{"id":19178,"date":"2024-02-29T10:36:57","date_gmt":"2024-02-29T15:36:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/?p=19178"},"modified":"2025-06-03T07:28:30","modified_gmt":"2025-06-03T11:28:30","slug":"how-this-self-talk-hurts-athletic-potential","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/how-this-self-talk-hurts-athletic-potential\/","title":{"rendered":"How this Self-Talk Hurts Athletic Potential\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/self-talk.jpg\" alt=\"How this Self-Talk Hurts Athletic Potential\n\" class=\"wp-image-19179\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/self-talk.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/self-talk-300x150.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_is_the_most_challenging_obstacle_that_holds_an_athlete_back_from_their_potential\"><\/span>What is the most challenging obstacle that holds an athlete back from their potential?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2><div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_82_2 ez-toc-wrap-center counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-transparent ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Article Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #0769bf;color:#0769bf\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #0769bf;color:#0769bf\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/how-this-self-talk-hurts-athletic-potential\/#What_is_the_most_challenging_obstacle_that_holds_an_athlete_back_from_their_potential\" >What is the most challenging obstacle that holds an athlete back from their potential?<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/how-this-self-talk-hurts-athletic-potential\/#Examples_of_self-limiting_statements_include\" >Examples of self-limiting statements include:<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/how-this-self-talk-hurts-athletic-potential\/#To_counter_this_misconception_lets_look_at_two_points\" >To counter this misconception, let&#8217;s look at two points.<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/how-this-self-talk-hurts-athletic-potential\/#Related_Sports_Psychology_Articles\" >Related Sports Psychology Articles<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/how-this-self-talk-hurts-athletic-potential\/#The_Confident_AthleteDigital_Download\" >The Confident Athlete(Digital Download)<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p>You can probably rattle off a list of obstacles, such as lack of confidence, access to training, inexperienced coaching, genetics, fear of failure, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Of course, genetics, training, and coaching are important. However, you can find resources to overcome these challenges, improve your conditioning, and build technical skills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Likewise, skills such as confidence, focus, and overcoming fear can be improved upon through mental training.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The most significant blockage to maximum achievement is the limits you place on yourself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Self-limits usually are expressed as \u201cI can\u2019t\u201d or \u201cI won\u2019t\u201d statements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Examples_of_self-limiting_statements_include\"><\/span>Examples of self-limiting statements include:<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>\u201cI can\u2019t beat that opponent.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\u201cI won\u2019t make the varsity team.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\u201cI won\u2019t make a national cut this year.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\u201cI can\u2019t make this shot.&#8221;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\u201cI won\u2019t be a starter this season.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIf you tell yourself you \u201ccan\u2019t\u201d or \u201cwon\u2019t\u201d enough times, you will accomplish less than you are capable of achieving. In other words, you will convince yourself you cannot succeed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you believe you cannot succeed, you won\u2019t be motivated to improve your skills, push yourself in practice, develop your mental skills, or find ways outside of training to lift your game to the next level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Instead of talking yourself out of succeeding, you can open yourself to your athletic potential by convincing yourself of your capacity to succeed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here is the sticking point for most athletes. Many athletes feel they are lying when they tell themselves they can achieve considerable accomplishments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"To_counter_this_misconception_lets_look_at_two_points\"><\/span>To counter this misconception, let&#8217;s look at two points.<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Most of the time, limited beliefs are not steeped in reality. In most cases, \u201cI can\u201d is more realistic than \u201cI can\u2019t.\u201d In other words, your potential is much more realistic than you think.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Telling yourself \u201cyou can\u201d is not lying to yourself but the foundation of building a case for yourself. You can build confidence by using evidence-based statements, such as, \u201cI\u2019ve been working hard. My technique has improved over the last two months. I crushed it in my last competition. If I work on my leg strength and endurance, I can finish competitions stronger.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>San Antonio Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama made NBA history by posting a \u20185&#215;5\u2019 stat line, where players record at least five points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks in a single game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Though the Spurs lost to the Los Angeles Lakers, Wembanyama finished with 27 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists, 5 steals, and 5 blocks in just 31 minutes. At the midway point of the 2023-24 season, Wembanyama leads all rookies in points, rebounds, steals, and blocks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After the game, Lebron James commented on Wembanyama\u2019s potential.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>JAMES:&nbsp;<em>\u201cHe [Wembanyama] doesn\u2019t have a ceiling. He can do whatever he wants to do in his career. It seems like he enjoys the game. It seems he puts the work in, just from the outside looking in.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When you recognize you have much more to achieve, working towards your potential becomes a challenge worthy of the effort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After you set an athletic goal, brainstorm evidence supporting that you will achieve your goals. Remember, beliefs can either limit or expand your athletic ceiling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"block-979ef383-5bc7-43ee-b8f9-249663ca1a6c\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Related_Sports_Psychology_Articles\"><\/span>Related Sports Psychology Articles<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul id=\"block-05642731-8752-4dbf-9c18-5cc4d276e821\" class=\"wp-block-list has-normal-font-size\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/how-to-grow-competition-confidence\/\">How to Grow Competition Confidence&nbsp;<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/how-to-respond-after-being-benched\/\">How to Respond After Being Benched<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/how-to-succeed-against-the-odds-in-sports\/\">How to Succeed Against the Odds in Sports<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_Confident_AthleteDigital_Download\"><\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/shop.peaksports.com\/products\/the-confident-athlete-digital\" title=\"The Confident Athlete(Digital Download)\">The Confident Athlete(Digital Download)<\/a><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"225\" height=\"250\" src=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/confident-athlete-audio250.jpg\" alt=\"The Confident Athlete Audio\" class=\"wp-image-16347\" style=\"width:160px\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>\u201c<em>The Confident Athlete<\/em>\u201d audio and workbook program helps you feel confident before you walk onto the field, track or court. You discover how to have stable and proactive confidence so you can think like a champion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>\u201cI just finished \u2018<strong>The Confident Athlete Program<\/strong><strong><\/strong>.&#8217;&nbsp;Improving confidence is a never-ending process. I think that confidence boosting is an awesome area. Having a daily mental plan for mental \u201cwork outs\u201d can turbo charge anyone\u2019s confidence level\u2026. Studying almost all of Dr. Cohn\u2019s mental game materials gives me a real EDGE over my competitions and most importantly \u2013 a boost in my daily life.\u201d<\/em><br>~Radek Sefcik, Peak Performance Sports Customer<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What is the most challenging obstacle that holds an athlete back from their potential? You can probably rattle off a list of obstacles, such as lack of confidence, access to training, inexperienced coaching, genetics, fear of failure, etc. Of course, genetics, training, and coaching are important. However, you can find resources to overcome these challenges, improve your conditioning, &#8230; <a title=\"How this Self-Talk Hurts Athletic Potential\u00a0\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/how-this-self-talk-hurts-athletic-potential\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about How this Self-Talk Hurts Athletic Potential\u00a0\">Sport Psychology Article&#8230;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":19180,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[142],"tags":[307,1127,762],"class_list":["post-19178","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports-psychology-tips","tag-confidence-for-athletes","tag-self-criticism-in-sports","tag-self-belief-in-sports"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t<!-- All in One SEO Pro 4.9.6.2 - aioseo.com -->\n\t<meta name=\"description\" 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