Transcendental Meditation

[Nick]

Partially as a result of a career that was enormously stressful I retired with what can only be described as a very short tolerance for fools and bores and a very short temper. I recently undertook training in transcendental meditation and it's beginning to have a calming effect. It's much too early for any definitive statement regarding the effect of TM on my fitness regimen: erg, weights, calisthenics, walking - and I'd me very curious to learn of any fellow erg devotees if they've tried meditation and what effect, if any it had on their overall fitness routines. I know that many athletes use TM prior to their events/competitions, etc. to get in "the zone." Any comments/suggestions would be most welcome.

[Erik A]

not sure if meditation was involved but a little while ago i was involved with a build for a client and the site foreman was a nasty piece of work. very angry and rude to pretty much everyone. so much so that all the subcontractors including myself complained to the building company and the client about him. it was so bad that the client was never going to use that particular company again and they do millions of build/renovation work each year. anyway... a few months after that one of my techs met him on another site and he was a changed man. a lot more relaxed and easy going. actually pleasant to be around. my guy asked what had changed for him. he responded by saying the company that he works for had taken all the complaints on board and got the guy into stress and anger management programes. he said it changed his life.
so rather than fire the guy they made the effort to sort his issues out which was a great thing.

[Gammmmo]

Not sure if it was "transcendental" (idk what that means) but I will ask my good friend who did meditation how much effect it had on his running. His sleep cycles are v much disrupted by his job.

[Citroen]

Not sure if it was "transcendental" (idk what that means)

It means you're a dope smoking hippy.

[jackarabit]

Not sure if it was "transcendental" (idk what that means)

It means you're a dope smoking hippy.

It doesn’t mean ignoring the consequences of bleeding gums? My hygienist is such a stitch.

[Gammmmo]

Not sure if it was "transcendental" (idk what that means) but I will ask my good friend who did meditation how much effect it had on his running. His sleep cycles are v much disrupted by his job.

He replied "after daily practice for a few months using an app I could really let my brain 'float' and isolate myself from the world around me. Getting better and better on zero distraction focus. Whether that be focusing on breathing, nothing or a body scan. I found I became more metronome like in easy long efforts and could stay in the zone with less distracting me. As for short hard efforts it helped me zone in again on what I was doing. With less distracting me. It's almost as if the practice of meditation was making my running more of meditative practice."

[Dangerscouse]

Not sure if it was "transcendental" (idk what that means) but I will ask my good friend who did meditation how much effect it had on his running. His sleep cycles are v much disrupted by his job.

He replied "after daily practice for a few months using an app I could really let my brain 'float' and isolate myself from the world around me. Getting better and better on zero distraction focus. Whether that be focusing on breathing, nothing or a body scan. I found I became more metronome like in easy long efforts and could stay in the zone with less distracting me. As for short hard efforts it helped me zone in again on what I was doing. With less distracting me. It's almost as if the practice of meditation was making my running more of meditative practice."

I don't meditate but I do defo get into the zone that you refer to on the longer rows. It's an essential part of the process for me and makes the time / distance pass a lot quicker

[Nick]

"Transcendental" is a style of meditation - focusing on and silently repeating a phrase. That said - I like the idea of focusing on breathing or rhythm and zoning out of external distractions - I'll try it with eyes closed. Sounds like it might be a winner.

[Tenshuu]

"Transcendental" is a style of meditation - focusing on and silently repeating a phrase. That said - I like the idea of focusing on breathing or rhythm and zoning out of external distractions - I'll try it with eyes closed. Sounds like it might be a winner.

I have definitely done a 45 minute row with lights off, and eyes closed for most of the session. I was however tuned into my music, otherwise it was just a low intensity free rate row by feel.