You may have heard the term intangibles if you've played any sports in your day: Your coach would say, "we need to do the intangibles right in order to win the game!"  If your coach was anything like mine, an upper case would have been more appropriate for that quote.  But what are intangibles and why do they matter?

In the case of the coach, intangibles refer to the little things that when added together make the difference in winning and losing (for a great speech on this, see Al Pachino in Any Given Sunday). Examples of these include blocking shots in hockey, diving after loose balls in basketball, or ensuring a quick transition in a triathlon. At the end of the day it is still the final score, time, distance, or weight - the quantity - that determines the outcome, however, the intangibles (quality) will most often lead to that desired number.


If we apply this concept of intangibles of sport to the ability to perform in the weight room, we can help the client focus more on the little things that will make a huge difference.  If we actually look at what the principle of progress means in the gym, we see that tiny increases in weight = big increases in strength/power. For example, let's say I increase my 3RM Military Press from 185 lbs to 190 lbs in 1 week. Now, this may not seem like a big increase, but when we consider this over a period of time, a weekly jump of 5 lbs equates to a big increase in strength throughout a year.  Even if I increase by ½ (2.5 lbs) for the following 2 weeks, I've just gained almost 10 lbs in a typical 3 microcycle phase.  My point is, we need to make sure we are doing the little things in order to get a gain in performance, because even the smallest gains can sometimes be the difference between attaining your desired outcome and not.

Intangibles have the uncanny ability to heighten other aspects of performance.  Here are three intangibles that I feel are among the most important and how they manage to bring other skills up in the weight room.

Focus

Imagine that you are Tiger Woods on the 18th hole at Agusta. As usual, you've just mounted another incomprehensible comeback, but still need this 10 foot birdie putt to win the Masters. Most people are already getting clammy palms...but not Tiger. He is so focussed that he doesn't even hear the five pre-mature camera flashes that just went off in his backstroke.  Of course he nails the putt and collects another funny looking green jacket.

Now, imagine you are about to enter a squat rack and need to lift a weight three times that you have never done twice.  For some strange reason, we don't seem to think that the same amount of focus is necessary to squat the bar. Focus while lifting is something that I feel is brutally lacking from the majority of the lifting population's tool box.  When you focus during your lift, you actually increase your intrinsic feeling of a lift.

If you are training a client (or even yourself), your job is to make sure they are focussed. If they come into a session flustered beyond belief because, "he did it again" or "I have so much to do today," this should be a wake-up call for you to change their mindset.  Try getting them to start their session with some balance drills. Start with simple ground based, single foot drills and progress to unstable surfaces. This is NOT a core exercise: This is merely a way to get them focussed on the task at hand - staying on this funny looking half-dome.  This now must transfer into the lift. When they enter the squat rack, have them first visualize the lift and then stare very very intensely at a spot about 5-20 feet away.  This is another reason why lifting in front of a mirror is not a good idea - too many distractions.  Not only is your own body moving but you may be distracted by other movements in the background.

Tempo

This might be the most important variable of lifting.  Too many times we get caught up in sets and reps and don't pay any attention to the speed of the movement. The tempo of the lift will determine the time-under-tension (TUT) - quite simply, the amount of time a muscle or group of muscles are under tension during a rep, set, session, etc.  The biggest mistake I see trainers make when starting with a client is getting them to perform new exercises without a care of what the tempo is.  If you have someone performing a plank rotation (front plank/side plank rotation) and you let them do it as fast as they can to get their "10 reps" in, I guarantee you will never get them to keep their hips level and rib-to-hip connection intact. Now, if you slow them down by even half the speed, you'll see that they have to focus (sounds familiar), and instantly their form will improve.  Obviously, not all lifts are created equal. For example, a deadlift - which is more of a slow, grind lift - is going to differ in tempo from a kettlebell swing.  Too often in a deadlift, the individual performs the lift as a tempo that is too fast.  You cannot create enough tension when a deadlift is performed more like a power clean.  In contrast, sometimes performing a kettlebell swing too slowly can have adverse effects to the individual.  Many beginners will have this problem, where they try to slow the kettlebell down as opposed to letting the bell do the work.  Once we try to slow the bell down, we are now putting a higher eccentric braking force (source of many injuries) on the rotator cuff, for example, causing a painful shoulder.  A swing should be performed as if you are about to explode off of the ground without actually leaving and then "pulling" the bell back to load your hip hinge.  Once again, when the individual focuses on the tempo of the movement, they instantaneously heighten their ability to focus, which we know enhances performance.

Breathing

If you've ever watched a boxing match, you'll understand the importance of proper breathing.  It sounds more like a back and forth spitting match.  Upon each punch the boxer will (usually) exhale upon impact.  This is done for a couple of reasons: The first is that it allows the boxer to put everything s/he has into the punch.  The second and most important reason - it creates maximal intra-thoracic pressure, or tension, which translates into the most powerful punch.  The same can be said for weightlifting.  Let's take an overhead press of any kind: If the individual presses a weight overhead while not getting proper inhalation (around 70% max lung capacity) and does not forcefully release the air upon moving the weight, they either won't lift the weight, or they will compensate and risk injury.  Take that same person and get them to inhale properly, hold their breath for a slight second (can't wait for the backlash from physiologists) and then breathe through their teeth (hissing sound), and it will make an immediate impact on their ability to perform the lift safely.  Martial artists call this "breathing behind the shield".  Many people will think this sounds stupid, so you give them two options: Sound stupid or get hurt. I'm sure they'll come around.  Plus, like all good intangibles, it improves the other aspects of a skill: In this case, intra-thoracic pressure, focus, and the safety of the lift.

So the next time you are training (yourself or a client), treat it like a competition - if you do the intangibles, chances are you'll win the game - improve lifting performance.