What is flow? How to use it to improve athletic performance?
Their mind fully connects with their body, fusing peak mental performance with skill – creating an elite athlete.
In his explanation of flow, there are several components in the process:
1. Completely involved, focused, concentrating – with this either due to innate curiosity or as the result of training
2. Sense of ecstasy – of being outside everyday reality
3. Great inner clarity – knowing what needs to be done and how well it is going
4. Knowing the activity is doable – that the skills are adequate, and neither anxious or bored
5. Sense of serenity – no worries about self, feeling of growing beyond the boundaries of ego – afterwards feeling of transcending ego in ways not thought possible
6. Timeliness – thoroughly focused on present, don't notice time passing
7. Intrinsic motivation – whatever produces "flow" becomes its own reward
(Source: Austega.com)
To read the whole article, go to How to use flow to improve athletic performance?
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How stress affects athletic performance?
An athlete might be de-motivated by the stress of losing (even quit before the game is over) but motivated by the stress of competition.
Read about 1) Competition Stress, 2) Stress of Anticipated Failure, 3) Stress of Anticipated Injury, 4) Stress of Unpreparedness .
Click below to find the article:
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Practicing a positive attitude keeps us out on the road or track performing to our potential and having fun (that’s why we do it in the first place) year after year. How full is your glass?
How positive attitude helps us to reach our potential in sports?
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We discovered a nice article about building confidence in sports.
Prime confidence keeps you positive, motivated, intense, focused, and emotionally in control when you need it most. With prime confidence, you're able to stay confident even when you're not performing well (it happens to even the best athletes periodically).
Ultimately, prime confidence enables you to perform at your highest level consistently.
Five Keys to Prime Confidence
1. Preparation breeds confidence
When you have practiced well and make countless successful repetitions in practice, you will gain confidence you are able to repeat those skills in the match also.
2. Mental skills reinforce confidence
Practice self-talk, use body language, etc to gain confidence.
3. Adversity ingrains confidence.
Practice under challenging conditioning – when you are tired or there is windy while playing outdoors. Try to see those conditions as a challenge, which give you motivation instead of anxiety.
4. Support bolsters confidence.
Have people around you who support and encourage you in the times of adversity. There will be times when things are not going so well.
5. Success validates confidence.
Success builds your confidence. This doesn’t necessarily mean winning in competitions. You can create other kind of victories – learning new skills, learning to listen coaches, digging most balls in defensive drill, not committing errors in the serving drills, etc.
To read the complete articles, follow the link:
How to build confidence in sports?
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Read a short article about concentration enhancing foods and Nutrients.
How to fuel mental performance? What foods and nutrients help you to focus and perform better?
1. Green Tea (L-Theanine)
2. Carbohydrates during exercise
3. Caffeine
4. B-vitamins
5. Omega- 3’s
6. Protein
Read the full article about concentration enhancing foods and nutrients here:
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Read about strategies for coping with an injury. Check out this article if you or your athletes need support with injuries.
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We found a nice article about "how to find talents in sports?".
Athletes’ performance is not only about physical talents, so why we are so obsessed and focusing often too much on physical testing and physical abilities of potential champions?
The “big six” indicators of a player’s performance potential – the Performance Potential factors are:
- Physical abilities;
- Personality characteristics;
- Playing skills;
- Performance abilities;
- Pedigree (i.e. genetic makeup);
- Preparation ((i.e. environment, family, culture).
To read more, go to how to find talents in sports?
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Have you heard about volleyball front row attack becoming illegal?
Even though it is the beginning of April – this is not the April Fools’ joke.
Volleyball Front Row Attack and Rules Changes
We are probably used to these frequent rules changes in volleyball, but this could be a little bit upsetting..
International governing body, FIVB wants to increase the length of the rallies, since the name of game is volleyball. They want the ball to stay longer in the air.
It is more difficult to kill the ball after a counter attack (, which is the offense after the defense). That’s why FIVB has been planning to make it harder to finish the rally after the serve receive. So, if the first attack after the serve receive is defended then rallies will be longer.
Therefore they have proposed to make the front row attack illegal after the serve receive.
Want to Leave a Comment in Discussion?
Proposed New Volleyball Rules And Regulations
Middle Hitters Must Be Upset..
I am sure some middle hitters would be upset about it. They would not have a chance to hit a quick attack in the front row after the serve receive.
Is this upsetting you? Comments? Questions? Concerns?
Read More
Read more and join the discussions in Volleyball Forum Q/A in the Basic Volleyball Rules section:
Basic Volleyball Rules – Volleyball Forum Q/A
More Details
More details about the subject:
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Kids Sports – Are the Kids Expectations Too High?
Unhealthy expectations, which are not met in competition, may lead some kids very frustrated. How to help kids to have more fun in sports?
Kids Sports Psychology – How to avoid frustrations and unhealthy expectations by the kids?
Take a look at this nice sports psychology advice we discovered:
1. Discover if your kids have high expectations.
Are they thinking: “I have to get a kill every time”, “I have to put the serve over every time”, "I have to get 20 kills in each match".
2. Help kids get rid of those expectations.
They may set up those high goals themselves. Or those expectations may come from outside people.
Those expectations could be based on winning and losing – or how well they performed in the match. No more goals in which they are yearning for perfection: “I have to get 20 kills in the match”, “I have to put every serve in”.
3. Help your kids to set up smaller goals.
Set up goals which can be achieved easily.
- For example they should have a goal to “focus on one play, one serve, one shot or one spike at the time”.
- Or kids could set up a goal to make “quality serves” – you can define together what this means – for example you could set up a goal to serve with a good top spin what you have been working on in the previous week.
They should focus on something small that they can focus in the process of playing. Focus on small goals in the moment ("Now I am doing the tossing correctly, then following with a nice wrist snap"). Do not think about big goals in the process of playing ("I can't make any serving errors in this match. I have to serve every serve in"). The goals should easily achievable.
Those steps help kids to avoid disappointment and becoming frustrated. Then they perform with confidence – without focusing on the outcome, which they can’t control themselves.
Q/A and Comments about Sports Psychology in Volleyball
Submit your questions and comments in our Sports Psychology Q/A section.
http://www.volleyballadvisors.com/sports-psychology.html#INV
Source:
Cohn, P. Helping Young Athletes Cope with Frustration in Sports [video file]. Retrieved March 27, 2010, from
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0yBwmR2jeDE
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Kids sports psychology – which is more important talent or work ethic?
Talent is overrated. A talented athlete without willingness to prepare will not be successful in the long run.
Bringing up work ethic is one of the best things a parent or coach can do for the kids in sports.
We found some good suggestions for parents and coaches to develop a good work ethic in their kids.
How to Bring Up the Work Ethic?
Praise kids’ effort – not the results.
No false praise. Don’t praise, if the effort was clearly lacking.
Let kids know that athletes who have the work ethic will be successful in the long run, over the natural athletes.
Teach kids they often can’t control the outcome, but they can control the effort they put to prepare.
Tell kids you consider them a success, when they have had the will to prepare – no matter what the result is.
To read the whole article copy and paste the link below into your browser:
http://www.sacbee.com/2010/03/15/2607479/helping-your-kid-develop-a-good.html
NEW! Q/A and Comments about Sports Psychology
Submit your questions and comments in our Sports Psychology Q/A section.
http://www.volleyballadvisors.com/sports-psychology.html#INV
Have you read our article how to use sports psychology to learn some volleyball skills? Click below.
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