Three (must have) keys to success in sports are good instruction, practice and repetition, and most importantly – trust in your skills. Many people have a false assumption about learning a new technique such as throwing over the top, or staying on-top of the ball. Some coaches think that once they teach athletes a new technique the athlete should be able to apply it right away. Likewise, some athletes believe that they should be able to make adjustments in their game, and have it pay off right away. Change doesn’t happen overnight. When you expect change to happen overnight […]
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02
Nov
2012
Three Keys to Success in Sports
25
Oct
2012
Developing High Levels of Confidence
Confidence is the keystone to performing at your best. When athletes are confident, their mind and body are relaxed allowing them to perform at their best. There are a few things that can be done to ensure you have the highest level of confidence possible. First of all, engineer your approach to competition so that you are doing things that you have already successfully done in the past. Just knowing that you done it successfully before, will give you confidence. Be sure you stick to your game plan. It is a common mistake of teams to see their competition […]
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17
Oct
2012
Driven From Within
To watch an athlete play any game is like watching poetry in motion. The lines are so smooth and precise and each move is made with a certain determination and strategy. As they take the inside lane in track and field or run 80 yards on a punt return in football, it is amazing to see how they move. The angles are so clean and their ability to stop on a dime is like nothing you have ever seen in life. There is a certain rhythm and timing to how the body responds in the game. Where does this […]
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09
Oct
2012
Sport Psychology Coaching
Sport psychology is the study of the psychological factors that affect participation and performance in sports. Sport psychology coaches aim to increase athletic performance by minimizing the psychological effects of poor performance and instilling the mental skill needed to attain peak performance. They work with and educate athletes, coaches, parents, teams and organizations from diverse sports background on the mental components of sport performance. Sport psychology coaches differ from sports psychologist in that there are not licensed clinical psychologists. However, all of our sports psychology coaches at Mental Edger Athletics have equal or higher levels of experience and education […]
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07
Oct
2012
A Star Rockets Rookie Faces His Fear
By CHRIS DUNCAN, Associated Press HOUSTON (AP) — Royce White couldn’t wait any longer. Last weekend, just before the Houston Rockets opened training camp, he called his agent and told him he had a problem. He needed to map out a plan for dealing with his general anxiety disorder and his fear of flying. It needed to be done before his first NBA season began. Before the brutal cross-country travel schedule kicked in and before the disorder got any worse. And if the Rockets, who drafted him 16th overall in late June, wouldn’t work with him, then he would […]
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02
Oct
2012
Taking Action Against Bully Coaches
Young athletes are bullied by coaches as well as peers, which is unacceptable in youth sports. Have your sports kids ever had a coach who yelled at, insulted or intimidated them? If so, you need to take action. We’ve got some tips—and warnings—for you about what we call “bully coaches.” Bully coaches target all kinds of young athletes. They can set their sights on kids who are overweight, small or who lack confidence, for instance. These coaches also target gifted athletes because they believe their approach will “toughen up” their athletes. Whether your athletes are underdogs or stars, your […]
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02
Oct
2012
Sport Resilience Study Questionnaire
Dear Sport Psychology Today Readers, My name is Mustafa Sarkar and I am a final year PhD student in Sport Psychology at Loughborough University. As part of my PhD, I have designed the Sport Resilience Study, research that explores how sport performers react to and deal with pressure. Any help you could provide will be much appreciated as I need to collect around 700 questionnaires. The study itself takes just fifteen minutes to complete. The only criteria for completion is that individuals need to be above the age of 18 and have participated in competitive sport in the past month […]
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26
Sep
2012
The Tennis Ball or The Egg?
The TENNIS BALL or the EGG. Who do you choose to be? It doesn’t matter that my presentation today was to a room full of young women who happened to play volleyball. The “lesson” I chose to share today was wrapped up in three (well, maybe four) , very unassuming words: “tennis ball or egg.” For it was in the answer to the question “Who do you want to be, the tennis ball or egg?” that could leave anyone to ponder. This team of girls had noticed that when they made a mistake they lost their minds, so to […]
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24
Sep
2012
How to Manage the Competition in Your Sport
Many athletes sometimes get anxious when they compete with one another. Here is a list of techniques that an athlete can use to help manage the stress of dealing with the competition. 1. Learn as much as you can on your opponent. There is always something to learn about your competition. Read the reports about your opponent and watch him or her performance. Try to figure out an angle on how you can beat your competition. This will also help to reduce your worries in the future. 2. Don’t Assume Do not assume anything about your competition whether they […]
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22
Sep
2012
Is Pressure in Sports a Myth?
Often in sport the term ‘pressure‘ is used to describe a close/tight match situation or one of importance to the individual. Pressure has been defined as “any factor or combination of factors that increases the importance of performing well on a particular occasion” by Baumeister (1984). This definition for me highlights the importance of athlete perception. How the athlete perceives the occasion and factors surrounding them will affect the importance of performing, highlighted by Baumeister (1984). When discussing pressure in sport the term ‘choking’ and anxiety will appear soon after. Choking is defined as “performing more poorly than excepted […]
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