We're all aware that there is a big mental component to training and competing.  Let's discuss some of our views and techniques...

Do you get nervous before a contest?  How do you think this impacts your training?  What do you think should be done about it?
Do you tend to lift better in the gym or at the contest?  Why do you think that is?

Prior to a meet (usually anywhere from a couple days to a week) or any competition for that matter I tend to be quite nervous.  Actually I would say anxious is a better term.  Nervous might indicate a lack of confidence, which isn't what I have normally.  That being said - the few times when I didn't feel nervous or anxious I was actually overconfident and too content.  This has led to poor performances.  So when I feel anxious I feel confident that I am in the right state of mind to compete well.

The anxiety is in my deload week leading up to a meet - so it doesn't affect my training much.  I like to do all the main movements with light weight to reinforce the set-up and form and to gain confidence with the speed with which I move the weight.

During my deload week (usually in class when I am bored haha) I think about the set-up and protocols for each lift.  For the squat I thinking about setting up, then my breathing routine, unracking the weight and steadying it.  Then I think of one step back, second step back - making sure my set-up is proper.  Then I think about staying tight, hearing the "squat" command, taking in a big breath and sitting back.  Then making sure I hit depth and keeping my knees out - smoking the attempt and hearing the "rack" command.

Same thing goes for bench.  I visualize my set-up routine. Setting my arch and making sure my scaps are retracted.  Following all the commands.  "Start". Making sure to tuck my elbows. Touch. Pause. "Press". Explode off my chest and then flare my elbows to lock it out. "Rack".

Deadlift I guess I don't think too much about - the setup and protocols are more straight forward.

When it comes to the meet and my performance I usually rise to the occasion.  The added pressure of a meet and the fact that it is a singular event allow me to increase my mental focus which improves my lifting.  

Other than that, I just try to relax and enjoy myself.  After all lifting is probably the number one thing I am most passionate about and get the most amount of enjoyment from.  Why should it be any different at a meet?  If anything a meet should amplify my passion and enjoyment! 

I get extremely nervous before a meet and unfortunately it doesn't get any better as time goes on.

Once the comp starts I'm fine, but where it really hurts me is my sleep and food intake the week leading up to the ccomp. I've kind of just accepted it, but it's definitely something I can work on.

Before a BIG contest, I start getting nerves about a week out.  A day or two out, I actually get pretty irritable.  Just short-fuzed, I guess.  And that doesn't immediately make sense to me because I try to stay as calm as possible during the contest.  It doesn't really affect my training, though.

What about lifting better in the gym?  I guess it's pretty clear that I (typically) lift better in the gym than at the contest.  How about you guys?  Why do you think that is?

Overall, the meet atmosphere has the most to do with nerves. The warmup room and how much space there is plays into it. The coaches (if there is any). How silent the crowd is (silent crowds suck, this isn't golf). How serious everyone is taking it (it's never fun when you got a bunch of people acting like its life or death, its powerlifting people, you'll live to fight another day). The more fun and relaxed the atmosphere, the better you can lift.

As far as lifting in the gym...when I'm alone at home its all business, just go out there and hit what I'm supposed to and call it a day. When I'm in the fitness center training around all the bench n curls guys and attractive females watching on, it adds another element of satisfaction to lifting which I think can help increase the intensity and quality of my workouts. Just knowing that I'm actually training and doing something meaningful/useful while all these other folks are just wasting their time, kinda makes ya feel good about yourself I suppose.

My mental prep for strongman contests consists of a lot of visualization, relaxation techniques, and talking with a friend who I call my "spiritual advisor," , Sarah. 

Visualization:  I really try to visualize every detail of each event.  A neat trick I learned about from racing:  sit down in a quiet place, close your eyes, and take a few deep breaths.  Start visualizing; as soon as you say "go" in your mind, start a stopwatch.  Play through the entire event in your mind; when you've completed it, note the time.  How does this time compare to the time it actually takes you to complete the event?  If there's a difference, chances are your missing some detail in your visualization.  Run through it again and again, really trying to get every detail down cold.  You'll know you're really close when your start to breathe harder, your BP rises, and you get "pumped" while visualizing.

Relaxation:  I tend to be tightly wound, and I tend to internalize stress.  So its important for me to work on relaxation, especially pre-comp.  The more I can do this, the less my nerves get the better of me in the final week prior to comp.

 Talking:  for whatever reason, Sarah & I really "gel", and she has a knack for asking me key questions about the upcoming meet, and I have no hesitation about answering her truthfully.  I find this dialog to be extremely helpful in getting over any negative thoughts I might have ("My log press is so weak, I really suck at that event.") 

I lift about the same during a comp as in practice; sometimes a little better, sometimes not.

As far as nerves go:  I get nervous a couple days before the comp, especially if I don't have anything to do - training's done, and when I'm not "doing" something, I get anxious.  I'm definitely nervous on the day of the comp, until I get to the comp.

I've noticed that I tend to not be the silent, brooding, "intense" guy at comps.  I wander around, catch up with old friends, make new friends, and try to learn as much as I can from everybody, as well as freely share whatever knowledge I might have. 

I do know that despite this, I have to be able to find my own space at a comp.  That might mean I go sit in my car; it might mean that I simply take a break from the crowd, and spend some time by myself, stretching.  I try to just clear my mind during this time.

I get nervous one two pretty distinct occations before a contest. The first is way out of a one that I regard as being very important. Last year like 5 month out from the Nationals (which is next Sunday) I started getting frustrated and nervous at the same time. I thought about how I was not going to be as strong as I "need" for my personal well being and how I'm going to bomb out. I get fight / flight sensations which are really horrible and really get my butt kicked by myself. The second bout is more of a butterflies in my stomach sensation and that starts the night before and a little when I get to the meet room.

 That said, I'm not a nervous person at all. Competition stress makes me better; I produce stronger and better-executed lifts on a meet. I tend to get things right more often. I don't think it's the actual competition element in itself that does this for me either, or atleast not the only component of it, it's the fact that there are people around that want to judge me. That always brings out the best.

 Another thing that a competition does for me is that I start to sort out issues with the competition lifts really methodically to weed out all little quirks that are not good enough. I video myself lifting and I have reliable friends judge the lifts to make sure that I get the depth squatting and also that I can benchpress what I think I can with referee signals. But this really starts way out of competitions in that I try to compile templates that will improve on the lifting techniques.

 These are all mostly "mechanical" aspects. Mentally I start visualizing myself approaching and executing the lifts. I think about which weights that will be reasonable come the competition; I let the feeling of making the goal weights fill me as well as how heavy it will feel. And generally experience the full meet in my head way before it starts. Weeks before. I envision even warmning up for benchpressing because there's always too little time to get everything right so I picture myself getting everything done and right anyway. I think a lot about feeling comfortable with what I've brought to the competition floor, and then about just how much mental energy I am going to put into getting absolutely everything perfect. Then I let the feeling of doing that fill me. And then I start over again. Each time trying to analyze and fully introspect different aspects of everything that goes into the competition.

I definitely agree with Matt, I feel anxious, not nervous.  I get about a week away from the meet, and I just can't wait to lift something heavy.

One thing I am trying to figure out is the extent to which I should get myself pumped up before a lift.  It seems silly getting yourself overly excited for an opener that you'll smash without the adrenaline rush.  And there is probably a limit to the number of times you can get a big adrenaline rush in a single meet.

A new concern is sleep the night before a meet.  Before my first meet my wife and I stayed in a hotel the night before and I slept really well.  Last meet we stayed at home and we drove in the morning and I slept 2 hours right away after going to sleep, and from there I couldn't get another minute of sleep.  To what extent that affected my meet I have no idea.  Next meet my wife and I will stay in a hotel the night before.  I think there is something about having to drive a couple of hours and the potential for car trouble or some other issue that makes me nervous, who knows.  Being able to sleep later and drive a couple miles to the meet site is relaxing I suppose.

As I get into tighter equipment I realize the importance of learning the gear really well.  Five weeks out from my most recent meet I weighed 205 pounds and could not use my 46 Metal King V-type squat suit effectively.  The legs and straps were so tight that I was forced straight down, I could not sit back.  So a couple of weeks later I weighed 200 pounds and squatted extremely well in the suit in my skills evaluation.  I realized I had to force the legs of the squat suit as high as I could so the straps weren't too tight.  This is what haunted me on meet day weighing 195, I forced the legs up because I was afraid of not being able to sit back as happened 5 weeks from the meet.  So when I was warming up, my first squat with the suit on (straps up) was 455, and it was HARD.  Well this certainly shouldn't have been the case.  I got absolutely zero pop out of the suit and I was thinking maybe I need to put the suit on all over again because I must have the legs pulled up too high.  Instead I said to myself that there wasn't time, last time I took that squat suit off it took about 20 minutes (at 5 pounds heavier though). So I then put my knee wraps on and squatted 525 and that felt slightly better.  I reasoned the suit is fine and I'm just nervous that is why I'm not as explosive as usual and when I get on the platform it will come together.  Well it never really came together, although I was able to hit my opener and my third attempt.  I just had very little pop out of the bottom, and it had to be in large part because I had the damn thing pulled up too high on my legs.  I tend to learn really well when there are stakes.

Another thing I have to figure out is what to eat during meet day.  I have a very difficult time stomaching anything and I don't want to feel worn out by the time I deadlift.  Although I can deadlift at or near my best with adrenaline alone.

Matt, regarding getting psyched up before a lift, I'm not sure how much it helps.  Actually, I'm not sure how much it helps me.  In my experience, the more "psyched up" I get for a lift, the bigger chance there is for some sort of technique error.  And for me, any technique error costs me more strength than the psych can bring me.  Additionally, for me there is no shortage of nervous energy in a meet setting.  Getting excessively psyched up just adds fuel to the fire.

That certainly makes sense Mike, thanks.

I know that during some squat workouts where I was extremely fatigued, getting really fired up has made a set feel much easier/better.  But if that at all applies to meet lifting I do not know.

Well, that's true too about it helping some sets.  I guess it comes down to knowing when to "use it".

That's another good topic -- when do you think its a good idea to get "psyched up"?  Consider both meet situations and training situations.

Here is an article that could help jump-start the conversation:

http://www.tmuscle.com/free_online_article/sports_body_training_performance/combat_psychology_and_sports_performance

I'm not a big fan of getting "psyched"; I've tried it, and it seems like a poor substitute for being truly ready for a lift.  When I'm really ready - mentally, physically, and spiritually - for an event, in training or comp, my focus becomes very myopic, and there's an almost Zen-like calm.  I hate to say this, because it's somewhat mystic, but I feel like I become "one" with the weight / object /event.

When I doubt myself, when I'm not ready, that Zen state just doesn't come.  I can try to make up for it by screaming, whatever, and it doesn't do nearly as much.

OTOH:  I remember, 16+ years ago, I was training hard, doing some low rows, with the entire plate stack.  I had just finished setting a huge PR, my body was done, I was getting ready to let go of the handle, and this drop-dead gorgeous woman squatted down beside me, put a hand on my shoulder, leaned in, and whispered in my ear "C'mon, big guy.  Pull 3 more for me.  You can do it for me, c'mon, don't stop."  I could smell her, feel her breath in my ear, and wow.

 I pulled 3 more reps.

Sounds like you're on your own, psycholifter.

 J/K.  I've experienced the exact same thing on DL and DL variants.  There's defnitely something psychological about it, at least for me.  While I normally get that feeling only setting a big PR, I've had it on "smaller" lifts, depending on the circumstance.

Well, It's good to know that there is at least one other lifter (Bob!) who is also "psycho".

I reiterate Mike's question; when is it good to get psyched up, fired up, whatever you want to call it? Does it serve a positive role in training, or just create more stress to recover from? How about it's role in competition? How do you channel it into strength where you need it, and not just an uncontrolled energy release? I know it is draining and unsustainable, so when do you do it, if at all? C'mon guys, there are a bunch of experienced powerlifters here, so what works for you? What have you learned?