mental gymnastics

Noun

plural plural-only derogatory

Japanese Meaning

難解で複雑な論理的思考過程（自然に、または無意識に行われる場合が多い） / （否定的に）正当化しがたい事柄を説明するために、複雑かつ独創的な議論を展開する行為

Her explanation sounded convincing, but it depended on a series of clever mental gymnastics that glossed over key contradictions.

彼女の説明は説得力があるように聞こえたが、重要な矛盾を覆い隠す巧妙で複雑な論理的工夫の連続に頼っていた。

Sense（1）

Difficult and complex logical thought processes, especially when performed effortlessly.

To cope with these mental gymnastics we apply various ways of simplifying and reducing the information.

Sense（2）

(derogatory) Inventive, complex arguments used to justify what is otherwise unjustifiable.

People often perform mental gymnastics in order to blame anyone but themselves.