing on your muscles makes it easier to create a mind-to-muscle connection. This means you can see the muscle you are targeting, which helps you visualize how it should contract as you workout.
Additionally, looking at yourself in the mirror helps put more stress on the correct muscles. You can see specific muscles contracting as you move. This allows you to move purposefully and make the muscle contract even more.
For example: when squatting, you can see the quadriceps flex as you push up. This also reminds you to tighten the glutes as you reach the top of the lift.
The mirror gives you a visual of your mind-to-muscle connection. Sometimes that is lost when you get exhausted or bored with a workout.
It takes practice for these opposing movements to co-occur, but once they happen seamlessly together, this will help strengthen and build them!
Why should you use a mirror during your workout?
This method allows you to get the most out of your workout by using all of the muscles in your body to the max.
The mirror also helps your focus and stay motivated. Watching and making adjustments in the middle of your workout keeps your mind busy and prevents it from getting bored.
Also, it helps you get through your workout faster by causing you to get mentally lost and preventing you from worrying about time.
Focusing on your workout will make you more robust because each muscle group is working together and helping each other out!
But to get actual results, you must complete each rep as perfectly as possible.
How Does This Work?
When lifting weights, your muscles need to contract to produce force. When they contract, they send signals to your brain telling it how much power they make. Your brain then sends signals back to these muscles, telling them how much force they should make next time. This is called reciprocal inhibition and helps prevent overuse injuries.
Self-reflection
Self-reflection is an essential part of self-improvement. When you look at yourself in the mirror, you are forced to confront the truth about your body and how it looks.
Also, looking in the mirror helps you assess your workout and if you are genuinely performing it to the best of your ability.
This helps you realize that change is necessary and possible, regardless of your starting point. When you look at yourself in the mirror, you see who you are — flaws and all — instead of seeing what others see when they look at you.
It Prevents Cheating on Exercises
Another benefit of looking in the mirror is that it keeps you from ignoring bad habits that sabotage your workout.
For example: if you were doing bicep curls with your hands too far away from your torso.
Cheating might allow you to lift more weight but prevent you from correctly working out the bicep. The goal is to build muscle and strength, not to lift more weight incorrectly.
You’ll Get Better Results by looking in a Mirror.
Most gyms are full of mirrors for this reason. If you workout at home, buy a mirror to get the same benefits as those who exercise at the gym.
Use the mirror to correct poor form and develop a mind-to-muscle connection. Also, let the mirror help you stay motivated and engaged during your workout.
As soon as you see an incorrect movement pattern (whether cheating with momentum or not pushing your hips back), correct it right away.
Let the mirror serve as your coach/Trainer. The mirror gives you four eyes to watch your workout—the two in your head and the two you see in the mirror. You know what they say. The mirror never lies.
The Last Word on Why It’s a Good Idea to Look in the Mirror During a Workout
The mirror could be just what you need to take your workout to the next level. Bodybuilding is not magic but science.
When you do it right, you get the right results. Of course, it’s easy to say others cheat or blame it on your genetics, but the truth is that science is science.
So focus on doing things the right way and don’t take shortcuts because they don’t work. The only reps that count are the ones you do correctly.
Finally, support your workout with a high-protein diet, progressive overload, and a good periodization plan. When you do it right, you get the right results. If you or someone you know is considering bodybuilding, share this article on Facebook or Twitter so that others can learn more about building muscle.
