John Couture
Schedule time into your week to do some daily breathing exercises. This will calm your mind and body, prepare you to accomplish your tasks, and can be used during pre-competition and competition.
Try some exercises on concentration. Pick a point on a wall or across the room on an object. Lock in on that one point for 30 seconds, then challenge yourself to do it for one minute. Distractions will come up; overcome them by staying locked in. If you fail (and you will), simply try again. Do this daily; vary the object and vary the distance.
Spend 5 minutes per day visualizing your game plan. Simply put yourself into a competition; use your 5 senses and experience the play … successfully. Vary the plays each day.
Watch film on yourself from games and/or practice. Describe what you were feeling / thinking during those moments. Describe what you would like to feel / think next time.
Pick a non-athletic activity (like drawing or singing) and immerse yourself into it (without your phone, other screens, etc). See how mindful you can be and complete the action without getting distracted by your thoughts.
If you become worried or nervous, engage in an action that will lead to a solution to the worry. Even writing a ‘To Do” list will be helpful to minimize worries and help solve problems.
Identify and complete self-care activities that bring a sense of calm and relaxation to you.
Stay connected with teammates and coaches. Explore new ways and new information to share with others. Support your teammates with information “give and take.” For example, pick one teammate to send a motivational quote or picture each day.
Each night, identify 3 productive things that you did that day. Did you get 1% better that day? 1 % improvements compound and lead to terrific gains over time.
Each morning, check in with your feelings, thoughts, and body language. They will dictate your production for the day, so make sure they are what you want them to be and you stay in control of them.
