Posts Tagged "sport psychology"
May28

Thoughts on the NBA Playoffs – Eastern Conference

Posted at 10:16 AM • 3 Comments
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It's All On The Line Tonight For Cleveland

It's All On The Line Tonight For Cleveland

If you’ve been following the Eastern conference finals this year he witnessed team that was 8-0 in the playoffs going up against a team that had to battle to make it to the Eastern conference finals.  As we enter game five tonight the 8-0 team, Cleveland, is facing elimination being down three games to one.  Besides the obvious of some of the strategic and physical play that may need to change for tonight’s game must look at some of the mental aspects that the players need to be aware of.

 

If you are Cleveland there needs to be a sense of urgency and a renewed focus on what the individuals have to do in order to be successful as a team.  Between games Cleveland players have been very vocal about their confidence to be successful and that they are the better team.  Yet based on their play will only really seen that in one game and in that one went it’s arguable whether they were clearly that much better of a team.  While you may hear the cliché of “take it one game at a time”, it truly fits in the situation.  As soon as you feel like you have to win multiple games in a row your focus is no longer in the present.  Teams had to make a comeback in a best-of-seven series of the ones who recognize the importance of having to focus on smaller outcomes.  For example, trying to just win a quarter and then winning the next quarter and so on and so forth.  Also as an individual team sport not trying to do more than is asked of you for simply doing your job is a better approach in these type of pressure situations.  All season long in practice usually asked to perform certain duties and play at a certain level.  So starting to try to do more when you are three series into the playoffs is not the right approach.  If somebody from Cleveland to step up and becomes the unlikely hero that’s fantastic for the team but nobody should be expected to do that.

Even if we look at what may be expected of Lebron James, his focus should be the same as it was all season.  To do his job, to facilitate his offense, exploit mismatches, and score when he has the opportunity.  If he tries to take the whole team on his back and win by himself to be a seen time and time again in the NBA that he will be unsuccessful.  Great teams need role players and great players need that support as well.  Any championship team throughout history have had multiple stars along with role players or many players who fill the role as part of a team perfectly.

Lastly, from Orlando’s viewpoint this is a situation where ending the series is important.  Despite the troubles Cleveland has had they were a great team during the regular season and has done some great things in the playoffs.  It is not entirely impossible to think that they can’t get their act together and play to their potential.  While Orlando only has to win one of the next three games the more chances they need to complete this, the more pressure is then on them.  Orlando has the momentum and the lead in the series and similar to Cleveland having to make sure that everybody is filling the role and doing their part will then also need to make sure that they do not get away from one’s got them to where they are and continue to use strategies, situations, and players that have helped them win so far.

 

For more information about mental performance as well as overall athletic performance enhancement check out our websites. The links are on the right of the page.

Apr21

Preparing for a Long Season

Posted at 8:37 AM • No Comments

 

It's A Long Season, How Are You Preparing?

It's A Long Season, How Are You Preparing?

With the start of baseball season there is some key components to how you prepare to go through a long season. Even at the lower levels of baseball the season is a grind. Baseball seems the most dramatic because of the amount of games but most sport season are a grind. As you prepare to actually go into the season and try to perform your best there are some key things you want to be aware of.

 

Your goals should not be focused on each individual game. The goals should be long-term, allowing yourself the opportunity to be at your best over a period of time, not just on one day. By focusing on one day/one-game you are actually allowing yourself an easier time to fail and not meet expectations. Yet do not mistake the fact that your focus and preparation is important for each game.

For each game you want to have the same type of preparation. You want to approach the game the same way each time and play the same way you know how to. That should be your only expectation during the long season. In baseball, you also want to be aware of your role is and what the coach expects of you. If you’re someone is expected to get on base often, then having a goal of improving your home run amount by 10% is not helping anybody.

Also, in a sport like baseball, a lot of physical motions are used in the same situation over and over again. For example, being at bat or pitching the ball are routine and rhythmic motions. Make sure you have routines/rituals that allow you to be ready and prepared each time the situations going to occur. They should be that you feel the same every time and that your approach is the same whether it’s the first inning, third inning, or bottom of the 9th. The power of a routine is in preparation is one area during a long season where you can feel comfortable, keep your confidence level up, and minimize any slumps.

Be patient and remember that a long season is collection of smaller pieces. Be prepared for the small pieces but don’t get discouraged by the small mistakes.

For more information about mental performance as well as overall athletic performance enhancement check out our websites. The links are on the right of the page.

Apr2

No More Goals, More Actions

Posted at 8:44 AM • One Comment

 

To Reach A Goal, Actions Are Most Important

To Reach A Goal, Actions Are Most Important

Goals are a major part of sport training.  As an athlete it is important to remember it is not the goals but the actions taken to achieve the goals that matter.  When creating your goals consider the following questions:

  • How long will it take to reach this goal?
  • What is my first step?
  • What results may occur due to this goal?
  • What are the various steps that are required to meet this goal?

Setting a goal is great but if you don’t know how you will reach that goal it becomes useless.   Goals should be outlines for action plans, not simply a dream.  Think about it as your destination on a map.  You may know where you are supposed to be going but you still need a route to get there.  There may even be multiple routes you can take, so that choice is up to the athlete (or coach involved).  Evaluate the options and choose what fits best into the situation.

As you create your goals be aware of the necessary actions, write them down and keep them accessible as you would the goals themselves.  It should be a stepwise process building towards your larger goal (If you are a golfer and want to add 45 yards to your drive, then you should break it down into smaller parts).  The actions should fit together and improve your performance from various angles.  See the example below:

Goal: Add 15 yards to my drive (Golf)

Actions:

  • Workout in the gym 3x week (*Set goals for performance in the gym i.e., add 20 lbs to my bench press in the next 3 weeks)
  • Improve my flexibility
  •  Hit 50 more drives per day
  • Analyze swing through video once per week
  • Spend 1 extra hour with my swing coach

For more information about mental performance as well as overall athletic performance enhancement check out our websites. The links are on the right of the page.

Mar26

Rethinking Anger: Anger Doesn’t Equal Intensity

Posted at 4:01 PM • No Comments

 

Are You Angry or Intense? There's A Difference.

Are You Angry or Intense? There's A Difference.

Getting pumped up, excited, intense, or focused are all great qualities for an athlete. Being angry isn’t one. Often athletes (and coaches) equate anger and aggressiveness with intensity. Intensity is a positive attribute, anger is a negative attribute. Intensity is based on being focused and in control; anger comes from frustration and losing control. Anger almost always has negative effect on performance. Anger causes a shift in attention, the focus becomes on what you’re angry about and not what is happening in the moment. This break in concentration causes your performance to suffer. This experience is similar to the effects of stress.

 

For example, if a basketball player thinks he/she got fouled but doesn’t get a call from the referee the focus may be on the non-call. Their focus becomes the non-call and not the current situation causing performance levels to drop. The use of concentration techniques would be helpful in breaking the cycle of anger and poor performance.

The most effective ways to do this are:

• Cue Words or Phrases (Self-talk)
Cue words/phrases can be used to trigger a particular competitive response. They help athletes narrow their focus when necessary. Cue words/phrases can be either instructional (i.e.; follow-through, relax, watch the ball) or motivational (explode, do it now, strong) to help focus on the task at hand.
• Take a personal time out
As soon as you can take a few seconds and remove yourself from the situation. Take a second to take a deep breath and think objectively about the situation that just occurred. Once that is over take another deep breath and think about what you need to do next.
• Use Performance Routines
Use pre-competition or pre-situation routines help you get focused and prepared for what is about to happen. Using routines when concentration breaks will help athletes refocus and performance will improve.

For more information about mental performance as well as overall athletic performance enhancement check out our websites. The links are on the right of the page.

Mar23

Before The Event (Elitetrack.com Post)

Posted at 9:54 PM • One Comment
Using A Routine Will Helps Performance

Using A Routine Will Helps Performance

In my last post I wrote about the importance of stress reduction.  One area of importance I mentioned was how you prepare for your competition. The time leading up to an event is arguably the most important part of the act of competing. This time can be stressful and potentially problematic. Athletes who experience anxiety may exacerbate the situation through:

· Remembering poor performances

· Doubting one’s ability

· Pressure to perform from coaches, teammates, or self

· Not having a routine

While all of these affect your performance, by addressing the last point, routines, you can combat all of the other mental hang-ups. During your physical warm-up and preparation you can begin to install a mental preparation that will keep you focused and confident. Leading up to the event your preparation should include the following in some form:

1. Feedback/evaluation – the use of video to critique past performance, coach’s evaluation, etc allow for better and more objective feedback. It forces you to be honest with yourself and not be too negative.

2. Create and use a competition plan – use visualization to experience goals and outcomes, have expectations besides winning.

3. Create and use a pre-competition routine – have a plan of how you will get ready, review your goals and expectations, go through focus exercises, and relax.

4. Control for unnecessary distractions – find time to be by yourself, listen to music, or go through some extra relaxation techniques to calm your mind.

While you cannot control everything you can work on making sure you are prepared for competition. There are many different mental skills to use it is recommended that you package them as listed above. This will allow you to control as much as possible and not be affected by uncontrollable circumstances such as: event time schedule changes, transportation problems, and illness. An athlete who is prepared will have a better chance to handle changes, distractions, or setbacks prior to or during competition.

The key to all of this is practice. You need to practices these steps and practice your mental skills regularly. Just as with any physical skill you need to practice and use these skills every time you compete.


For more information about mental performance as well as overall athletic performance enhancement check out our websites. The links are on the right of the page.

Mar21

Quick Tips – Improve Concentration, Using Goal Setting

Posted at 5:43 PM • No Comments
Get Focused

Get Focused

  1. One way to maintain focus is to set process goals for each practice or competition.
  2. The athlete will have an overall goal for which the athlete will identify a number of process goals which help focus on specific aspects of the task.
  3. For each of these goals the athlete can use a trigger word (a word which instantly refocuses the athlete’s concentration to the goal) e.g. sprinting technique requires the athlete to focus on being tall, relaxed, smooth and to drive with the elbows – trigger word could be “technique”

For more information about mental performance as well as overall athletic performance enhancement check out our websites. The links are on the right of the page.