Mental Toughness When being Criticized Mental toughness is often seen as a physical triumph over adversity. For example, a football player who returns to action in the fourth quarter after limping off the field earlier in the game. Or a gymnast who gets back up on the balance beam to complete her routine after a hard fall. However, … Sport Psychology Article…
Facing the Worst Conditions in a Competition Were you able to concentrate on competing, or did the weather or arena mentally affect your performance? Wind, rain, snow, excessive heat, frigid temperatures, and glaring sun can affect playing surfaces and competition conditions. It is challenging to be your best when weather conditions are not optimal. But why do some … Sport Psychology Article…
How Often have ‘What Ifs’ Bombarded Your Mind? Rarely are what-ifs positive. Athletes hardly ever think, “What if I sink the next shot and win the game in overtime?” or “What if I upset my opponent and win the tournament?” Instead, what-ifs are usually negative: These internal questions are both confidence destroyers and performance-crushers. Even worse are what-if … Sport Psychology Article…
The Best Way to Turn your Performance Around Every athlete experiences rough spots or slumps, which causes periods of under performance. Many times, those athletes get in trouble when they focus on their most recent disappointing results. Many athletes fall into the trap of being mentally “nearsighted.” That is, they are consumed by their recent bad results or … Sport Psychology Article…
Self-Doubt Makes Competition Harder at a High Level When you sap your own confidence, your potential is limited… Even though you might be a talented athlete, doubts can weigh down your confidence and not allow it to grow. However, one thing compounds the problem–listening to other doubters. When your ears are open to the naysayers, you may be … Sport Psychology Article…
The Differences Between Superstitions and Routines? A superstition can be irrational because it’s based on luck. Another way of putting it is when athletes believe they will achieve positive results by engaging in a random act. Examples of athlete superstitions include: * MLB pitcher Steve Kline never washed his hat for fear of washing away his luck. *NHL … Sport Psychology Article…