You know how people say, ‘Practice makes a man perfect’. But to be a successful athlete or sportsperson is not all about practicing the sport for substantial hours. A lot goes on the mental training too. It may happen that when the Showtime arrives, your performance falls unexpectedly. You may have seen how sometimes sportspeople who have been vanquishing the test matches are suddenly underperforming in the finals. This happens when they are unable to deal with the mental pressure of winning.
Stress management is as important as the sport itself. You can learn from the interviews and podcasts how longtime sports champions are dealing with it to maintain their reputation and keep themselves sane. It doesn’t matter if you are a novice. You do not even have to be an Olympic champion. It is normal for every player to feel the stress. What will set you apart is your ability to handle it.
This guide will teach you the ways to train your minds for the big game and in general while you are playing.
There are three phases in an athlete’s life for which you can train your mind accordingly.
Phase 1: Training for long-term goals. This can be for months or years or even last for a lifetime. This determines the kind of sportsman you want to be.
Phase 2: Preparing mentally before a competition or specific performance. You can read more about it in the next section.
Phase 3: The mental strategies required during the performance.
Here are some mental skills you can develop over time.
Define Goals
Remember the times in high school when you would check the syllabus and decide how much you want to cover in a specific time? It applies to sports as well where you need to define your goals. It isn’t about winning but personal goals that you want to accomplish whether you win the match or not.
For example, you can break your own record in a day’s match.
Build Focus
Sportsmen often face a lot of distractions during games. It can be from the audience or the weather or a schedule change or an opponent causing trouble.
You have to focus on your strategies and techniques rather than minuscule issues. Also, don’t be shaken by small losses. Resiliency is the key.
Rule Your Negative Emotions
Anything can happen during the games, which may bring an enormous amount of rage, disappointment, despair, and other negative emotions. There was an instance where a cricket player of a national team came to open the innings a few hours after his father died, and he managed to score well.
You have to prepare your mind for the worst-case scenarios so that you can stay calm if they actually happen.
Use Stress to Your Advantage
Unlike popular opinion, stress can improve your performance. It will give you the much-needed boost of energy. Stress produces hormones that activate the nerve cells. The brain becomes more alert for a short time. This is the reason why many sportsmen tend to perform well under pressure.
Do The Positive Self Talk
Any great athlete practices this customarily. This will keep one motivated in tough situations. Remind yourself of your strengths, positive affirmations, or use powerful words. Much like a coach or trainer does.
Visualizing Every Move
Think about the possible outcomes and how are you going to tackle them. Sometimes sportsmen have to make judgments in the spur of the moment that becomes a decisive move. It is almost like how gamblers make moves in bookies in india
The farther you can visualize the better are your chances to win.
Control Arousal
People have their ways of controlling arousal. Some sportsmen like to be cheered and pumped up before a game and some stay as calm as a toad. The skill is to have a balance of both and regulate them to stay in the zone.
For example, if you are winning a few rounds back to back, don’t get too excited or overconfident.
Summary
Every successful athlete has their mantra to effectively deal with stress. As the body trains for strength, agility, and endurance, the mind is trained to utilize those qualities at the optimum level when required, no matter what the circumstances are. It takes years to develop these mental skills. To become a winner, start early.