Mentally Strength, Injuries and Peak Athletic Performance
15 Steps to Mental Strength in Sports
Step 7 – Mentally Strength, Injuries and Peak Athletic Performance
Unfortunately if you’re involved in competitive sports chances are good that sooner or later you’ll receive an injury or at least experience an illness.
Now I’m not saying it’s going to happen for sure and there are many players that co through their entire career without an injury or illness. But in case you find yourself as one of those athletes experiencing an injury you’ll need to be prepared to mastery these times mentally and emotionally.
When injury strikes, it will take all your mental strength to stay positive and find ways to use the setback to enhance your sport performance.
The thing with injuries and illness is that they never come at a convenient time. So you really can’t plan for them like you can off-season training. What you can do is be prepared with some mental strength tools that will help stay on track.
What does your sport do for you?
- It provides a sense of identity, I am an athlete, I am the fullback, I am a setter, etc
- Major benefits – it improves your self-esteem that affect others areas of your life, It gives you recognition of your or your team’s accomplishments
- It provides a constructive ways of dealing with stress and channel anger
You sport and athletics provide numerous benefits in addition the ones described above and when you experience a setback these can come into jeopardy.
The fact is, if you have to be sidelined you might suffer “identity confusion.” You may feel isolated, depressed, you feel like you don’t fit in, and you may even begin to question your value and self-worth
This is a time when you simply can’t “work through it” like you did when you were physically capable.
When you experience a setback is not going to be smooth sailing and stress builds up.
To help offset these experiences here a ten mental strength tips to help you rebound and perhaps use this time to help you reach peak athletic performance.
- Be sad, allow yourself to feel what you’ve lost, it’s OK to feel this way, share what you’re feeling and don’t hide from them.
- Deal with what is. Keep your mind from running over all the ‘could have been’ and ‘should have been’. Deal with the things in the now, be present.
- Set new, realist goals. You might have to set an entire new way of measuring your success. When you experience a setback you may have to start with smaller goals than you’re use to, that’s OK. Set the goals, work at them and accomplish them, then do it again, and again and again.
- Maintain a positive attitude no matter what! This is critical in healing, good thoughts enhance healing. Here’s the thing, you mind (thoughts) and body (feelings) are connected and when you think negative thoughts (your mind) your body experiences these as “bad” feelings. These bad feelings do not support good health and healing.
- Take an active part in healing. In addition to following what your physical therapist has prescribed use this time for imagery to heal. Take 5 to 10 minutes a day and see in your immigration the affected area of your body healing, mending and becoming stronger. Visualization has been demonstrated to be very effective in assisting the healing process.
- Continue to practice and work out. Do what you can. If you your upper body is out of commission, work on your lower. Use this time, if you can, to work on any “weak” areas that aren’t affected by the setback, this can include sport specific drills, sped, agility, quickness, strength, endurance or flexibility.
- Use imagery and mentally practice. This is another great to mentally rehearse your athletic performance and practice. The best place for this is with your team at the regular practice location. Not only will this keep you engaged in the team but it will provide a familiar environment so the mental rehearsal will be easier.
- Seek out support of team mates. Let them know what’s going on. They do want to support you. So don’t withdraw, fully, as best you can, participate in team function…do what you can with the team.
- Be patient. Allow the proper time to heal. Don’t be over anxious and experience a re-injury, this will only set you back further. Be patience and use the above tips to help in the process.
- If all the above don’t seem to work it’s OK to seek out a professional consoler or therapist, mental coach.
After following the above and when you come back from your setback, appreciate all things that your sport and teammates provides to you.
You see reaching peak athletic performance is all about how you deal with obstacles and setbacks. Anybody can be great with everything is going in the favor, but it takes mental strength and the heart of a champion to rise above the current situation.
When and if you experience a setback due to injury understand that normal emotional impact on the event. Create a comeback plan by using the above tips and this will help you reach athletic peak performance!
Start today to develop your mental strength for peak athletic performance by picking up a copy of “Mental Strength Training for Athletes” by going HERE.
