Gym rats know the power of HIIT—high-intensity interval training. Those all-out, repeated blasts of activity seem daunting, but those who try it swear by it, often telling anyone within earshot that they’ve never felt so strong or alive.
There’s a HIIT for the mind too, says Alister Gray, an executive leadership consultant and mindset coach based in Scotland.
He says some of the same principles apply, involving short bursts of ‘mental’ training every morning. “The only difference is we replace the word intensity with intention,” he says, in order to reach peak performance mentally and emotionally.
Gray’s coaching sessions recently resulted in record levels of productivity in a number of departments at Captify, a British-born British-born digital advertising company with more than 250 employees worldwide. Captify’s leadership team found the increase especially remarkable given the stressors of a global coronavirus pandemic, and documented a 30% productivity increase within a number of departments.
That inspired Gray to create a regimen that individuals anywhere can build into the start of their workday. Gray’s HIIT for the mind consists of five exercises for three minutes each: breath-work, mantra meditation, gratitude awareness, visualizing the day and intention-setting,
Those 15 minutes are enough to set up a busy executive to climb their mountains, says Gray, founder of Mindful Talent. He suggests a quiet space with preferably natural light, a chair or something comfortable to sit on (sitting outside is better than inside), a journal or notepad, and a timer.
1. Breath-work
“Breath is the thread that ties creation together,” as aikido founder Morihei Ueshiba put it, and anyone familiar with techniques for meditation or mindfulness knows breath is the foundation for such work. Gray offers the following regimen:
- Set the timer for three minutes; then inhale through the nose for a count of four (this can be increased over time).
- Hold the breath for a count of four.
- Exhale the breath for a count of four through the mouth; then repeat.
After three minutes, allow the breath to settle back into a natural rhythm.
2. Mantra Meditation
Many people give up quickly on the practice of meditation because they believe they’ll never keep their minds from wandering. Gray says that mantras actually turn the mind’s tendency to wander into a source of strength. He likens a mantra to a dumbbell in the gym: “Whenever you notice your thoughts straying and your attention being distracted from the present moment, then simply bring your attention back to the breath, or in this case the mantra,” he says. “Each one of those is a rep. If your thoughts are frantic at first, then great, you’re in for a true HIIT workout.”
This involves paying attention to the natural rhythm of your breath—both the inhale and the exhale:
- On every inhale silently repeat the word “So.”
- On every exhale silently repeat the word “Hum.”
Repeat for three minutes—and whenever you notice your mind wandering, bring your attention back to the present moment, to the breath and to repeating the mantra. It’s helpful to remember, Gray says, that “the mind wanders 49% of your waking hours—so the sooner you accept that this will happen, the better your meditation will go.”
3. Gratitude and Appreciation
By now, many people have heard about the demonstrated power of gratitude to improve physical health and psychological health. It’s still a difficult discipline to maintain on a regular basis.
High-intensity interval training pays dividends for the body. A different kind of HIIT pays ... [+]
“The important thing about practicing gratitude is to feel it,” Gray says. “Many people fall into the trap of gratitude becoming another task on their to-do list, an intellectual thinking process versus a felt experience. The felt experience is where the appreciation comes in.”
A journal or notepad facilitate this practice. Take three minutes total: First, write down three things, people, situations, experiences or even desired future outcomes that inspire feelings of gratitude. Then, spell out the reasons why you appreciate these things to such a degree.
4. Visualizing the Day
Gray argues that taking time to visualize the day ahead is a powerful way to prime one’s mind. “For decades Olympic athletes and sports professionals have used the power of visualization to help them prepare for big events and competitions, often referred to as mental rehearsal,” he says.
“The incredible thing is that your brain doesn’t know the difference between an imagined reality and what we call reality,” he adds. “Therefore, by spending time each morning, imagining and visualizing the day that lies ahead, we are essentially programming our brain to look for, and create, opportunities to manifest this imagined reality into existence.”
This exercise is best practiced sitting up in a chair, with the back straight, shoulders relaxed, and eyes closed, says Gray. Then spend three minutes imagining the day ahead and consider questions such as:
- How are you “showing up” in each moment?
- What is making you happy and satisfied?
- How are you overcoming any challenges that present themselves?
- How are you making others feel?
- What are you achieving in your day?
“If at first this is difficult, this is normal,” Gray says. “Like any muscle, your mind takes time to warm up and to develop. Over time, visualizing becomes easier when practiced regularly.”
5. Intention Setting
Visualizing one’s day allows a person to then set clearer intentions. Intention-setting can often be confused with goal-setting or targets. Although alike, they are entirely different in a subtle yet meaningful way.
“Intention-setting is not about achieving a specific outcome or reaching a goal, although it is likely to assist in that process,” he adds. “Intention setting is about considering how you would like to be and feel as you move throughout your day… kind of like an anchor that you can return to in any moment.”
He likens the process to being an archer with a bow and arrow. One pulls back the arrow, which represents their intention, points it in the direction in which they wish to travel, and then lets go. He advises spend these three minutes journaling the following questions:
- How would I like to feel today?
- What would make today great?
- How can I contribute and help others today?
“As you progress, you can change the questions to ones that feel right for you on any given day,” he adds.
Not unlike the short workouts that have been all the rage in recent years for busy professionals, Gray says a HIIT mental workout can be expanded as time allows for even more pronounced results.
“The exercises can be increased or decreased as you see fit,” says Gray. “Over time, I recommend that you spend a little longer on the workout to deepen your practice and experience.”
