How to improve your game with mental tricks during Covid — 19

Pandemic made us struggle in the various aspects of life. Especially, for the young athletes that had restricted access to training facilities and gyms. However, that should not stop any aspiring sportsmen to continue polishing their skills during the pandemic.

Image credit: NCAA,Sport Science Institute

Covid — 19 had an enormous impact on the mental health of many people, after all when various took away the possibility of training athletes felt a bit down. Although that should not stop anyone from striving for improvement, there are many mental skills that can influence athletes’ performance. Dr Nicole Forrester writes about the importance of mental skills:

“Mental skills training benefits anyone interested in improving their performance, whether in sport or in business…The benefits are far-reaching, teaching you the skills to perform optimally in all areas of your life.”

This time of the year can be potentially beneficial, now athletes have much more time to focus on mental skills training in order to elevate their game to the next level. The field of sports psychology offers many possibilities for athletes to enhance their performance and improve mental health. Paul Lubbers, PhD writes:

“ At higher levels of tennis competition, when physical skills and tactics of players are more comparable, psychological skills take on even greater importance.” (An Integrated Approach to Mental Skills Training)

Image credit: Springer.com

Let’s discuss what young athletes can do:

Improve concentration and focus attention.

In the times of social media such as; Twitter and Instagram. Athletes sometimes tend to allow negative comments to get in their heads. Many social media users hate their game and on-court performance. Successful athletes can not allow such to get in their heads. Training concentration and focus are crucial for a successful game.

• Really great training to improve concentration would be chess. This game requires the player to be fully focused on the board and it teaches you how to make the most significant decision in a short amount of time. Trying out chess and learning various strategies can have a significant impact on how you approach an on-court game.
• Other tricks to improve your mental health and concentration are walking, a daily walk, or running in the park or forest can clear your mind and let you go off any negative thoughts.
• Here is a useful video for you on how to manage your concentration, have a look

as well as you can read a very continent report about developing the right mental skills

Image credit: websterjournal.com

Develop self — confidence

To believe in yourself during the most difficult times shows true strength. Establishing the right confidence and mental skills to sustain in the most challenging games will definitely have a remarkable impact on your performance.

• Positive thinking is much more important than any belief. Thoughts have great power, they can either guide us or betray us. Controlling your positive thoughts is one of the mental skills that improve confidence. In order to have a grip over positiveness in your mind, remember to highlight your strengths and learn from your mistakes. Writing it down can help you clear away to master positive thinking.
• Surround yourself with role models and people that strive to improve themselves. Vince Lombardi, a very successful football coach said:

“Confidence is contagious, so his lack of confidence.” People that are around us can have either a positive or negative impact on our mental health. Find yourself people that elevate and improve you, the way you feel has an enormous impact on your performance.

• If you still struggle with developing confidence listen to the lecture by Dr Ivan Joseph or watch this video showing seven simple psychological tricks to establish self-confidence.

Stress management and anxiety.

Controlling fears and stress is a noteworthy mental skill. Anxiety can be disastrous for mental health and daily routine. Learning to dominate your fears and clear anxiety out of your head will have a great influence on your performance on-court.

Image credit: Why athletes should monitor stress — metrifit

• In order to successfully manage stress try to prioritize tasks. For example, write a short list of what needs to be done during a day or week and consecutively work on accomplishing points. That allows you to have better insight and higher control over things that you need to do. Important to note, do not overcommit yourself, have some short breaks for relaxation can help you a lot to stay more focused, and relieve stress.
• Anxiety can kill your mood and have a negative impact on your game. Controlling this disorder is crucial for the best performance. Limiting coffee and alcohol can help you a lot by feeling anxious. Well, balanced diet and nutrition are also useful to control anxiety. Even simple activities like spending time with your friends/family can have a positive influence on how you feel. When your mind is balanced your body will perform much better. These simple mental tricks will definitely have an impact on your game.
• See this article about stress management.

Psychologist Rasmus Anton when asked about simple mental tricks that can help young athletes to relieve their stress said:

“They might call up one of their sports therapists or try online therapy. Breathing exercises can be beneficial for example if you’re very anxious about the game to try breathing techniques, read about Wim Hof a dutch athlete, he’s advice about breathing techniques will help you to fight off stress before important games. Calling your coach/team leader and asking for advice and help can be of great use to your game. When you are anxious you feel very close-minded anxiety is fear sensed emotion it will predispose you to avoidance. It can drastically affect your performance in a negative way. All the help is easily accessible with one click. Also remember that, to play your best you need serenity and calmness in your mind.”

Final thoughts

In conclusion, remember to have a well-balanced diet, do not drink alcohol or coffee, take some breaks, make a list of daily tasks, surround yourself with positive people, try chess (it can really help you to think smart during important games), spend some time in nature far away from the city this will clear your head of any negative thoughts. Keep working on your craft and don’t overcommit yourself make small but consecutive steps towards success. No matter how bad it gets, do not ever give up! Believe in your skills and yourself. This will give you the confidence of a true champion.