News from the world of mental training

HOW WE CAN FOCUS ON OUR PERFORMANCE?
21.05.2021

HOW WE CAN FOCUS ON OUR PERFORMANCE?

Do you know that feeling when we try but our mind is doing what she wants? When you are sitting at work and think it’s impossible to complete one assignment, when you are training and you can't focus on what the coach is telling you, then you do it wrong. 

It's normal, it happens to all of us. Sometimes, our mind can no longer receive new stimuli and is overloaded, so it works in sleep mode. But what if this is happening before the most important game of the season? Then it's not time to take a break or be just running or skating in game. It requires your full attention and presence of mind at a given moment.

So how can we help in terms of mental preparation or basic preparation for better performance? It is important to prepare for the day before the game. You prepare what you want to play against the upcoming opponent. After you organize your thoughts, write them down to 2-3 points and think about whether fulfilling these points will guarantee your desired sport performance. On the game day, try to go through them again and then put them aside. After that start your normal preparation for the game.

During the game, try to follow the tactical instructions of the coach and, of course, keep in mind the activities that you have defined that are important for you in this game. So what if I lose concentration in the game anyway and all of a sudden it's all going on around me? Then it is good to focus on a specific situation or stimulus in the game. This could be, for example, counting passes or watching the ball or a teammate or opponent. If you still can't get back to the game, start commenting on the situations that are in the game(just in your head), or start encouraging or coaching your teammates to get even more excited and get your mind back into the game.

We don't always know how to help ourselves to focus on the game and have full attention. At such a moment, it is good to give at least an average good performance and help the team with at least our basic skills. These basic skills we have to be able to use in every situation. Therefore, it is good not to put pressure on ourselves and create even more unnecessary pressure.  Rather this energy we can invest in our basic skills and at least make it harder for our opponent.

It is necessary to work on concentration every day, and if it does not work for us in sports, we will probably have a problem with it in everyday life. We have offered you advice on how you can quickly help in a given situation. Eliminate this problem requires systematic work focused on the ability to keep attention to the activity and help you with it. I hope you liked the recommendations and try them in the nearest possible situation and help you win over yourself and hopefully over the opponent. We keep our fingers crossed for you!