mental training

Question
hello Mr. Kenward. I am a 15 year old somphomore looking to start varsity next year. I play runningback, coach tells me that I have a chance to start. But my problem is that I always get nervous before I'm about to get the ball. Can you help me?

Answer
Hello Nick

Two things can help you.  First, develop the habit of focusing on the positive.  The great pro football players do this, they ONLY think about everything they do right.  When you are getting ready to play, and when you are on the field, really flood your mind with all of the times you played great.  This really helps.

Second, mental training can build on focusing on the positive.  What you want to do is to condition yourself to feel confident on command.

Here's a mental training tool that can help you.  Get relaxed, close your eyes, and take five slow deep breaths.  Then, picture or imagine a time when you played well, when you felt confident.  Really focus in on that, everything you saw, heard, felt and experienced.  Notice how confident you are.   Now change to another time when you did great and felt confident.  Notice again how you felt.  And do it again, the same thing.  

Now, take a deep breath, and as you exhale, say to yourself, GREAT, while imagining that time when you played well and felt confident.  Do that five times, then take a deep breath, open your eyes and stretch it out.  What you've done is started to train your mind to associate a word - GREAT - with your experience of feeling confident and playing great.  The more you practice this tool, the stronger that association gets.  After you've practiced it ten times, you are ready to start practicing it on the field.  When you are on the field, or even before a game, take in a breath, exhale and say to yourself GREAT and you'll discover you'll feel more confident.  I've helped many football players improve using this skill.  The more you practice, the better you will get.

Good luck and let me know how it goes.

David

David Kenward, The Mental Coach
Sacramento, California
http://www.thementalcoach.com
Win the Mental Game: Perform better under pressure in any sport
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