The Sports Doc Chalk Talk

Stress that occurs very quickly and prompts us to respond in an emergency-like fashion (like moving out of the way of an oncoming car) is often referred to as burst stress. Police officers, firefighters, and paramedics deal with burst stress everyday, as it is not uncommon for these people to receive emergency phone calls and quickly go from 0-100 MPH on the adrenaline scale.  Granted, athletes do not usually deal with burst stress anxiety in the same, life threatening ways as helping professionals do, but athletes do regularly deal with a wide range of stressors and emotional responses.  Athletes are especially at-risk for burst stress in fast-paced, tempo-changing sports, as well as those pressure moments in all sports when the outcome of a game hangs in the balance (Sport Success 360).

Being able to control and moderate arousal (or human energy) is a very important skill according to sport psychology research, and it is often what allows people to stay cool, calm, and collected while in the middle of otherwise stressful situations (like a police officer responding to a crime, or an athlete keeping his cool after receiving a cheap shot from an opponent).  As with most things in life, some people do a good job adjusting their focus and arousal appropriately (mental toughness), while others struggle trying to stay relaxed and focused when things become chaotic.  In sports, athletes who master mental toughness and keep it together in pressure situations are known as “clutch players,” while athletes who succumb to the pressure they experience are known as “chokers.”

If your son or daughter experiences great distress while trying to maintain focus, concentration, and calmness during pressure situations, consider the following ideas that can help:

• First, talk openly about things like stress and pressure – as well as provide examples of people (maybe even yourself) who have failed under these conditions.  Normalizing the fact that people commonly make mistakes and aren’t always perfect will help your child become more understanding and tolerant of himself when he, too, makes a mistake in a game.
• Practice stressful situations whenever you can.  For example, if you are working with your child trying to improve athletic skills, be sure to throw in surprise situations and gauge how she reacts.  Praise her hard effort and success, and shape her failures so that she can learn and improve the next time she experiences the situation.
• Use stress inoculation techniques.  Talk to your child about the reality that there will be bad games, errors, mistakes, and failure to be experienced while playing sports.  When these situations occur, teach your child how to improve his mental toughness by responding to the mistake with positive thinking and problem solving skills.  Remember, it’s not how many times we fall down, but how many times we get up.
• Dismiss the notion that only some people are gifted enough to handle pressure, while others have no control over it.  It is a myth that athletes who perform well in the clutch were “born that way,” and that other athletes can never improve in mental toughness because they weren’t born with the DNA to succeed in pressure situations.  Self-fulfilling prophecies can be quickly developed when young athletes think they “can’t” and well as they “can.”

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Athletes of all ages, levels, and sport types know from personal experience that having uncontrollable nerves (anxiety) can be a terrible hindrance when it comes to playing well.  Making things even more frustrating is when they play with comfort and confidence in practice, then seem to lose their mental toughness and fall apart in real games as their thinking becomes distorted and their bodies become filled with nervous energy.  Anxiety, therefore, can be the mediating variable when it comes to whether an otherwise talented athlete succeeds or fails in sport competition (Sport Success 360).

Today I would like to remind athletes of three important points about how anxiety directly (and negatively) impacts athletic performance.

1. Anxiety disrupts the perfect mind-body synchrony needed for sports success. When athletes are on their game, their success largely relies on automatic “muscle memory” movements that develop through their synchronized thoughts and actions.  What this means is that they trust their previous experience and success and allow themselves to simply play. Unfortunately, when athletes become nervous, self-doubt creeps in, and the result is almost always an overly-cautious, second-guessing, unsure competitor.  The result?  Previously synchronized mind-body movements become disrupted and the athlete usually tries too hard, or plays “not to lose” rather than plays to win.

2. Anxiety negatively impacts focus. When an athlete experiences high anxiety he will almost immediately begin to think internally about the symptoms rather than externally toward the next play.  This is what we call a cognitive response to anxiety.  Of course, the physiological symptoms of anxiety are tough enough to overcome, but when thinking becomes distorted and focus is directed toward the last bad play rather than the next play ahead, it’s obvious the athlete will almost always perform below his abilities.

3. The impact of anxiety on resiliency. Sport psychologists know that resiliency, or mental toughness, is often the difference when it comes to athletic success or failure.  When athletes succumb to nerves and anxiety, it literally zaps their bodies of the energy needed to pull through tough times, physical pains, and sometimes even nagging injuries.  Instead of an endorphin rush, nervous athletes actually experience the opposite — that is, they lose the energy needed for stamina.

Anxiety is not unique to sports, and is actually something that we all experience in various times of our lives.  Whether it’s the nerves associated with a first date, waiting on a test grade, or preparing for a job interview, we have all felt the impact of nervous energy at different times in our lives.  For athletes, learning to prepare for and control nervous energy is key, as it may be the single most important – yet often overlooked – variable when it comes to mental toughness and athletic success.

If you know an athlete struggling with anxiety, be sure to help him or her learn about proven strategies and techniques that can help – the Mind of Steel program is designed to do just that!

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On paper, this wasn’t supposed to happen.

Hall of Fame coach Phil Jackson, the second greatest player in NBA history Kobe Bryant, and arguably the best frontline in the NBA today (Gasol, Bynum, and Odom) – how did these guys not only lose, but get swept? (AHPS)

The L.A. Lakers lost their series to the Dallas Mavericks 4-0, leaving many fans curious how the defending champs were so easily defeated.  After all, the Lakers were expected to win another title this year, and had no injuries to stop them from winning their third in a row.   So how did Phil Jackson’s team of all stars look so terrible in getting swept by the Mavericks?

Rarely in sports do we witness a reigning champion get beaten as badly as the Lakers did this past weekend.  Unable to develop any positive mental toughness, two Laker players were ejected from the game for losing their cool (Odom and Bynum).  Sport psychologists will undoubtedly have a field day trying to figure out where it all went wrong.

Was Dallas just that good?  Late season losses would suggest the Lakers were going down long before that, as the Lakers even lost to some of the lesser NBA teams throughout the season.  Did they lose their focus?  In other words, did “winning” just become boring to these guys?

While we may never know what happened to the Lakers this season, we can certainly question the mental toughness of this team as they appeared to be disinterested in playing for their third consecutive championship this season.  This is a shame, especially considering that Phil Jackson previously stated that this would be his last season coaching.

The good news for teams across the country (basketball and beyond) is that games are never won “on paper,” and that even heavy favorites can be upended if they are not on their game.  This is an important lesson to learn for most coach and athletes in youth and interscholastic sports, as many games are lost even before they are played due to sheer fear.

If you are a parent or coach involved in youth sports, take a few minutes to process this event with your kids so that they can appreciate how in the world of sports, literally anything can happen.  The Lakers proved that no matter how many previous championships a team has won, if you are not hitting on all cylinders even the best teams can be beat.  Unfortunately, many kids miss this point, and as a result tense-up when playing against perceived championship-caliber opponents (rather than just going out and playing).

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Rory McIlroy choked in front of the world on Sunday, losing a 4-stroke lead at The Masters and finished 10 strokes off (a 14 stroke swing). After playing superbly for the first three days of the tournament, the 21 year old had a complete melt down that resulted in a number of shots that were uncomfortable to even watch.  Unfortunately, it was McIlroy’s mental toughness – not his golf game – that led to the terrible ending on Sunday (Mind of Steel)

Using a choking model to examine McIlroy’s breakdown, his anxiety had to be high going into Sundays final round – being young and inexperienced in the role of being leader at The Masters, it can be assumed that maintaining a positive, forward thinking mentality was a challenge for him. Instead of focusing on relevant thoughts (being prepared for each shot), it appeared as though he may have gotten caught up with the obvious pressure of having the world watch his every stroke (irrelevant thoughts).When athletes stop “playing to win” and begin “playing to avoid losing” the result is high anxiety, low confidence, and poor focus.

In McIlroy’s case, the fear and self-doubt he experienced resulted in high anxiety, usually manifested within the body through tight muscles, shallow breathing, increased perspiration, rapid heart rate, and butterflies in the stomach. When these symptoms appear, executing sport movements become very difficult — and this is especially difficult in a sport like golf that heavily relies on fine motor skills (otherwise known as precision movements).

Ironically, listening to the announcers at The Masters I had to laugh at their ongoing micro-analysis of what was happening — in reality, it was nothing more than McIlroy allowing the situation to control his thinking (unlike the previous three days where he controlled his thoughts and actions). No, it wasn’t the way his pinkie gripped the club (yes, this was actually mentioned), nor was it any of the other silly excuses provided throughout the day. Instead, it was simply an example of how nervous energy and self-confidence are inversely related – each operates in direct and opposite proportion to one another.

In McIlroy’s case, his nerves won on Sunday.Hopefully he will come back from this, but in order to do so he will definitely need to work with a sports psychologist or someone else capable of teaching him a few basic skills to help control nerves while maximizing human confidence and mental toughness. Clearly McIlroy has the skill set to play as a champion, but in golf (like most sports) the mental part of the game can make – or break – a championship run!Mental toughness is a crucial part of athletic success — make sure it is a part of your training regimen if you want to minimize choking and maximize sports performance.

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The idea of “pressure” is an interesting construct to examine for sports psychology professionals (Mind of Steel) when it comes to sports performance — for some athletes, typical “pressure situations” are quickly appraised as challenges, while others view the same situations as terribly frightening and overwhelming.  Pressure, therefore, is a self-imposed mind state, meaning that how an individual appraises situations will make all the difference in the world whether he has the mental toughness to want the ball at the end of a game, or hopes he doesn’t have to perform well in the clutch.

, you might ask, what exactly is pressure? Of course, pressure is not unique to any one sport, or even sports for that matter, as all human beings will from time-to-time be faced with feelings of uncertainty, loss of confidence, and in worst-case scenarios paralyzing fear that prohibits natural abilities and talents from taking over. Pressure is the cause for all of this, and mastering how to control and deal with pressure is often the variable needed to go from average to good, and good to great.

The following is a short offering of pressure, followed by a few pointers on how to minimize pressure (and maximize results):

• “Pressure” is a self-imposed construct, meaning it only exists if you let it. Nobody can make you feel pressure, and similarly, nobody can ease the pressure you feel in meaningful situations (other than you).

• The trigger for pressure is human perception. What this means is that two athletes can prepare for the same game, with one perceiving the game to be a challenge while the other sees it as a fearful threat. Can you see how these two athletes, who might be nearly equal in talent, will perform in very different ways?

• Although pressure is a mental experience (meaning you first deal with it while thinking about the upcoming event and conditions), it almost always results in physiological symptoms like rapid breathing, increased heart rate, and tighter muscles. Obviously, these conditions are more likely to make athletes fail, not succeed.

• One individual’s pressure can, and often does, impact other members on a team. This is especially true of a team leader “chokes” and other team members begin to doubt their own abilities after seeing this occur. When this happens, upsets usually follow.

• Finally, dealing with pressure (or being unable to) will make or break an athlete and his or her athletic success. Athletes who learn ways to deal with pressure develop more self-confidence and “play to win,” while athletes who succumb to self-induced pressure play hesitantly and “play to avoid losing”

The following is a quick list of tips you can use to help more effectively deal with pressure:

• Keep in mind how you perceive situations dramatically impacts how your body responds to them. If you look at important situations in life as challenges rather than threats, the experience you will have will be completely different – and better!

• Since our minds work faster than our bodies do, try learning an arousal-reducing technique for those times our brains have already decided we should be very nervous. For example, the next time you start feeling those nerves getting out of control (even though you don’t want them to), take 2-3 very deep breaths into your stomach, while at the same time using positive self talk (i.e. “stay cool and level-headed”) and maybe even add a little imagery (like thinking of a positive life experience). All of this can be done in just a few seconds, and will lead to dramatic positive results.

• Practice pressure situations. Rather than practice in comfortable, controlled conditions, try “in-vivo” experiences where you create game-like situations and try to make the experience as real as possible. This is a great way to minimize pressure as you will be developing muscle-memory skills needed for when the real game situations occur later.

• If you regularly get overly-nervous to the point where you literally “freeze” or play far below your ability, you may want to consider professional assistance. Sure, there may still be a stigma when it comes to athletes using mental health services, but ask yourself what would you rather do, get immediate help for your condition or continue to deal with the same negative anxiety over and over again?

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In sports it is not uncommon to hear about athletes “choking,” or being overcome with “the yipps.”  I previously wrote a column about choking and mental toughness for Columbus Parent magazine, providing insights pertaining to how choking occurs, as well as specific sports psychology tips to use in response to the debilitating anxiety that often prohibits athletes from playing their best (Mind of Steel).   Below is a more succinct model that reveals how human perception impacts and mediates how athletes deal with situations in sports – resulting in either good plays or “choking.”

Athletes face tough situations all the time – whether it’s working hard in practice to earn a starting spot, or trying to make a last-second free throw to win a game.  It is in these situations where the athlete must deal with fear and self-doubt, the arch enemies to sport success.  Ironically, the fear athletes experience is in large part irrational fear (meaning there is no real physical threat present).  Still, even irrational fear (i.e. “what will people think of me if I miss this shot?”) will be manifested within the body in the same exact way as real fear is experienced (like when an angry dog is running after you).  Both types of fear lead to physiological anxiety (increased heart rate, shallow breathing, and tense, tight muscles).  Of course, when these symptoms develop, focus then turns to controlling the anxiety symptoms rather than staying focused on the task at-hand (like making the free throw).   Athletes will usually tell themselves things like “Don’t miss this shot,” and guess what?  Of course, they miss the shot!

For whatever reason when we tell ourselves “don’t,” we usually do (try it – right now, don’t look behind you!).Of course, after the athlete misses the shot, negative self-talk usually occurs, leading to even more irrational fear and anxiety (and less confidence).  If this cycle continues, a slump will be the long-term result.The great news is that choking can be dramatically minimized by working smarter!  Coaches and parents who take the time to process what fears kids may be dealing with – and then work to diffuse those anxieties – will see a dramatic spike in athletic proficiency.  The even better news is that overcoming anxiety is yet another terrific athletic transferable skill!  Get started today by helping your child develop his own athletic performance improvement plan!

For more information on overcoming choking check out Mind of Steel, or Sports Success 360! www.drstankovich.com