People filming themselves in the gym is not too unique these days. Tripods have become a regular fixtures in many gyms as the realm of fitness influencers has grown.
Over the past few years, I’ve filmed almost all of my workouts and training sessions — and virtually every single lifting session.
But you won’t see most of my videos on social media.
In fact, I haven’t been on social media in over a year.
Many people have asked me why I film so much, or they wonder what I’m doing with all the “content” I’ve been creating.
The truth is, most of what I film is for myself — to facilitate my progress and change my habits.
How Filming Training Sessions Facilitates Progress
The period through which I’ve been filming has also been one where I’ve steadily increased my capacity. That’s not a coincidence.
In fact, it’s a remarkable achievement given that this has coincided with a stage of life where women tend to lose capacity and strength. I attribute much of that progress to the fact that I film my workouts and review them.
Here are the reasons why I film my training, and how it helps me progress.
(1) Form Check
My goal isn’t just to lift heavy; it’s to lift in proper alignment and good form so that my lifting is sustainable. The problem is that we can’t see our own form or alignment.
And no — a mirror won’t help. The moment you look in the mirror — if you have one available — you’re out of alignment. We need an external eye to see our movements. The camera provides that objective view.
This also is why I don’t film only my top sets. Filming every set allows me to see where my form breaks down, so I know where to focus extra training.
(2) Catch Subtle Compensation Patterns
Even if my alignment and form are overall clean, the video will catch the subtle compensation patterns that I might not notice: issues like a knee caving in, a foot collapsing, or a hip shift. Some compensation patterns happen so quickly and subtly that even an external person like a coach might miss them. They can only be seen when I slow down the video.
(3) Catch Unconscious Movement Patterns
During a heavy lift, I’m naturally paying more attention to the way I’m moving. But what about outside the main lifts?
Most of the ways we move are habitual, meaning they are unconscious. And many of our unconscious movements involve some form of compensation patterns. It’s these everyday patterns, which we repeat hundreds of times without awareness, that eventually lead to an injury.
The problem is that you can’t change something if you’re not aware of it. My videos catch these unconscious patterns, allowing me to see them.
For example, the video might show that every time I get up from the floor I come into a crouch and put my right leg forward and press off my left leg, which is behind my right.
It might reveal how I tend to lean into my left hip when I think I’m standing straight, or how I default to leading with a certain arm or foot.
(4) Neuromuscular Rehabilitation
When doing heavy lifts, I often feel internally like I’m struggling and can hardly complete the lift. My perception is that the bar is moving in slow motion. But a coach might observe that the bar is moving fast, indicating that this lift isn’t that heavy for me.
There’s a disconnect between how the lift looks and how it feels in my body. My body is sending me a signal that I’m at my limit and that something is wrong, which makes me want to abandon the lift.
This is common for people with ADHD, who often suffer from deficits of proprioception and interoception.
By seeing objectively that the bar was moving fast and knowing that I was safe during the lift, it helps my nervous system adapt its expectations, which changes my experience on the next lift and allows me to lift heavier loads.
(5) Keep Track of Reps and Sets
Let’s face it: there’s a lot going on in a training session. The nervous system is already working at max capacity, and it’s easy to lose track of how many sets and reps I’ve done. My video gives me that information. If I lose count of sets or what I’ve done, I can go back through the videos for a quick check.
(6) Mindset and Confidence Training
Your mindset going into a lift is a crucial factor that either helps you lift heavier or causes you to fail. As I go through my videos from a training session, I mark the best ones as favorites and sort them into albums.
Between sessions, I rewatch the clips where I had the best form, so I can better visualize what it looks like, and remind myself that I can do it.
My videos also are a form of confidence therapy. The nervous system feels energy, it doesn’t differentiate between the source. In the same way that anger can create inflammation and illness, confidence can help trigger endorphins and lead to more confidence.
Watching my heavy lift videos is a priming ritual that I use when I need a confidence boost — either before my next lifting session or going into a big meeting.
(7) Morale and Momentum
Progress isn’t linear, especially when it comes to physical pursuits. It’s an illusion to believe you can come into the gym and add weight every time. Stagnation and plateaus are inevitable, and part of the process.
This is especially true when we’re talking about women. Our strength and capacity varies depending on where we are in our cycles. Other factors like stress, sleep, and emotional load influence our capacity more than we realize.
It’s easy to buy into the story that I’m not making progress. But when I start to believe that, I have evidence to refute it. Looking back at my videos shows me how far I’ve come. I can’t fight the facts.
Going back to look at my old videos — sometimes even the “bad” ones — shows me how far I’ve come. That gives me a morale boost and helps me create momentum and inspiration for my next training session.
I suppose you can say it’s how I’ve become a fitness influencer for myself.
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