Continue reading »]]> Trust your skills and training, and let your performance happen.

Thinking too much, before and during your performances will only tend to gum up the works. Keep your focus away from your thoughts and on the game and exactly what you are doing. Thinking too much will distract you from the task at hand and slow you down in every way. Thinking about what you should do, have to do, better do, or what will happen if you don’t is a big NO NO performance-wise! Keep your head in the performance. When you notice that little voice in your head chattering away, tell it, “Thanks for sharing!” and immediately bring your focus back to what you’re doing. Don’t think, just react! Don’t think just feel! Don’t think, just trust yourself!

Continue reading »]]> To realize your full potential as an athlete or performer, you have to start training your mind as well as your body! Just as you develop physical skills and techniques, you must learn to develop these sports psychology mental skills. What are these so-called mental skills?

You can learn to master these skill areas and make them part of your athletic or performance arsenal.

Continue reading »]]>  

1. So what kind of a head do you have on your shoulders?
2.  Are you lifting and competing at the level that you’re capable of?
3.  Do you regularly lift better in practice or insignificant competitions than you do in the big ones?
4. Are there particular opponents who you consistently lose to who have no business beating you?
5. Are you easily psyched out or intimidated?
6. Do fears and self-doubts paralyze you and prevent you from lifting to your potential. Are you the kind of athlete who regularly steals defeat from the closing jaws of victory?

If some of these questions bother you, then you probably already know how critically important the mental part of your sport is. If you want to take your performance to the next level, then you have to be willing to take your training far beyond where most lifters stop. Most serious athletes in this sport religiously work on the physical part of the sport. They’ll work on their strength, fitness and quickness. They’ll work on correctly executing their technique. Is this stuff important? ABSOLUTELLY! You can’t become successful without “paying your physical dues” in this way. Hard work is definitely one of the main keys to your success.

Think about this: Getting good as a weight lifter in practice is 95% physical and 5% mental. Translation: You have to work hard on your strength, conditioning and “physical game” to make it happen. However, once you step onto that stage for a lift, the percentages flip flop. Being successful is 95% mental and 5% physical. You have the strength, conditioning and technique to lift well. Whether you do or don’t is directly related to how calm you are under pressure and whether your stay focused on the right things. For example, your concentration needs to stay in the moment, totally focused on executing this lift and this lift only. If you let your mind jump ahead to the future, slip back into the past or wander to what your opponents are lifting, then you’ll end up getting yourself too uptight and distracted to perform to your potential. This also means that you have to be able to rebound quickly from your mistakes/failures and not carry them with you into the future.

In addition, you have to believe in yourself and have the self-confidence to know that you can handle this weight. This might also mean that you have to be able to handle last minute negativity, self-doubts and fears. You also have to be able to avoid the common mental mistakes that lifters and other athletes make that lead them to getting psyched out or intimidated.

With a little work, these mental skills as well as a few important others can be systematically trained to the point where you develop the reputation as a mentally tough competitor

Continue reading »]]> Once you have dreamed a dream goal, carefully calculated a realistic performance goal, and internalized a goal of self – acceptance, the focus is always best placed upon what is immediately in front of you. Goals may project you into the future, but they must be acted upon in the present. As you approach the day of competition, you must begin to focus on components of the event within your control (there is no reason to think about anything else). Usually only a handful of athletes or teams have a realistic chance of winning any high performance contest. No matter how well each of those athletes performs, only one will win.

The most appropriate on – site orientation for almost all athletes to take into the competition is to give 100% of what they have. The most appropriate on – site goal for you is to maintain the event focus that you know well give you the highest probability of success. Be as “great (good) as you can be” as opposed

to the goal of winning. The on – site commitment is to “play with intensity” and to “be as good as you can be,” each play, each shot, each shift, this game, and this night.  Seeing how good you can be, going as fast as you can, pushing your limits, giving all you have, extending yourself, playing your game, racing your race, and doing a clean skate or routine are examples of constructive on –site orientations that often lead to best efforts, self – improvement, personal development, and sometimes winning. Frequently, however, this general positive orientation must be translated into a more specific on site – FOCUS: goals that effectively and continuously direct yours actions.

Continue reading »]]> First you want to decide where you want to end up. Don’t sell yourself short in terms of possibilities. Dream a little. Dreams allow for the unfolding of new realities. Goals that are unimaginable are unachievable – not because they really are unachievable, but because they were never dreamt of.

1. Imagine what is potentially possible if all your limits are stretched. How good could you be? Imagine the possibility of unlimited possibility!!! This should allow you to extend what you previously considered your possible upper limit. What you aim at effect how you approach a target, how you approach yourself, and what you are likely to hit.
2. Set a realistic performance outcome goalbased on your competitive history, current skill level, and present motivation for improvement. What is the best performance you can realistically attain this year if you commit yourself to it? (Think in terms of final placing, ranking, score, or personal best time. “A major purpose in setting a realistic outcome goal is to establish to commitment to this goal”Suggested questions to ask yourself:

   a.What is your current skill level?

   b.What are your relative strength and weaknesses?

   c.How committed are you to improving your level of performance? (What is your training commitment this year compared with last year’s)

3. Self acceptance. Set goal of overall self – acceptance, regardless of performance outcome. If you fail to             meet an important performance goal, you are naturally disappointed, and there is nothing wrong with feeling and  expressing that disappointment. You should still, however, be able to accept yourself as a worthy human being. Self damnation serves no purpose.

What do you need to know about “Worry”

“If worry can solve your problems, then worry like crazy man” However, not many problems are solved by worrying. Worrying about what is completely beyond your control is particularly unproductive. You can’t control uncontrollable (history, judges, officials). You can, however control yourself and your responds to situation around you. In high performance sport you should focus your energy on yourself and on the events within your potential control. If you start to get upset about something that happened, stop and ask if it was within your control (RRR – recognize/regroup/refous). If there is something you could have done to perform better in that condition, extract the lesson and then put the event aside. If, after experiencing a setback or unmet goal, you go through a constructive post performance evaluation procedure, it will help you to objectify the experience, learn from it, and get back on track with as little self – inflicted pain as possible.

Continue reading »]]> How do we teach a new skill?

The teaching of a new skill can be achieved by various methods:

• Verbal instructions
• Demonstration
• Video
• Diagrams
• Photo sequences

The stages of learning are phases that athletes experience as they progress through skills. As a coach, if you are aware of your athletes’ level of readiness, you can be better at skill instruction for their level.

Several models are used describe these learning stages. There is no definitive point at which an athlete transitions into any the phase, but descriptions help coaches know about where athletes are and which level of activities they are able to accomplish.

The two-stage models distinguish only between getting the idea and then progressing from the fundamentals torefining skills. Key points from each model are presented here using the 3-stage approach.

The Mental Stage: Figuring Out the Skill

This phase, sometimes referred to as thecognitive stage or the verbal-motor stage, occurs when the beginning athlete is attempting to understand the basic task. Challenges include how to hold the racquet, how to place the feet, and where the boundaries are. 

Beginners are not always aware of what they did wrong, nor do they know how to correct errors. They need basic, specific instruction and feedback during this phase.

The Associative Stage: Getting Better

At this stage the athlete understands the fundamentals of the skill and is in the process of refining the skill. They experience fewer errors and can detect some of them on their own. Performances are more consistent and learners begin to know what is relevant and what is not. 

Here the athlete refines what is needed to accomplish the objective of the skill regardless of the situation. They also begin to learn how to diversify responses for open skills.

The Autonomous Stage: It’s Second Nature

At this point the skill is well learned. The athlete perform the skill automatically without having to focus on execution. There are few errors and athletes can detect and know how to correct them. They can concentrate more on other aspects of the game. 

As athletes transition from learning to goal of the skill to perfecting it, coaches can diversify instruction and practice conditions. 

For closed skills, practices should be structured to match the conditions of competition. For open skills, the coach must systematically vary the conditions under which the skill is being learned and performed in preparation for competition.

Remember

 

Practice makes permanent, but not necessarily perfect.

Continue reading »]]> Understanding and Retaining Information

How much do you think you actually retain after class or training session? Most people are surprised to learn that students retain only a fraction of what teachers/trainers/coaches delivery them during a class time or training session. The formula goes something like this:

 Communication is comprised of:

•  * 50% of what we hear

•  * 25% of what we have listened to

•  * 12% of what we have understood

•  *  6% of what we believe

•  * 3% of what we remember

Why are Communication Skills Important?

Communication skills is important so that you are sure what you are supposed to be doing when you are supposed to be doing it. It minimizes confusion.

Continue reading »]]> One Page Assessment

• You do not have well-defined goals or goal specificity. You lack direction.
• You perform better in practice than during competition.
• You are so self-conscious; you worry about what others think about your game.
• You maintain many self-doubts about your sport before or during games.
• You worry about letting others down by not performing up to others expectations.
• You are too self-conscious and worried about how others may perceive you.
• You suffer from anxiety, worry, or excess tension when in competition.
• Pregame jitters do not go away after the first few minutes into the competition.
• You are motivated by fear of failure and it affects your performance in competition.
• You have a fear of success and sabotage yourself when you are winning.
• You are not sure why you play your sport or let others be your source of motivation.
• You are motivated by external rewards, accolades, recognition, or praise.
• You attach your self-worth to how well you perform in sports.
• You lose focus or have mental lapses during critical times of the game.
• Your routines are not well defined or lack mental focus in routine.
• You go through the motions physically without mental focus or intensity.
• You are not excited enough or are too excited to perform your best in competition.
• You are distracted by things that go on around you in your environment.
• You have doubts or negative thoughts before, during, or after competition.
• Post-injury you cannot perform the way you did pre-injury even when 100% physically.
• When performing well you may sabotage your performance with a comfort zone (protect your lead) or expectations that limit your ability to press forward.
• You become easily frustrated because of high expectations.
• You cannot perform with freedom or trust in times of adversity or pressure.
• You work on your mechanics or technique even when competing.
• You do not concentrate in the here and now or focus only on execution.
• You think of too much about consequences of your performance, good or bad.
• You overanalyze mistakes (technique) and thus think too much about technique.
• You suffer from low self-confidence or self-esteem.
• You limit your performance with negative self-labels such as “I am a choker.”
• You have trouble forgetting or letting go of bad past performances.
• Your anger or frustration gets in the way of peak performance.
• You are frequently disappointed with your performance and wish it was better.
• You have a burning desire to be the best ever at your sport or just want to know how to improve your mental game.

If you checked one or more of the boxes above, consider taking an AMAP© (Athletes Mental Aptitude Profile). The AMAP is a comprehensive assessment of your mental approach to your sport, which identifies strengths and weaknesses. Once you complete the AMAP, I will meet with you to discuss how to improve your mental toughness and get the mental advantage on your competition. Isn’t that what every athlete wants? Get started today!!!  Call me 303-601-1671, or email liftbartraining@gmail.com

Continue reading »]]> The major portion of competition thinking should concentrate on technical and tactical aspects of the sport, for example, the technique features for a segment, positional play, effort levels, and movement precision. It is recommended that approximately two-thirds of the thoughts of strategy content should be task-relevant.

There are two stages in a contest that require different forms of task-relevant thinking. In the early stages of a competition when fatigue is not evident, task-relevant thinking has to be modified. It is likely that the thinking of specific, detailed technique features that control physical movements would cause performance to worsen. This is because of the phenomenon known as “cognitive interference” (when one thinks of what they are doing when performing a highly skilled activity in a non-fatigued state, the thoughts interfere with the efficiency of automated skilled performance). When an athlete is fresh, task-relevant thinking should be limited to tactical and decision-making content (e.g., anticipation, recognition of relevant cues) and general capacity features such as smoothness, length, evenness, rhythm, etc. The detailed technique features of physical actions should be left to the automatic neuromuscular patterns that have been developed through training. However, at the onset of the next performance stage, which is usually signaled by the first hint of fatigue, it is necessary to begin to concentrate on specific, detailed technique thoughts along with other task-relevant items. This is required to avoid any accumulated fatigue causing a loss in technique efficiency. The transfer of control to conscious thinking about skilled activities should maintain performance efficiency and form. As a competition progresses and fatigue increases, task-relevant thinking should gradually include increasing amounts of specific technique content so that performance efficiency is sustained.

The focus on task-relevant information is intended to ensure that all resources available in a competition are used fully and in the most efficient manner possible.

The nature of task-relevant thinking will depend upon the sport and the individual athlete. It will be less extensive in some sports that require repetitive attempts (e.g., shooting, shot-putting, ski-jumping, power-lifting) than in more involved team games (e.g., Australian Rules football, soccer, beach volleyball). It will even differ between seemingly complex team sports particularly with regard to fatigue. For example, in baseball and cricket, fatigue is not incurred to the extent that is exhibited in lacrosse or rugby. Consequently, in those former games task-relevant thinking will be focused on attention, tactics, and decision-making factors rather than the execution of skills. On the other hand, a lacrosse or rugby player might have to consciously think of the aspects of a running action if speed is required when fatigue is high.

The task-relevant content should be extensive rather than being too brief. Two procedures should be used when thinking of prepared items. First, the content should be cycled through so that there is no dwelling upon any particular item to the extent that complacency in concentration occurs. Second, a variety of ways of thinking about each item should be developed. This allows a different thought structure to be employed each time an item is cycled. For long competitions, it is almost impossible to have a new way of interpreting each item on every occasion but there should be sufficient alternatives to avoid the repetition becoming boring. Thus, the challenge is for an athlete to develop task-relevant content that features changing thought-control emphases that result in keeping thoughts vital and alert.

When task-relevant information is developed it should be extreme in detail. Athletes usually think in such general terms that thoughts have little meaning for the form or efficiency of performance. For example, “driving the legs long” in running is too vague to produce performance control in a contest. What needs to be planned for eventual thought control is a variety of detailed features of the leg drive, such as, pushing off the toes, keeping the foot on the ground for a longer time period, driving the toes backward, and letting the knee and thigh travel further behind the hips. That level of detail will directly affect the form and efficiency of the leg drive and will result in performance alterations. When task-relevant information is planned, it has to be of sufficient detail that when it is thought, it directly affects performance.

A major problem that occurs with strategies is the phenomenon of “deadspots.” These occur when a strategy is being enacted and for one reason or another, the athlete’s mind goes blank. Some major causes of this are: i) the athlete has prepared too little content and there are insufficient thoughts to fill the contest time, and ii) there has been too little variety in the thinking resulting in the athlete’s loss of thought intensity and concentration. The latter problem produces non-directed thought intrusions that indicate a loss of control. Effective strategy use requires concentration on the tasks of the sport. If that concentration is interrupted, it usually is necessary to enact a “dead-spot recovery routine” to regain control. That usually involves concentrating on some preferred, safe, and competent action that is part of the segment plan. It serves as a re-entry point for regaining concentration.

Task-relevant thinking reduces an athlete’s uncertainty, and interpretive distraction, and performance deterioration. As it is developed, and the athlete’s technical competency changes, so will the task-relevant content. This strategy content is perhaps the most changeable feature of competition strategies and should be refined continually.

(Mental Skills Training for Sports by Rushall, B. S)

Continue reading »]]> They deal with aches and pains every day, and in general it’s easy to overcome those bumps and bruises and keep active.    But when you suffer from a major injury, it can drastically change the way you look at your sport. For a while you felt invincible, but major injuries throw the rhythm and safety you felt out of whack. Many athletes start to feel anxious again when they play the sport, and as most athletes know, the sport has to feel natural – if you’re thinking too much about what you’re doing, it becomes harder and harder to play the sport with the skill and confidence you had previously.

Anxiety with Athletes after Injuries

Feeling anxious after an injury is surprisingly common. This anxiety may be fueled by a whole host of different reasons, including:

• Fear – It’s not uncommon for those that suffer from a major sports injury to start experiencing greater levels of fear when they participate in the sport. Injuries are painful, and once you know that you can be injured it’s easy to worry that you may get injured again in the future. This fear can also be exacerbated by the natural anxiety you have any time you participate in a competitive or daring sport (because of the natural adrenaline rush), which is why fear is often the most common cause of anxiety after an injury.
• Long Term Health – Many athletes are worried that they can’t get to where they once were before the injury. For example, if a runner breaks their leg on a fall, that runner may worry that their leg isn’t going to heal correctly or that they will be unable to get the same speed out of their legs that they used to manage.
• Embarrassment – For a lot of athletes, their abilities in the sport (including avoiding injury) are a source of pride. So when an injury occurs, these same athletes start to feel embarrassed or worried in public, anxious over their own abilities and how they’re viewed by others. Even in non-competitive sports (like jogging) there is a feeling that others around you are judging your ability, and that feeling is amplified when you are concerned about your injury and future abilities.

Reducing your anxiety is important if you want to get back into the game.