While athletes spend much of their attention training their bodies, many successful players and coaches realize the importance of mental preparation. For example, former University of Illinois basketball coach, Lou Henson, utilized visualization sessions to teach offensive plays to his squad, and Adams State's successful cross-country coach, Dr. Joe Vigil, exhibited videotapes of cross-country courses to better visualize an upcoming race. An athlete’s livelihood depends upon the strength, speed, and endurance of their bodies, and more and more are turning to visualization techniques as part of their training. There are many success stories of athletes who've used visualization to rehearse their movements and plays before they ever take the field, court, or ice.
More and more, the mental aspect of training is being considered vital to a players’ and teams’ success. SportsVision Magazine rolled off the presses in early 2007 and became the first print publication in the world dedicated exclusively to the training of visual and brain skills for elite athletic performance.
Nike’s Sensory Sports Training room puts all of its emphasis on training the eyes and the mind. The center has a seven-part test that assesses visual acuity, reaction time, and eye-hand coordination. Following suit, the Dynamic Edge Sports Vision Training Center in Ottawa, Canada opened its doors to become the first standalone facility dedicated exclusively to sports vision training. Both of these facilities work on training anticipation, field vision, timing, game IQ, game tempo, reaction speed, focus and concentration. These skills have long been thought of as intangibles that were only possessed by those who were born with it. However, that school of thought is being turned on its head.
There are some simple exercises you can do before, during, and after to help improve your mental strength. First, imagine yourself in action. Visualizing yourself performing successfully helps minimize the self-doubts that may cloud your judgment at the most crucial of times. Second, imagine yourself struggling. While working out, there is perhaps no stronger form of motivation than seeing yourself fail. Imaging yourself losing in a race will only push you to run longer. Also, this will help if you are actually struggling because your mind is already prepared to deal with these sorts of circumstances. Third, learn to stop thinking! I’m sure you’ve heard athletes say there were in the “zone” when recalling great performances. Thinking too much can prevent your body from being in the zone, as you are too preoccupied with internal dialogue. You can practice this skill through meditation exercises.
Perhaps the most important aspect of a strong mind isn’t the in-game intangibles, but the training room workouts. We’ve all been there. We’ve all set challenging goals for ourselves, whether it be running 4 miles, doing 150 crunches, or even working out on a daily basis. Sure, before embarking on these tasks we are amped up, but sooner or later the mind loses its determination. 4 miles becomes 3. 150 becomes 100. We reduce working out to only twice a week. In these all too common cases, it isn’t the body that is failing, it is the mind that is betraying the body.
In the end it's athletes with a strong mind who are able to train longer than their counterparts; who have not trained their minds to have more or stronger fortitude.