Coach Pat Rivera

Thursday Motivation: Mental Imagery during training

The last time I shared a topic about imagery was during a contest. But how about during training?

Remember, each training session counts.
If you're a real athlete, training is not just physical, but also involves mental aspects. You create and develop a routine where your mind can adapt easily. Especially during the pressures of a real competition.

Sharing with you some tips:

1. Keep away from mirrors.
Yes, gym mirrors help to observe your form. But there's no mirror in a real contest. Time to depend on your instincts.

2. "Please load the bar at..."
Whenever I train, going to the working sets, and loading the weight, I always put in my mind that a contest host is saying this phrase that fuels me before I lift.

3. Train like you're in a contest
I've learned this from my coach:
"Think of every training session as a competition, so every competition is like a training session."

4. "And we have a NEW....!!"
A successful lift during training is a small accomplishment, but if you think of it as bigger, you can feel the image of breaking a record.

5. Reward yourself
Whenever you accomplish a training session, you make the numbers right and easy, and feel satisfied. Don't forget to reward yourself. A small prayer can do.

6. "Last Video-Watched Syndrome"
Before you train, take some time to watch any IPF videos on the internet so you can adapt to its atmosphere and visualization. Once you come to the gym, you can still feel the video you watched.

🐃🐃🐃

Monday Motivation: Celebration

Another golden lesson I've learned from my coach during my first competition:
"The contest was never a 'competition', but a 'celebration'..."

To ease the pressure among my athletes (especially for first-timers), I always share this lesson with them. Powerlifting competitions are celebrations.
You don't compete against anyone, you don't beat anyone.
You take to the stage and celebrate your hard work, discipline, and confidence.

Because accepting failure and pressure never wins contests, but celebrating them makes a real champion.

🐃🐃🐃

Wednesday Motivation: The Missing Piece

Are you a “Week 1-Day 1” Powerlifter?

It’s a term for someone who never had consistency in their training goal. They had the motivation, excitement, and optimism before their periodized routine, and eventually quit after a few weeks. Common reasons are:
1. Discontent with their current training routine.
2. Influenced by other factors such as social media.
3. Too much excitement to see results and progress.
4. Comparison with others.
5. Discovering new training programs to try.

It happens all the time, especially for younger lifters who are very excited for strength gains. Since Google and ChatGPT are available, they can search for the best powerlifting routines from around the world.

But here’s the call: no matter what your routine is, there’s no way you’ll get results as long as a piece of the puzzle is missing – patience.

Remember, every journey begins in a single step. Provide patience to your training so you can learn and understand the process, analyze your weak points, and wait for each progress that you’ll earn, from week 1 to week 20.

“The strongest of all warriors are these two: Time and Patience” -Leo Tolstoy

🐃🐃🐃

Monday Analysis: Ego-lifting

I admit, I also ego-lift in the gym. There are times when I don't follow the given load in my program, maximizing my capabilities (especially if there are a lot of people in the gym watching my training).

Probably the most destructive ego-lifting I experienced was when I trained for the 2010 Luzon Championships. I was aiming for a 300 kg squat at that time, my first time ever to reach that milestone at the height of my prime.

2 weeks before the contest and it was my 'opener week' where I would lift my projected 1st attempts in the contest. The plan was only 270 kg, but when I felt how 'light' it was, plus additional motivation from the people watching me, I decided to put in more. I went to 285 kg and it was good. So I've decided to make it 300 kg, and guess what, it went easily.

And when the contest was finally here, I decided to make my 1st attempt at 290 kg. But surprisingly, during warm-up, my knees started to shake and I could feel high RPE pressures. When I went to the stage, 290 kg was so heavy that I only had 2 white flags. And when I went to 300 kg attempt, that 'lightness' I've felt in the gym crushes me. I never had the chance to do it again in any contest or even in training to this day.

Lessons learned? The ego-lift attitude.
If I only followed and respected what is in the program, I would have enough gas in my tank to reach 300 kg in the contest.
That was the greatest shape I had, the best training I did,
My body already peaked,
The contest was my downfall.

🐃🐃🐃

Good Luck! Paolo Romeo Escareal Magpayo!

2026 Hong Kong's Strongest (Strongman Competition)
February 7, 2026

"When all else Fails, we don't..." - G.I. Joe

Thursday Motivation: Overcoming 'Ego-lifting'

As you enter the gym, with so many people working out. Probably you feel that you're the strongest in the place and you want to show people how strong you are, how hardcore, and how dominant. You feel the respect, popularity, consideration, and most of all, ego.

But what happens after?
Nothing. Just a compliment.
Not progress.

This is one of the most important lessons I always share with my students: Never 'ego-lift'.
Stay committed to the program, trust the process, and focus on your goal. Because when you mislead yourself into your ego-lifting attitude, you'll ruin your entire training rhythm. All of your results, progression, and periodization will be dumped, including injury or even burnout.

If you always feel the temptation to 'Ego-lift', try these:

🐃🐃🐃

Tuesday Motivation

For every success, achievement, upgrade, win, or any moving forward in your life,
There's always someone who pulls you down,
Someone who's not happy,
Someone who underestimates,
Someone who finds reasons for you to stop celebrating,
Someone who compares you to others who are more successful, just to outshine what you accomplished.
They can be anyone.

I remember back in 2014 when I won my first and only Asian Powerlifting Gold Medal, winning against the UAE and Uzbekistan. I've heard some people saying that I only won because other powerhouse Asian countries like Iran, Japan, Kazakhstan, and Chinese Taipei didn't participate. Though competing at an international level was my ultimate goal since I started Powerlifting. Winning a medal on this level is my greatest achievement. Something that you'll forever be proud of. But not for these people.

These people will find other things to pull you down.
They will never be proud of you.
They will never congratulate you.
They will never respect you.
For them, there's always someone greater than you, and you don't deserve the step you worked hard to get through.

Just keep going.
Put them out in your inner circle,
Appreciate the people who are happy for you,
Make the best of what you can, because this is not for them anyway,
It's on you. 🐃🐃🐃

Sunday Motivation: Your Inner Demons

Powerlifting is not just a sport, an exercise, or a hobby.
For some, it's a therapy.

We conquer some challenges that mentally destroy us.
We go to the gym to seek some relief.
We lift heavy to unleash your inner strength, greatness, domination,

Go fight your inner demons...

🐃🐃🐃

Tuesday Analysis: Your Social Media Page? Your Rules!

First of all, I'm not usually posting my training videos on social media. Perhaps because the gym where I was working at the time didn't have a Wi-Fi connection, and I didn't have a camera phone either. It was 2016 when I finally bought one and eventually left the old workplace and went to a new gym, this time with a free wifi connection.

That year, I created my first Instagram account, and as I navigated around, I saw world-ranking powerlifters and strongmen with their remarkable training videos posted. And so I was inspired to post mine.

I feel good, satisfied and motivated. Whenever I received likes and comments. For me, it was a 'refreshed' journey. Since there is no social media to post or even a camera phone to record videos during our prime.

However, since then, as I've experienced, it has elicited both positive and negative reactions.

You posted a deadlift video, lifting 230 kg...

-- You'll be labelled as "mayabang", "pasikat".
-- Someone will eventually post a much heavier load, to overshadow your post,
-- Criticizing your form and some unsolicited advice all over,
-- They'll look at another friend, teammate or even relative to compare against you - "wala yan kay ________, mas malakas yun!..."

We post training videos with different intentions,
✅ For documentation purposes,
✅ To inspire others,
✅ To make ourselves proud of an accomplishment,
✅ To seek attention, validation,
✅ For content,
✅ To show commitment and growth,

You probably have one of these intentions, but people will never knew.
Our posts defines who we are, we express ourselves,
Our training is also a form of expression,
People admire your post because they appreciate it,
But sometimes, people will get insecure and we can't stop it.

But above all, that's your page.
You create your rules (be responsible as well!)

🐃🐃🐃

Sunday Motivation: Quitting

In my early years of Powerlifting, I met a fellow lifter who shared the same age and weight class as me. Our totals are almost identical. At first, I saw him as a rival, but later on, a friend.

During the Juniors Championships (probably his competition debut), both of us became contenders for the Best Lifter Title.

With all the pressure during that contest, we both unfortunately bombed out. All the frustration that I've experienced, twice on his side, as I saw him crying while being pampered by his family.

After that debut, I've learned that he 'quit' the sport, and started a new chapter: Competitive Bodybuilding.

For the next few years, all I knew was that he won several bodybuilding titles. Today, he's a bodybuilding coach who also produced champions.

"Quitting" is not always the end.
It puts you on a new beginning.

Throughout the years, some of the powerlifters I knew who quit the sport became successful on the paths they've chosen. Some of them even used to be World Champions.

"Losers quit," as they said, but win on the other side instead.

🐃🐃🐃

Monday Mindset: New Year, New ME

It's been a year of challenges, victories, failures and lessons. But above all, we're still here, competing on the same platform and making a mark for another fruitful year.

Fr some lifters who are planning to compete this year, we look forward to the contests scheduled, with these goals: (in my experience as a Coach and Athlete):
✅Qualify for Totals
✅Win a medal
✅Break a record
✅Earn new PRs
✅Join an International event
✅Prove something

However, here's a thing: we get driven by these goals, but sometimes lose sight of the main focus.

And let's set these "New Year, New ME" resolutions, training-wise...

Enjoy the year! 🐃🐃🐃